Miss-Delectable
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A vision restored
New Mexico School for the Deaf students Monday lifted their hands into the air and wiggled their fingers -- silent applause to thank those who helped renovate their theater.
More than $77,000 of the $97,000 job already has been raised from private donations for new seats, new carpeting and other needs.
But Superintendent Ronald Stern said the best change, from a deaf perspective, is the velvety sapphire-blue curtain draped on the stage.
"It's much more deaf-friendly," Stern, who is deaf, said through an interpreter. "There's no better color than blue for signing because it's softer on the eyes and your hands show up better -- better than the red curtain that we had before."
This is the first remodel for the James A. Little Theater, which opened in 1980 and was named for the man who was the school's superintendent from 1964 to 1982.
"Deaf people need access to performing arts," explained Keri-Lynn McBride, the school's director of development and community relations. "James A. Little knew that our students needed the opportunity to be exposed to theater arts, but also to learn hands-on lighting, staging, costume design, performing, set design, that kind of stuff, and he also wanted to provide the community with a beautiful theater."
During the two years the 800-seat Lensic was closed for remodeling, the 400-plus-seat James A. Little Theater served as Santa Fe's main venue for the performing arts.
"Right now, we consider ourselves the second best theater to the Lensic," McBride said. "We have the best parking in town, better than the Lensic. ... We're widely used by very diverse groups of people, everything from our own kids' performances to the Buddhists to the state police graduation."
The School for the Deaf opened in 1885 -- the private project of Lars M. Larson, who was deaf. Two years later, the New Mexico Legislature started funding the institution.
Today, it is one of three specialty schools under the Commission on Higher Education, along with the School for the Visually Impaired in Alamogordo and New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell.
The 33-acre Santa Fe campus, established in the early 20th century, has 135 deaf and hard-of-hearing (the preferred term, rather than hearing impaired) students. In addition, its outreach program reaches 80 percent of the 600 deaf children in New Mexico.
Fundraising for the theater's remodeling began in August with a "Take Your Seat" campaign to raise $250 or more for each of the 388 permanent seats. The blue metal and plastic seats replace brown wooden ones that had little cushioning left. Fifty-two more folding chairs can be added.
Donations are still needed for 78 of the permanent seats. Donors get small brass plaques engraved with their names in the armrests.
Other expenses of the remodeling, which began in November, include:
_$19,000 for new carpeting, provided by the Walter Scott Foundation of Wyoming.
_$12,000 for the lobby and the Pat Payne Room, a meeting and serving room just off the lobby, provided by the Frost Foundation and the Messengers of the Healing Winds Foundation.
_$4,000 for the new grand curtain, provided by the Thaw Charitable Trust.
More funds are needed to landscape the grounds around the theater. Anyone looking to donate may contact Valerie Ingram at the Santa Fe Community Foundation at 988-9715.
New Mexico School for the Deaf students Monday lifted their hands into the air and wiggled their fingers -- silent applause to thank those who helped renovate their theater.
More than $77,000 of the $97,000 job already has been raised from private donations for new seats, new carpeting and other needs.
But Superintendent Ronald Stern said the best change, from a deaf perspective, is the velvety sapphire-blue curtain draped on the stage.
"It's much more deaf-friendly," Stern, who is deaf, said through an interpreter. "There's no better color than blue for signing because it's softer on the eyes and your hands show up better -- better than the red curtain that we had before."
This is the first remodel for the James A. Little Theater, which opened in 1980 and was named for the man who was the school's superintendent from 1964 to 1982.
"Deaf people need access to performing arts," explained Keri-Lynn McBride, the school's director of development and community relations. "James A. Little knew that our students needed the opportunity to be exposed to theater arts, but also to learn hands-on lighting, staging, costume design, performing, set design, that kind of stuff, and he also wanted to provide the community with a beautiful theater."
During the two years the 800-seat Lensic was closed for remodeling, the 400-plus-seat James A. Little Theater served as Santa Fe's main venue for the performing arts.
"Right now, we consider ourselves the second best theater to the Lensic," McBride said. "We have the best parking in town, better than the Lensic. ... We're widely used by very diverse groups of people, everything from our own kids' performances to the Buddhists to the state police graduation."
The School for the Deaf opened in 1885 -- the private project of Lars M. Larson, who was deaf. Two years later, the New Mexico Legislature started funding the institution.
Today, it is one of three specialty schools under the Commission on Higher Education, along with the School for the Visually Impaired in Alamogordo and New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell.
The 33-acre Santa Fe campus, established in the early 20th century, has 135 deaf and hard-of-hearing (the preferred term, rather than hearing impaired) students. In addition, its outreach program reaches 80 percent of the 600 deaf children in New Mexico.
Fundraising for the theater's remodeling began in August with a "Take Your Seat" campaign to raise $250 or more for each of the 388 permanent seats. The blue metal and plastic seats replace brown wooden ones that had little cushioning left. Fifty-two more folding chairs can be added.
Donations are still needed for 78 of the permanent seats. Donors get small brass plaques engraved with their names in the armrests.
Other expenses of the remodeling, which began in November, include:
_$19,000 for new carpeting, provided by the Walter Scott Foundation of Wyoming.
_$12,000 for the lobby and the Pat Payne Room, a meeting and serving room just off the lobby, provided by the Frost Foundation and the Messengers of the Healing Winds Foundation.
_$4,000 for the new grand curtain, provided by the Thaw Charitable Trust.
More funds are needed to landscape the grounds around the theater. Anyone looking to donate may contact Valerie Ingram at the Santa Fe Community Foundation at 988-9715.