Because I needed more stuff

David and I spent the weekend at the Contemporary American Theater Festival in Shepherstown, WV. That is to say, we saw four plays in three days at Shepherdstown and stayed two nights at Casa Dad & Audrey, which meant that I got grits and bacon for breakfast, a comfy bed to sleep in, and the good pleasure of hanging out with my folks. CATF is my favorite weekend of the year.

There is always a certain amount of theater-related stuff for sale at CATF (David and I each have a ball cap and I have a spiffy red t-shirt) but this year they really got with the program. Someone finally figured out that audience members will crack their wallets open faster for intermission treats than for pretty near anything in else theater. And so this year fridges were rounded up and placed in the lobbies of the two theaters and interns sold cold drinks and ice cream treats in addition to the tchotchkes. Oh frabjous day!! Callooh! Callay! If they find a coffee maker for next year I don't think that I'll be able to stand the excitement.

There was also an audience survey which offered a 10% discount on the aforementioned tchotchkes to anyone turning in a completed survey. David and I each completed a survey and then I went shopping. They let me use David's survey to get 10% off of an overpriced - but exceedingly fetching - t-shirt that says (wait for it) "thinktheater", which I already do a lot, so I thought I might as well have it on a t-shirt. And (using my survey) on a travel mug and a director's pen, which has a little light built into it for taking notes in the dark. I also liked that the town gets a look-in, so the complete text on my very important geeky new stuff says:

Shepherstown, West Virginia

thinktheater

oldest town / newest plays / ultimate theater experience

contemporaryamericantheaterfestival

While I am grateful that an American theater festival doesn't spell it "theatre," I am still wondering if everything would have cost more if they had used spaces between the bolded words.

I don't normally buy the sorts of things that are sold in lobbies, and I rarely wear t-shirts, but obviously this week's casual Friday will have to spent inducing people to thinktheater.


* Heck, the Stage probably paid the light bill for a dozen years from the sale of the finest boxed wine in Montgomery County, available before the show and during intermission, thank you very much.