Four Corners Musical Theater is drawing record crowds to Sandstone this summer with its production of “Grease.” Artistic Director Randy West said the outdoor venue’s natural backdrop, framed by sandstone bluffs and open sky, has become part of the show itself. During a past run of “Mamma Mia,” he recalled watching double rainbows appear behind the set four separate nights.
West was brought in seven years ago when Farmington’s city leaders asked him to help build a cultural arts program as part of the city’s 10-year plan. What started with what he called “baby steps” has grown into Four Corners Musical Theater, New Mexico’s only professional musical theater company. West said the troupe draws tourists from outside Farmington and gives residents, students and adults alike a hands-on outlet for teamwork, confidence and creativity.
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Transcript
There aren’t very many outdoor theaters in the nation, so this is one in a million. So it really is a gem to the community and I hope they genuinely appreciate it, which I know they do because we have tons of people here every night. And I’ll tell you, when I first got here on my tour, I saw Sandstone and I said, “What a wonderful asset. What an opportunity.” And the first show I did here coming out of COVID was Mama Mia. And we had four shows where, I mean, first of all, nobody can paint a background like that. I mean, we have this great sandstone and then this great sky behind us. And during Mama Mia, we had four shows where we had double rainbows behind, behind the set. And you, you can’t beat that. You’re Watching the local news network brought to you by Express Employment International and Dickey’s Barbecue Pit. I’m Randy West and I’m the artistic director for the city of Farmington. So we’re right now running our production of Greece. I love Greece. I, I grew up watching like movie musicals such as Greece. And I think one of the, my favorite things is being able to share with my mom all of the fun costumes and moments. The first time we wore our beauty school dropout costumes, I sent a picture to my mom and she knew exactly what it was. So I think it’s very heartfelt and just such a fun environment to be a part of and I’m definitely honored to be able to participate in a show like this, especially at a beautiful space like this. I was asked seven years ago by the city manager and the mayor to help define culture in Farmington. And I said, “Wow, I’ve been asked a lot of things, but never that before.” And I said, “Just allow me baby steps. We’ll build it by baby steps.” Farmington had a plan. Not all cities have a plan. Farmington, they brought me out. They were five years into a 10-year plan and they said we really haven’t started the culture component of that and we’d really like to see that grow for the city. We are in our seventh year technically of building Four Corners Musical Theater, which is New Mexico’s only professional musical theater company. And we are the city of Farmington’s Four Corners Musical Theater. They wanted a professional theater company as a cornerstone of the art center here. And I know some people are, you know, kind of skittish about that, but it, it actually has flourished and it is worth the, the expense and the time and the effort. And the city really does pour a lot of resources into it because they do care. And the audiences were having record audiences for Greece. So you know, the town has responded well to it and they do enjoy these shows. Every year the numbers, the attendance numbers keep, keep building. So I think it, it’s proven itself to be a formidable bulwark in, in the area. Musical theater is important to any community, but certainly we are the only professional musical theater in New Mexico in Farmington. And that brings tourists from outside town to come see the musicals that we do. Music goes to a different part of your brain than dialogue. And when you mix music and dance and dialogue, it, it affects you differently than some art forms. And we think that by having this unique thing in New Mexico, that we truly do have a cultural base that makes us unique within most of the cities in New Mexico. Musical theater is so important to communities like Farmington, New Mexico because it builds so much character, so many expectations. It builds drive, it builds motivation, it builds teamwork. It is a wonderful platform for education for students as well as for adults to try something new. Musical theater can really help you get more into Imagination Station and flexing those muscles of not being in a world full of artificial intelligence. We’re using our imagination. We’re able to play with each other. We’re learning teamwork. We’re learning how to speak with strong vocal quality and enunciation and how to hold ourselves in a more confident manner, not just to tell a story, but also for yourself. And we have people that come here and coming to Sandstone in the summer is part of their summer experience. It’s what they’ve been doing for years and we’re so thankful that we can take Four Corners Musical Theater and be a part of that. Thank you for watching this edition of the Local News Network. To learn more about Four Corners Musical Theater or to catch future shows, visit farmingtonshows.com. And for more stories like this, visit LNN.news.
