When it was built in 1926, the theater was already there. There was no renovation later to add in a theater. The home of the Westfield Woman’s Club was created with cultural arts in mind.
Over the last almost 100 years, the theater has seen its fair share of meetings, weddings, music, and theatrical performances. The robust Westfield Theatre Group has delighted audiences with cultural enrichment for over 80 years. In addition to its musicals, straight plays, and holiday shows, the group has hosted theater camps, one act plays, and murder mystery dinners. And they show no signs of slowing up any time soon.
In addition to all the work WTG does, musical events have been popping up with increasing frequency on the boards at 28 Court St.
“When I first moved to Westfield a few years ago, I was inspired by all the great musicians in town. They are just everywhere!” said Trishadee Newlin, current First Vice President of the WWC. “After joining the Woman’s Club, I wanted to figure out ways we could highlight them.”
Her first move to bring musicians to the stage was with the WWC Market. In addition to having space for crafters and vendors, she invited musicians to perform as a backdrop to the event. Musical groups ranged from soloists from high school to Nashville artists and everything in between. “I wanted people to bring people into the building. I wanted artists to show off their craft in all forms. And I hoped visitors would see the club the way I do -a unique building with endless possibilities for community and arts to come together.” The WWC Market will see its third year in 2025.
After the success of the Market, Newlin searched for other ways to bring music to the stage. A packed house for a one-night event by The Harlot Queens, a renaissance style musical comedy group, and a fantastic Allman Brothers Band tribute concert from The All Stars Tribute Band cemented her drive to continue to find more music for the stage.
Unfortunately, while the building was created with a stage and a theater, it was built in an era before air conditioners. With summer temperatures and no shade, the building is simply too hot to schedule events. The WWC effectively drops off the radar for performing arts during the hotter months. The theatre group puts in the muscle work by getting people back to the building with their fall productions.
Addressing the heat and air systems has been a priority for the WWC’s facilities committee, led by Second Vice President Kathy Hillman. The committee went over the building and came back with a long list of repair and restoration projects and have been fiercely working to find grants and financial support to accomplish their goals. Most recently, repairs have been made to the roof and the external stairs, and WTG smashed a massive fundraising campaign to install a state-of-the-art lighting system in the theater. There are still many projects, like heating and air, to tackle.
In the midst of grant seeking and writing, opportunity stuck again for Newlin. While working with Ways and Means Chair Joanne Podolski on a project to bring a professional puppet show to club in early 2025, they found out the WWC had been awarded a Festivals & Series grant by Mass Cultural Council. “The grant was just what we needed to really expand on what we are trying to do,” Newlin said. “Instead of just one event, why not have a celebration of events!” In that brainstorm, the 2025 series ‘The Sounds of Westfield’ was born.
Highlighting not only music, but the rich cultural diversity in the Westfield community, is the goal of the series. Newlin hopes to hold an event monthly, or as close as possible. Some events will be concerts, others, like the puppet show, will contain interactive or educational elements. Still confirming with musicians, the event line up will be announced in January of 2025.
A professional musician herself, Newlin admires the acoustics of the stage. “It is a beautiful place to perform. The sound is great, and now we have new lights, too. Why would you ever want to turn them off?”
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