As part of a year-long celebration of the Golden Era of Radio, Port Washington Play Troupe’s summer production will be “The 1940’s Radio Hour,” performing July 18, 19, 20 and 25, 26, 27 at the Landmark on Main Street (232 Main St., Port Washington), with all proceeds from the July 20 show benefiting the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults (HKNC).
“The 1940’s Radio Hour” is a play with music, telling the story of a small radio station, WOV, that has gathered in late 1942 to record a Christmas broadcast for the troops overseas. The show features many of the era’s most famous and beloved songs (from “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” to “Strike Up the Band” to “I’ll Never Smile Again,” among others) and features a large ensemble cast of colorful characters.
Play Troupe’s 2014 Golden Era of Radio Celebration marks an important 100-year anniversary in local radio history. In 1914, at the dawn of World War I, Allied ships severed Germany’s trans-Atlantic cables, cutting off communications beyond Europe. For three years, the Germans did their best to fill the gap by broadcasting from a station they’d installed in Sayville, Long Island. The U.S. eventually seized this station in 1917 upon entering the war and America’s radio dominance then spread around the world.
2014 also marks the 70th anniversary of the D-Day and the Battle of Normandy (June 6, 1944). A summer’s worth of ceremonies and celebrations recently kicked off in Europe.
At all performances (including the benefit), adult tickets are $20 and youth tickets (18 and under) are $5. Friday/Saturday performances are at 8 p.m. and Sunday performances are at 2 p.m.. More information and links to ticket sales are available at www.portwashingtonplaytroupe.com.
Port Washington Play Troupe is New York State’s oldest chartered amateur theater company, dedicated to creating outstanding work in a positive, community-minded atmosphere for every generation in Port Washington.
Operated by Helen Keller Services for the Blind, HKNC is the only comprehensive national program that provides information, referral, support, and training exclusively to youths and adults who are deaf-blind. HKNC maintains its headquarters, along with a full-service residential program, in Sands Point.
