FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Conejo Players Theatre Honors Local Arts Advocates
Thousand Oaks, CA – February 24, 2015 – Conejo Players Theatre inaugural Arts Advocate Awards was a heartfelt ceremony that honored and highlighted the amazing work of local theatre champions Richard “Dick” Johnson; Corey Fogelmanis of Disney Channel’s Girl Meets World; and the City of Thousand Oaks.
Each honoree has played a foundational part in strengthening CPT, other theatres, and the arts in general. They are shining examples of people who are guided by an appreciation of the arts, who understand their importance in the community, and who are ambassadors for art appreciation. In addition to the awards, hand-picked songs were selected for the evening’s entertainment to honor each recipient. The night was capped off with a champagne dessert reception in the backstage area of the theatre where personal thank you’s were exchanged.
Accepting the Civic Advocate Award on behalf of the City of Thousand Oaks were Mayor Al Adams and councilmember Claudia Bill-de la Peña, who spoke about the need to support the arts in our community and commented that Conejo Players was and is an important part of that design. One of the songs chosen to honor the city was The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s in His Kiss). The song was popular in 1964 – the year the city incorporated. It is also a song from the Marvelous Wonderettes – a show from the 2014 CPT season.
Introducing Dick Johnson was his son Mark Johnson, who gave a heartfelt, but mostly funny account of his father and his many years volunteering with CPT. Dick enlightened the crowd with his memorable stories his volunteer efforts at CPT. He designed and directed A Thousand Clowns in 1969 — and to date has designed and built over 50 sets and directed almost half that number of shows for the theatre. He retired his position of Executive Director several years ago, after serving 11 three-year terms. An Honorary Life Member of the Players, Mr. Johnson has received 37 CPT Harlequin Awards. The songs chosen for Mr. Johnson were “Getting to Know You” from King and I – Dick did the set design for both productions of The King and I at the theatre – one in 1969 and the other in 2008 and “I Gotta Crow” from Peter Pan – He directed it in 1984 and did the set for it again in 2012.
Corey Fogelmanis accepted the Youth Advocate Award and expressed his gratefulness for the experience he gained at Conejo Players which has led to his recent success in television. Songs chosen for Corey were “Candy Man” from Willy Wonka and “Anything’s Possible” from Seusical Jr – Mr. Fogelmanis was in both of these productions.
Deidre Parmenter, CPT President, explains the motivation for the event: “As Conejo Players Theatre starts on a journey toward solidifying our future with a new Capital Campaign, we wanted to reflect a bit on why we do what we do. The arts are hugely important to us as individuals and to our community at large. We are where we are today because of individual contributions and a supportive community. Honoring those that advocate both for Conejo Players and for the arts in general was an easy choice. It’s a tradition we hope to continue.”
Photos available per request
Candace Gray, Media Director Conejo Players
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