Red Stars Twirl into Town

In August, The Willey – Perra Program suffered a loss as water, from the few rains we had, flooded their space on Main Street, Newport. In all the years of being located under 2 Main Street, water had never been an issue due to drainage pipes. But unbeknownst to those working on a project in downtown Newport, those pipes were disconnected and not reconnected. Water from the higher level of Main Street surged down under and flooded the entire space, requiring sheetrock to be removed and replaced. Lost, due to water damage or the potential for mold, was $30,000.00 in Willey-Perra inventory set for this year’s program, that has not yet been recouped. At this point, Santa needs help to make sure two hundred sixty-three children in one hundred six families have a very Merry Christmas. That number will likely grow in the next few weeks., according to Brittany Hamel, Coordinator.

In true Newport fashion, help is on the way and you can be part of it. Salt Hill Pub, Newport Fitness, Aurora Bakery, LaValley’s Building Supply, Endless Treasures, and Village Pizza are hosting trees with tags on them. Each tag represents a child in the Willey-Perra Program. The process is very easy. Take a tag, purchase the items, and return them to the same location under the tree unwrapped. Many other organizations and businesses have volunteered to donate items as well, including The Eastman Community, Newport High School, Newport Mosse and Rotary, Universal Physical Therapy, MJ Harringtons and Sugar River Bank among others.

On December 11, The Newport Opera House presents another opportunity to help with the added bonus of wonderful holiday entertainment. Coming to town are The 2022 National Champion Red Star Dance Twirlers, to benefit Willey- Perra. This afternoon matinee is rapidly becoming even more popular than the Saturday Night performances of the last twenty years. Limited table seating has been introduced and all are already sold. Open theater seating is still available.

This year’s show , written and produced by Newport native Gina Willey Hutchinson, tells the story of what Santa, Mrs Claus and the Elves do the rest of the year. We know that they make toys, but what else? Throughout the story is, not only traditional holiday music, but perennial favorites from the sixties, seventies, and eighties. All told through dance and baton twirling to rock the Opera House. The cast of twenty five includes tiny elves of age four, to “Professional Elves” in their twenties. The show features three performers who will represent the USA in the World Championships in Liverpool , England next August as well as the reigning Miss Portsmouth who will compete for Miss NH in the spring. Word has it that an Eld on a Shelf has moved from Southern New Hampshire to Newport for the show.

A special addition to the matinee format will be a Brunch at the Old Courthouse Restaurant in Newport prior to the show, with free tickets to the show included. Reservations are needed. The staff is also providing holiday refreshments for the show with a donation requested for Willey-Perra. Two huge raffle baskets and a 50/50 raffle will add more to benefit the children of Willey-Perra, as all money earned at the show goes directly to the children.

Tickets are easy to get, but the matinee format is proving to be very popular. Ticket purchase can be done at The Petal Patch Florist, 2 Main Street, Newport, or by calling the Petal Patch at 603-863- 3833 or by calling the Red Stars at 603-432-9116 or by emailing The Red Stars at [email protected]. All reserved tickets will be at the door for pick and pay at 1:30PM December 11. Limited tickets will be available at the door.