By Mary Carter
EAGLE TIMES CORRESPONDENT
PLAINFIELD — In the midst of mud season in 1915, Plainfield artist, actor and resident William Howard Hart decided that his beloved town deserved a theater. The townsfolk agreed, covering the cost of a foundation connected to their twice-moved, 1798 town hall. Hart gladly paid for the rest.
An opening was scheduled for as soon as September and a debut play, The Woodland Princess, was written for the occasion by local author Louise Saunders. Saunders was married to Scribner’s editor Maxwell Perkins who, a few years later, would discover and champion budding author F. Scott Fitzgerald.
To set the scene for Saunders’ production, Hart turned to friend and fellow artist Maxfield Parrish.
With his evoking imagery and his trademark shade of blue that bears his name, Parrish ruled the golden age of illustration. Using linen from the Indian Head Mills in Nashua as his canvas, Parrish created his only fully rendered theater set. The set has since lived on through decades of town meetings, recitals, graduations, pageants, plays, dance lessons, basketball games and even the local gun club’s rifle practices.
On June 28, Parrish’s legacy was brought to light and life again with a dance exhibition.
As part of the New Hampshire Humanities 2023 Roadshow, Manchester’s NSquared Dance performed “The Shire,” an exploration of New Hampshire’s evolving regions through contemporary dance for a full house.
Performing were Eliana LaBreche, Sallie Werst, Rachel Bobek, Kelly O’Brien, Dana Mazurowski, Chelsea Kowalik, Steph Noble and Zackery Betty.
For the most part, NSquared’s troupe members are New Hampshire natives.
Speaking after the presentation, they spoke of the state’s limited opportunities for dancers and moving to New York City, only to have Covid draw an early curtain on their careers.
The lightning bolt, the force that lured them back was NSquared founder Betty.
Betty’s choreography for his work, “The Shire,” was created by his spending quiet, and often very cold, moments in the vast outdoors of the Granite State.
“It was a dream come true for us to perform in front of Maxfield Parrish’s work,” Betty said.
Nathan Duszny, who had worked extensively on Broadway, appearing in such noted shows as Finding Neverland. Accustomed to high-tech effects, Duszny was nevertheless moved by looking up at Plainfield’s hundred-plus-year-old rafters and light bulbs dipped in paint.
“The sight amazed and humbled me,” Duszny said. “This stage, this historic setting, simply must be preserved.”
Restoration was done on Parrish’s set thirty years ago and the need for preservation has come again. The town hall itself requires attention to keep away the effects of hard weather and rain. Two primary committees are working hard and have been awarded with grants from organizations such as The New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program and New Hampshire Moose Plates. Still, more is needed.
To help preserve Parrish’s one-of-a-kind work, tax deductible donations of any size can be sent to: Maxfield Parrish Stage Set Fund care of the Plainfield Historical Society, PO Box 107, Plainfield NH 03781.
To learn more about NSquared’s mission and their engaging work, visit nsquareddance.org.
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