Beauty and the Beast

Last night was date night for the beau and I. And oh did we have a great time! We went to a local theatre, The Barter, and saw their presentation of Beauty and the Beast. It was one of the best performances of Beauty and the Beast I have ever seen! I hate to say this, but it topped Disney's performance I saw back in 2007. The singing and dancing was phenomenal and extremely impressive. The love story was done well, and there was some extra added laughs, dinner was definitely laughed off.  Last night was the annual Barter night for the theatre. Here's a little history on how it started.

During the Depression, Robert Porterfield, an enterprising young actor, returned to his native Southwest Virginia with an extraordinary proposition: Bartering produce from the farms and gardens of the region to gain admission to see a play.So on June 10, 1933, Barter Theatre opened its doors, proclaiming "With vegetables you cannot sell, you can buy a good laugh." The price of admission was 40 cents or equivalent amount of produce. Four out of five Depression-era theatregoers paid their way with vegetables, dairy products and livestock.To the surprise of many, all the seats for the first show were filled. The concept of trading "ham for Hamlet" caught on quickly. At the end of the first season, the Barter Company cleared $4.35 in cash, two barrels of jelly, and a collective weight gain of over 300 pounds.The actors performing at the building were distracted not only by the occasional squealing pig or clucking hen, but noise from the town jail, which was located directly beneath the stage. The jail space was later used as a holding area for dogs suspected of rabies. It was eventually converted into dressing rooms for Barter actors.Today, at least one performance a year celebrates the Barter heritage by accepting donations for an area food bank as the price of admission.

It was such a lovely evening and was nice to be giving back to the community at the same time. Before the show we had dinner at Allison's, which is literally a hole in the wall restaurant. However, on the inside its gourmet. Dinner was delicious, the service was entertaining, and our company was great. This was a date night for the books. I'm so glad I have such a wonderful beau who takes me to see Beauty and the Beast. 

Me and the beau

Sarah and Hunter