Video: Snowstorm tested cast of ‘Fame,’ which runs Nov. 18-20 at Morristown High

Think you had it bad after last month’s freak snowstorm? Put yourself in Joe Wohlgemuth’s shoes.

The director lost four precious rehearsal days for the Morristown High School production of Fame, which runs on Nov. 18 & 19 (at 7:30 pm) and Nov. 20 (at 3 pm).

“Remember that guy hanging from the steeple?” Joe said, referring to a recent mishap that stranded workers atop the Morristown United Methodist Church. “That was me!”

But the director expects his 35 performers and 20 crew members will come through.

“The kids rose to the challenge and put in the extra effort,” Joe said.

Please click icon below for captions.

The production is based on the 1980 movie that traces the ups and downs of students at a New York performing arts high school.  The movie inspired a TV series, a stage musical, a film remake, and creation of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts by Paul McCartney.

“We added music,” said Morristown High sophomore Estefania Giraldo, who plays Coco. “It’s the kind of show that loses its essence without music.”

The cast also includes Desmond Towns as LeRoy, Carolina Alvarez as Doris and Dane Glynn as Montgomery.

Dane recently had roles as an extra in the films Men In Black 3 and The English Teacher, both scheduled for 2012 releases.

In The English Teacher, actress Julianne Moore walks down a hall and Dane, playing a high school prep student, grabs his bike and leaves the school. For Men In Black 3, he portrays a college student at an Apollo launch in the ’60s.

Dane said he prefers singing. Still…

“I could see myself doing films and TV,” said the MHS junior. “In theater, you’ve got one shot. For this (movies), we did the same scene 50 times.”

 

Warm up, chill out with free tix to Miles Davis tribute in Morristown, Nov. 5

If you’ve been in the dark all week, a victim of the snowstorm, treat yourself to a Saturday night at the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown.

You’ll still be in the dark, but the place has heat and the right kind of cool: The Miles Davis Experience.  Use the code 12Snowtober at the Mayo box office or online and score a pair of free tickets to the Nov. 5 show, 8 pm sharp. Limit: Two passes per person.  Call 973-539-8008 for details.

Here is what the Mayo says about this multimedia show:

The Miles Davis Experience recaptures the sound, historical and cultural context of a critical period of American history through the lens of jazz music and its most iconic innovator, Miles Davis. The multimedia concert features music performed by trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire – done in the manner and arrangements as first presented by Miles Davis, with photos and film clips of the era projected behind the performers.

And here is some video to whet your appetite:

Video: Morristown power outages on News 12

Here is a video piece from News 12 New Jersey about Morristown’s power outages from the Oct. 29 snowstorm. Jersey Central Power & Light has said that 95 percent of its outages statewide will be resolved by today, Nov. 3. The utility’s online map this morning shows just over 2,000 customers still out in Greater Morristown, and just under 700 out in Morris Plains.

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Morristown schools to reopen on Nov. 3; town emergency center scaling back hours

Sorry, kids. The party’s over.

Classes resume on Thursday, Nov. 3, throughout the Morris School District after three days off in the aftermath of the weekend snowstorm.

Morristown police also announced that the town’s emergency shelter in town hall is ending its overnight availability. The third-floor seniors center will function as a warming station through 8 pm this evening, Nov. 2. Residents will be able to get information there about overnight shelters in the area if they need a place to stay until electricity is restored.

Earlier on Wednesday, Jersey Central Power & Light reported nearly 4,000 customers in Greater Morristown and almost 1,500 in Morris Plains remained without power.

Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty said JCP&L was working to restore power to Manahan Village and to the Georgian Road neighborhood.

“Everybody’s pretty much at wit’s end, including myself and the administration,” said the Mayor. “I’m calling JCP&L every couple of hours and not getting a lot of information. I’m sure they’re getting swamped with calls.”

Residents on Dorothy Drive, off of Western Avenue, and on Fairmount Avenue said they still were without electricity on Wednesday.  An MG reader on Fairmount said that JCP&L made three automated calls on Tuesday telling her, incorrectly, that her power was back.

The Mayor said he is keeping his fingers crossed that JCP&L will make good on assurances that everyone will be back up no later than Friday.

The Morris School District had built four snow days into this year’s school calendar. Three of those days now have been used. The problem was downed trees and power lines that posed risks for school buses, according to a district spokesperson. And power was out for at least three schools earlier in the week.

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Morristown Mayor and town officials go door-to-door in Second Ward, still without electricity

Residents in Morristown’s Second Ward, without electricity since the weekend snowstorm, got courtesy visits on Tuesday from Mayor Tim Dougherty, police, and officials from other town agencies.

Officials discovered a diabetic resident with a medical device that needed recharging, the Mayor said. Police brought the instrument to the fire station to restore its battery, he said.

Nearly 7,000 Greater Morristown customers remained without power on Tuesday; another 2,500 in Morris Plains were in the same boat, according to Jersey Central Power & Light.

Morristown officials visited the Manahan Village apartments in the early afternoon. Residents there were holding up well, given the circumstances, the Mayor said. But many were upset about spoiled food in their refrigerators, he said, and others reported that they were unable to find or afford rooms in area hotels.

An emergency shelter will continue to operate in the seniors center on the third floor of Morristown town hall, the Mayor said. It can accommodate up to 50 people overnight. Residents also can go there just to warm up or to recharge cell phones and laptop computers.

Marion Sally, executive director of the Morristown Housing Authority, joined the Mayor on Tuesday’s outreach mission.  The Mayor said he has begun conversations with her about how to provide backup heat at the town’s federal subsidized public housing facilities during the winter.

“There has to be some sort of way to get them a different heat source,” said the Mayor, asserting that his administration will explore whether the town can mandate a backup system for power outages.

As for the performance of JCP&L, which was the target of withering criticism after Tropical Storm Irene, the Mayor said he was “a little frustrated.”

“I think communication (from the utility) was a little better during Irene. I was in contact with them every couple of hours. Now, you can go quite a while without hearing anything,” said the Mayor, echoing sentiments voiced by mayors in Madison and Summit.

But like Irene, this snowstorm caused damage more widespread than anyone anticipated, Mayor Dougherty said. Trees and power lines are down across northern New Jersey.

“I’ll hold my judgment until all the power is back up,” he said. “I’m asking people to be a little more patient. We’re putting as much pressure on JCP&L as we can.”

JCP&L has vowed to restore power to 95 percent of its affected customers by Thursday, and to everyone by Friday.

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READ MORE ABOUT TROPICAL STORM IRENE

 

 

 

Morris School District cancels classes again for Nov. 2, and ‘Rachel’s Challenge,’ because of snowstorm

The Morris School District has canceled classes for Wednesday, Nov. 2 — the third straight day of closures since the weekend snowstorm.

A spokesperson for the district, which serves Morristown, Morris Township and Morris Plains (for high school), said too many road closures and downed power lines remain across the region for safe bus transportation of 1,000 students.

The district also has postponed the Wednesday presentation of Rachel’s Challenge, a program that promotes the ideals of a student slain in Columbine in 1999.  A new date has not been chosen yet for the presentation.

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Halloween extended…with Morristown graveyard tour, Nov. 5

Have you ever seen that PBS show, Secrets of the Dead?

Well, Morristown’s departed have a few secrets, too, and you can uncover them this Saturday, Nov. 5, at 4 pm.

Bones, Stones and the Undertaker is the season’s final walking tour by the Morris County Tourism Bureau. Last weekend’s snowstorm postponed it, but local historians Carol Barkin and David Breslauer are raring to go.

They will explore the graveyard at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church on Miller Road, where Alfred Vail, inventor of the telegraph, and George and Louisa Macculloch are buried. George Macculloch, founder of Macculloch Hall, created the Morris Canal linking the Delaware and Hudson Rivers across New Jersey.

The tour guides also will discuss 19th century funerals and the role of undertakers.

The tour costs $10. Call (973) 631-5151 for reservations.

And don’t forget the rescheduled Pumpkin Illumination, tonight, Nov. 1, at 6 pm outside the Vail Mansion.

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Halloween came, it came just the same, to Morristown

It takes more than a humongous autumn snowstorm to kill Halloween.

Trick-or-treaters came from far and wide to downtown Morristown on Monday, dodging tree limbs that rained like flaming meteorites and power lines that spit sparks like rubber cobras.

They risked life and (oak) limb for one thing, and one thing only:

Free candy.

Okay, maybe we embellish a wee bit.

But it’s been a dark few days for a lot of people–thousands across northern New Jersey remain without electricity after the weekend snow–and the chance to don costumes for a couple of hours brought a lot of smiles, and warmth.

Officials in many towns, including Morristown, had urged kids to skip going  door-to-door this Halloween because of post-storm hazards. Downtown Morristown was much safer.

And so the Morristown Partnership and its member businesses deserve kudos for keeping Halloween alive.

And Michelle Yurecko of Morristown deserves some sort of special award for turning her son, 10-year-old James Endahl, into a walking can of Dr. Pepper.

Michelle performed this amazing feat by candlelight, with a battery-powered glue gun, wearing mittens. (Okay, that last part we threw in for effect. But that costume is still an amazing triumph over adversity and a testament to motherly love.)

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But the Halloween Experience doesn’t stop there. The famed pumpkin illumination has been re-scheduled for tonight, Nov. 1, at the Vail Mansion reflecting pool. So hurry up and carve that gourd!

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Morristown Mayor: Expect power back on Speedwell, Walker, Clyde Potts today

Jersey Central Power & Light has told Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty that power should be restored today, Oct 31, along Speedwell Avenue, Walker Avenue and Clyde Potts Drive.

The Mayor said at a press conference Monday that he is hopeful the entire town will be back online within 24- to 48 hours. The weekend snowstorm has knocked down trees and power lines across northern New Jersey. More than 9,000 customers in Greater Morristown remained without power this morning, according to JCP&L’s website.

“We all have heard the cracking and splitting of trees,” the Mayor said. “I never have experienced this in all the years I’ve been here.”

Morristown Mayor: Trick or treat downtown, 3 to 5 pm; skip neighborhoods

Morristown-area children should do their trick-or-treating in the downtown business district from 3 to 5 pm today, Halloween, and skip going door-to-door, to avoid the danger of falling branches from the weekend snowstorm, said Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty.

The Mayor asked residents to donate their wrapped candy to downtown businesses to distribute today. Councilwoman Rebecca Feldman will collect the candy until 2 pm in the town hall parking lot. Look for her red van.

In addition to the Morristown Partnership’s downtown trick-or-treating–look for the pumpkin face on participating shop windows–kids also can go to Morristown’s Macculloch Hall Historical Museum from 3 to 5 pm for candy.

Power has been restored to the business district. As of this morning, however, Jersey Central Power & Light still was reporting more than 9,000 customers without electricity in Greater Morristown.

The Mayor said he hopes that the whole town will be restored within 48 hours; JCP&L has said all of its customers statewide should be back online by Friday. He said the town’s emergency shelter will remain open for area residents who need a place to stay overnight, or just to warm up or recharge cell phones and laptops.

He said a handful of people stayed last night at the shelter, in the seniors center on the third floor of town hall.

Flanked by the police chief, police captains and the fire chief, the Mayor said he is confident the downtown is safe for trick or treaters.

But he reiterated that residents should use caution when they venture elsewhere in town because of the danger from falling branches or downed power lines.

He urged people to report any emergencies to 911, and to call him with any other special needs at 973-292-6629.

Acting Fire Chief Jimmy Schultz also cautioned residents to use extra care if they are using candles, gas stoves or gas generators during the power outage. At least one apartment fire was caused by a candle accident during the Hurricane Irene outages, he said.

Gas generators should be placed at least 15 feet outside the home, to avoid the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning, the fire chief said. He added: “Treat every downed wire as if it were live.”

The Mayor also asked council members to coordinate their emergency eblasts with town hall. One message this morning erroneously reported that food would be distributed at the emergency shelter, he said. The Mayor emphasized that downtown restaurants and services remain open.

He also expressed irritation with the extent of the outages.

“Again, JCP&L misjudged the storm,” the Mayor said.

Town administrator Michael Rogers said the tree damage appeared to be worse than during Irene. He asked for residents’ patience as the town Department of Public Works clears away the downed trees. Any limbs that have fallen on power lines should be reported to JCP&L at 1-888-LIGHTS.

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