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Editor’s Note: The following information was provided by Knight Public Affairs, LLC.

The Discover Whitewater Series (DWS): Half Marathon and 5K has committed to partnering with the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club once again for its tenth anniversary race on September 18th, 2022.

This coming year, the DWS team is excited to celebrate its achievements over the past decade. Not only is the DWS hosting new events, but they will also be bringing back some of the favorites from years past. 

The DWS’ partnership with the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club has provided one of the most loved events to date. The Kiwanis pancake breakfast offers a FREE meal for all of the DWS race participants and volunteers. Family and friends can also enjoy this breakfast before the races as tickets will be available at the door for $6 a piece.

“The Kiwanis pancake breakfast is truly one of my favorite additions we’ve had over the past 10 years,” said DWS Executive Director Jeffery Knight. “It’s a great way to give families quality time together on race day and the community just loves it. I can’t wait to see our new participants enjoy their free breakfasts!” 

The Kiwanis pancake breakfast will be from 6:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the day of the race. Located conveniently right next to the race course, the breakfast will be available in the cafeteria of Whitewater’s high school.  

The Kiwanis Breakfast Club makes one of the most delicious breakfast meals in the area, and the DWS team is so grateful to partner with them again in the coming year. This exciting community event is what the DWS is all about, showcasing all that Whitewater has to offer. 

To register for the DWS visit https://RunWhitewater.com/Register. For more information about the DWS, contact Jeffery Knight at jpk@knightpublicaffairs.com or 920.728.0662. 

About the DWS

The goal of the DWS is to promote the City of Whitewater and highlight its greatest features. The DWS partners with the city, business community, university and the school district to make this a tremendous event that benefits all who participate. For more information about the race visit runwhitewater.com. For general race inquiries, email info@runwhitewater.com.

Editor’s note: The following information was received from the Young Auditorium.

Event Cancelled –  Florentine Opera’s Hansel & Gretel at Young Auditorium

Originally scheduled for Sunday, January 23rd, Young Auditorium regrets to inform our customers that this weekend’s presentation of Florentine Opera’s Hansel & Gretel has been cancelled.  Young Auditorium is currently in the process of issuing full refunds for all ticket purchasers.

Editor’s note: The following information was provided by The Community Space.

By Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com

For those who may not be acquainted with The Community Space, it is located at 834 E. Milwaukee Street in Whitewater. It is a welcoming, free community service offering food, clothing, furniture, and many other types of items with no strings attached. Donations are appreciated. Click here for their website.

The photo on the homepage is from The Community Space website.

Editor’s Note: The following information was provided by Southern New Hampshire University.

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) congratulates the following students on being named to the Fall 2021 President’s List:

Jack Foust of Whitewater

Maria Kulick of Whitewater

Michelle Czlapinski of Whitewater

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above are named to the President’s List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits; undergraduate day students must earn 12 credits in the fall or spring semester, and online students must earn 12 credits in either EW1 & EW2, EW3 & EW4, or EW5 & EW6.

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private, nonprofit institution with an 89-year history of educating traditional-aged students and working adults. Now serving more than 160,000 learners worldwide, SNHU offers approximately 200 accredited undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs, available online and on its 300-acre campus in Manchester, NH. Recognized as the “Most Innovative” regional university by U.S. News & World Report and one of the fastest-growing universities in the country, SNHU is committed to expanding access to high quality, affordable pathways that meet the needs of each learner. Learn more at www.snhu.edu.

Editor’s Note: The information below was provided by Tom Ganser.

For the cast, tech crew, pit band, and adult directors of the Whitewater High School Players production of “Footloose” in November, 2021, the joyful cheers and applause of their audiences continued into January, 2022 with 16 nominations for the 2021-22 Jerry Awards.

The play was nominated for Outstanding Orchestra and Outstanding Overall Design.

Nominees for lead actor included Olive Coburn in her role as Vi Moore, Josh Kirley (Willard Hewitt), Haley Street (Rusty), Anderson Waelchli (Rev. Shaw Moore), and Marco Wence (Ren).

Brooke Mason (Wendy Jo), Madison Strickler (Ethel McCormack), and Alex Sullivan (Urleen) were nominated in the supporting actor category.

In the category of Production Team, Jim McCulloch was nominated for Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Lighting Design, McCulloch and Kat Dunham for Outstanding Scenic Design, and Tony Hanson and Shane Kinson for Outstanding Sound Design. 

Also selected for recognition were Outstanding Costume Design and Outstanding Stage Crew.

Kayla Mikos was voted by the cast and crew as the “Footloose” Spirit Award winner who will represent the production and perform with the other Spirit winners at the Jerry Awards in June. 

The Jerry Awards program encourages, recognizes, and honors excellence in high school musical theater.   Educators, industry professionals, and theater experts review productions, provide valuable feedback and advice, and honor schools and individuals’ achievements with category-based awards.

The WHS Players have participated in the program since 2014’s “The Drowsy Chaperone” and their 2018 staging of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” was honored as an Outstanding Musical.

“Footloose” was critiqued by three reviewers who attended either the Nov. 18 or the Nov. 19 performance. 

Jim McCulloch has served as director of WHS Players productions since “Anything Goes” in 2010.

After taking a look at the 22 pages of critique of  “Footloose” provided by the three reviewers, McCulloch said, “I always enjoy reading the comments that the reviewers provide, both good and bad.  Taking into account that it is one person’s perspective, I usually find them to be fair and accurate responses to what they saw on stage.  The constructive criticism is often useful to the production team and for performers to hear.  It helps all of us to learn from the experience and work on improving our skills for future productions.”

Margaret Wheeler, Choreographer for “Footloose,” said “The feedback was good for me and for the kids.”

As an example, Wheeler commented, “It would have benefitted the kids to see themselves dancing, with a dance mirror – which all dance studios have (which we didn’t have because it was a stage) – or perhaps a video of the dance to watch during rehearsal time.”

School and student achievements will be honored and featured in an awards show held at Madison Overture Center in June and two outstanding performers will be selected to represent the program at The National High School Musical Theater Awards (The Jimmys) competition in New York City.

Selected and brief excerpts from the reviewers’ extensive comments provide insights into what made “Footloose” a success.

Ensemble – “This ensemble kicked the dust off this ‘80s-themed jukebox classic, passing around the opening verses of the title song with big energy and bigger dance moves. They articulated well, with good projection and clarity, and the harmonies grew stronger in the transition to ‘On Any Sunday.’” (Reviewer 1)

Choreography & Dancing – “Overall, the style of choreography was appropriate for the musical. Using the whole stage and the different levels that it offered was impressive. The energy level of most of the actors was fun to watch.” (Reviewer 3)

Direction – “The crew and set changes were in and out at a nice pace, and I liked seeing the actors helping as well. Actors were incredibly prepared with their blocking and entrances and exits were strong. Incredible use of the set, using the levels to see the performers, but also to take us to different places in the storyline.”  (Reviewer 2)

Musical Direction & Orchestra – “The pit orchestra itself was a pleasure to hear, blended well, and tight on transitions. I particularly loved all the different percussion elements.  Overall the pit had a nice full sound. I can only imagine the charts for this musical are over the top fun and interesting to play.” (Reviewer 2)

Scenic Design – “Ren’s bright turquoise pants and roller skates stood out for all the right reasons, and Cole Schlicher (as Chuck Cranston) looked every inch the town bad boy in his fringe.  The lighting in this production was straightforward, with bold washes in blue, purple, and turquoise.  In ‘Holding Out for a Hero,’ a bleed to deep red coincided with the lyric ‘I can feel his approach like a fire in my blood’ – a nice touch.” (Reviewer 1)

Scene Change & Crew – “The scene changes during this production were fast and clean, with no substantial issues for the run of the show.  The show was called smoothly, and the pacing of scenes worked well.”  (Reviewer 3)

The reviewers also provided comments for the lead and supporting actors, including the following.

“Willard Hewitt was played by Josh Kirley, and after the first scene I couldn’t wait to see more of his performance. Such commitment to both comedic timing and awkward mannerisms that made the audience just adore Willard. Great physicality and Josh dove 100% into being that simple country bumpkin with a warm heart and a big smile. ‘Mama Says’ was icing on the cake.” (Reviewer 2)

“With Haley Street’s Rusty, the trio that included Alex Sullivan (Urleen) and Brooke Mason (Wendy Jo) was an absolute highlight of this production, from their snappy comic timing to their coordinated dance moves in ‘Hero’ and fine harmonies in ‘Somebody’s Eyes.’ Colorful and funny, they lifted every scene they were in.” (Reviewer 1)

The spring WHS Players production will be “Cinderella” in the WHS auditorium on Feb. 18 (7 p.m.), 19 (1 p.m. and 7 p.m.), and 20 (7 p.m.).

This new staged version of the classic story has comedy, poignancy, charm, and enchantment in just the right amounts.

Editor’s Note: The following information was provided by the City of Whitewater.

The Whitewater Community Development Authority currently has a vacant seat for interested community members to apply.

The Community Development Authority of the City of Whitewater exists to promote housing and community development programs, sustainable development, economic opportunity, and increased tax-base, and empowerment of its residents to benefit the entire City of Whitewater.

Meetings are held the fourth Thursday, January through October and the third Thursday of November and December at 5:30 p.m.

The committee reviews: • Grants for qualifying startup businesses • Industrial Development Loans for manufacturing businesses • Commercial Enterprise Loans for retail and service businesses • Micro-Loan Program has a maximum loan amount of $15,000 • Façade Loan Program for exterior improvements to commercial buildings • Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for development in designated districts in the city • A no interest housing repair and rehabilitation loan program

To learn more about the committee or Economic Development department, contact Cathy Anderson, Economic Development Director at (262) 473-0148 or CAnderson@whitewater-wi.gov.

Interested in this committee or learning about the vacancy of other committees, visit https://www.whitewater-wi.gov/275/Apply-for-Boards-Commissions.

Editor’s Note: The following information was provided by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

University of Wisconsin Oshkosh officials have released the names of Whitewater students who qualified for the Dean’s List and Honor Roll in fall 2021 across its three campuses (Fond du Lac, Fox Cities and Oshkosh):

Hannah Allen, Dean’s List
James DuVal, Dean’s List
Michael Fernandez, Honor Roll
Jazmine Peterson, Dean’s List