Prescott Park Arts Festival History
32 Years in the Making (continued)

By the early 1980s, the festival had developed a consistent format of one main-stage musical production with performances on four evenings each week. The musical was complemented by a diverse series of music and dance concerts that emphasized American art forms and which highlighted local performers. Aside from live performances, the arts festival also screened movies including Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Over the years the festival has also offered a full-scale art show featuring the work of local artists.

"We always knew that we had a lot of talent here on the Seacoast," said Grace Casey. "We never could have guessed that it would still be going on 25 years later."

In the early 1980s, many of the names and faces that became synonymous with the festival were leaving their mark. Nancy and Scott Weintruab served in a variety of functions from actor to director to producer to ensure the success of the outdoor festival. Michael Warhurst, who became the head gardener of the park in 1975 and who 24 years later still tends to the famous gardens, booked much of the musical entertainment.

It was music to the ears of festival organizers when in the late-1980s Jameson French, then Chairman of the Greater Piscataqua Community Foundation, started an endowment for the festival with matching funds provided by Portsmouth entrepreneur Joseph Sawtelle. This endowment could be used to support the festival in the future. Though the endowment still exists today, it provides the festival with less than one-half of one percent of its budget.

The arts festival is supported in a variety of ways, but over the years the emphasis has been placed on corporate sponsorship and the donated dollars from those who attend events at the park. Over the years the arts festival has been supported by a virtual "who's who" of the corporate landscape. Liberty Mutual, Portsmouth Regional Hospital, Pepsi, Northland Forest Products, Blake Insurance and The Edgewood Center all have more than a 15-year sponsorship history with the arts festival. These companies, along with more than 100 businesses each year, support a truly unique festival.

What continues to be unique about the arts festival is its reliance on variety and cultural diversity. In 1978 the season included the musical Once Upon A Mattress and performances by the Eastern Brass Quintet, the Argyle Highlanders and the John Wayne movie classic Stagecoach. The 1981 season featured Annie Get Your Gun, children's art classes and a performance by the Electronic Art Ensemble. In 1989, No, No Nanette was presented alongside concerts by the Seacoast Wind Ensemble and Leon Redbone. The 1993 season featured the World War II radio play The Big Broadcast, mime Trent Arterberry and the Marvelettes. 1998 featured Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Schoolhouse Rock, Romeo and Juliet and a World Premiere work from Ballet New England.

"I have always found that the disciplines in the arts should not be separated," said Jon Kimball during the festival's 20th anniversary. "An actor can learn from a sculptor, a sculptor can learn from a violinist and a violinist can learn from a dancer."

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