By Sophie Pappas
Zionsville radio-listeners are in for a treat this month when the Zionsville Radio Players, the town’s very own radio performance group, will premiere several new theatrical pieces on the air.
For the Zionsville Radio Players founders Patricia See and Susan McClelland, the birth of the players came after they had been performing in local theater.
“We both love [theater]and think it’s a lot of fun,” McClelland said. “But it’s also very time consuming.”
McClelland, who has a young daughter at home, found that theater productions were becoming less doable.
“With the Zionsville Radio Players, I can still have some creative fulfillment and be a good family member,” she said.
Soon after discovering that Zionsville has its own radio station, 91.9 WITT, McClelland asked See if she would join her in writing and performing radio plays.
“She deliberated for about a nanosecond,” McClelland said.
And so the Zionsville Radio Players were born.
With the help of Scott Uecker and Russ Maloney at WICR 88.7 FM University of Indianapolis, Jared Boomer, student station manager at WICR and the players’ production engineer, and Jim Walsh at WITT 91.9 FM, the women compiled, casted and performed one-hour-long plays for Halloween and Christmas last year.
“We were really making it up as we went,” See said of the first recordings.
Now, since May is National Short Story Month, the pair are planning to air a series of short performances. They will include “The Open Window,” by H.H. Munro, “The Monkey’s Paw,” by W.W. Jacobs and “The Yellow Wallpaper,” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
The stories will play one on successive weeks, with the first being at 5:30 p.m. May 9, followed by a new story each Friday for three weeks.
The last airing will be on May 25 when all of the stories will run back-to-back.
“I love radio because there are things you can’t do on stage but you can do on radio,” McClelland said. “And in radio it doesn’t matter if you look like the person you are playing.
“Plus,” See said. “We can rehearse in our home.”
Zionsville Radio Players will be celebrating National Short Story Month throughout the month of May by airing three classic short stories that have been adapted for radio by ZRP co-founders Susan McClelland and Patricia See. They will be broadcast on Zionsville radio WITT 91.9 FM.
The Open Window by Saki/H.H. Munro:
Friday 5/9 @ 5:30 and 9:00 p.m.
Sat. 5/10 @ 1:30 p.m.
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Friday 5/16 @ 5:30 and 9:00 p.m.
Sat. 5/17 @ 1:30 p.m.
The Monkey’s Paw by W. W. Jacobs
Friday 5/23 @ 5:30 and 9:00 p.m.
Sat. 5/24 @ 1:30 p.m.
ALL THREE SHOWS BACK-TO-BACK:
Sunday 5/25 @ 7:30-9:00 p.m.
Tune in to hear the vocal talents of Larry Adams, Dave Eckard, John Griffin, Jaime Johnson, Jim Lucas, Bill Havlin, Patty Leonardi, Roger Manning, Susan McClelland, George Piper, Leanne Piper, Patsy See, Cindy Wampler and Amanda Westendorf in these classic short stories.
Stream it live at 919witt.org.
