April Fools Follies to be held to raise money for United Way
By Becky Barclay
Published in News on March 7, 2016 1:46 PM
The first ever April Fools Follies will take place April 1 at 7 p.m. at the Paramount Theatre.
The event is being held as a fundraiser for United Way of Wayne County.
"Geoff Hulse, Kirk Keller and did an Elvis thing several years ago and we had so much fun doing it," said Wayne Alley, one of the organizers and performers. "We were sitting around one night and one of us said why don't we do a show as a fundraiser. We liked that idea and got to thinking about it."
That's how the fundraiser came about. The show will consist of some series acts and some not so serious acts -- all local people.
The serious acts include Roger Walker and his band, the Jazz Techs, singer Casey Sutton, singer-pastor Glenn Phillips, comedian and inspirational speaker Freddie Pierce, the Bullard Family of Faison, the gospel group the Preparation Singers, singer Donald Sutton, Daniel and Adam Casey on the bass and banjo, illusionist and magician Dana Ryan, the Hitmen, a cappella group, Thomas Vick on the piano, Emily Tucker, a bluegrass group and some river dancers.
On the not-so-series side of things will be Hulse, Keller, Alley, Carol Bowden, Julie Beck and Brent Hood. The stage manager will be Diane Belmont.
"The whole thing of the show, it's a Vaudeville show loosely based on Broadway," Alley said. "The program will have a serious acts and between each act will be a series of gags. They will be the corniest, worst, lousiest jokes you have ever head in your life."
Hulse, Keller and Alley will have a song called "Smell."
"I can't wait for everyone to hear it," Alley said. "We'll just say it's an unusual song."
Alley said the group doesn't have a goal for the event; they just want to sell out every seat in the Paramount, all 503.
Alley hopes it will become an annual event.
Tickets to the April Fools Follies are $15 on sale now at the Paramount box office, by calling 919-583-8432 or online at www.goldsboroparamount.com.