Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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NOVEMBER 11-17, 2015 UCW 11 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM For almost 60 years, the congregation at Saints Helen and Constantine Greek Orthodox Church has pulled together to feed their friends and neighbors, the Fayetteville community, a delicious hot spaghetti meal. And every year, the community shows up in droves to enjoy the delicious offerings. This year, the 57th Annual Spaghetti Dinner falls on Wednesday, Nov. 18. It is a one-day only event and something that is worth attending. T his dinner is not only a t reasured t radit ion for t he Fayet tev ille communit y, it 's an event t hat pulls t he Greek cong regat ion toget her, too. More t han 40 volunteers, including 15 cook s join rank s to put toget her bet ween 12,000 and 13,000 mea ls in just 10 shor t hours. T hat equates to 4,000 lbs. of dr y past a, 900 ga llons of meat sauce and 400 lbs. of g rated cheese. Tony Kotsopoulos started helping with the event in 1989. He took over as the head chef in 1993 and has been running things ever since. The amount of work that goes into it is crazy, but when the cars start lining up at the Hellenic Center and the volunteers are bustling to fill orders, it is all worth it. Not many events get that kind of community support, and that is not lost on the volunteers. While the pasta is definitely a great reason to support the spaghetti dinner, anyone with a sweet tooth knows that the Greek Pastry Sale that happens in conjunction with the dinner is in its own right worth a trip to the Hellenic Center. Twice a year, the public is treated to delicious Greek pastries and desserts, complete with traditional recipes and presentation. The Spaghetti Dinner is one of them. The other is the Greek Festival, which happens every September. Dripping with honey, coated in powdered sugar, with coffee or on the go, the pastry sale offers a little something for anyone craving a little something sweet from the islands of the Mediterranean. The entire day-long event is a big commitment, but what is even bigger is the generosity of the Greek congregation. The World's Largest Spaghetti Dinner is a fundraiser for local nonprofits. The money raised from this event goes right back to the community. The beneficiaries might change from year to year, but the spirit behind Spaghetti Dinner does not. This is a carry-out only event. Each meal costs $7. Tickets are available at the door. This all takes place at the Hellenic Center at 614 Oakridge Ave. It runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Visit http://stsch.nc.goarch.org/spaghetti-dinner or call the church at 484-8925 for information. 57th Annual Spaghetti Dinner Planned for Nov. 18 a STAFF REPORT Jeremy Fiebig, a name familiar from his extensive work in the local theatre scene, will direct Hamlet this year at Fayet teville State Universit y. The production features FSU students. Fiebig is an assistant professor of theatre at the universit y. Hamlet, published in 1603, has stood the test of time like only truly classic literature can — because it captures truths of human existence. "I think audiences the world over are still demonstrating that Hamlet connects with them. A few weeks ago, audiences worldwide crammed into movie theaters to see the National Theatre's live stream of the play with Benedict Cumberbatch. The play matters to people because it deals with loneliness, grief, loss and heartache in an upfront way — those are things everyone deals with. But it is also very good," Fiebig says. The play runs at Fayetteville State University Nov. 19-21. Fiebig has a lot of experience directing Shakespearean plays thanks to his work with Sweet Tea Shakespeare, but there are some key differences between a production intended for a garden and one performed in an auditorium. Fiebig explains some of the differences by saying, "At FSU Theater Company, we have different goals than we do at Sweet Tea Shakespeare. FSU Theater Company is about teaching student artists and not just doing a show to do a show. With that comes the need to train a number of students on a variety of skills and practices and methods for telling stories in the theatre — not just actors, but technical crew, student designers, etc. So this Hamlet will have a full set and lighting and sound scheme that, were it a Sweet Tea Shakespeare production, would be something that would be more actor-driven. But this Hamlet production will be surrounded by audience, there'll be live music and we'll see some of that interaction that is appropriate for Shakespeare." The music of this production will also be a more modern interpretation. In addition to working to further the education of the actors, this production of Hamlet is also a tool for local high school and junior high school teachers. Bringing the story to life on the stage adds new dimensions to the characters and depth to the plot. It changes the story and can often spark a passion for the works that reading alone cannot. The hope is to also introduce students to the art form of theatre. "We've invited regional schools to participate in school performances for this and other plays for years, though our high school and junior high school performances happen somewhat less frequently. We're excited to bring guests on campus, to show them that theatre is a vibrant and necessary field for study and work," Fiebig said. General tickets purchased in advance are $10 and can be reserved by calling 672-1724. Hamlet runs from Nov. 19 through Nov. 21 in the Seabrook Auditorium. For more information, visit fsuarts. com or call672-2574. Seabrook Auditorium is located at 1200 Murchison Road, on the campus of Fayetteville State University. To Be or Not To Be Is the Question Asked During Hamlet at FSU by ERINN CRIDER Members of the church contribute their time and talents for the one-day event, whose proceeds go back into the community. ERINN CRIDER, Staff Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcom- ingweekly.com.