Bell Buckle says farewell to Shakespeare crew

There was more mirth than "sweet sorrow" in the parting held Monday night in Bell Buckle, as residents of the town said good-bye and thank you to the cast and crew of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream.'

After months of preparation, the Tennessee Shakespeare Festival production was staged the last weekend in June and the first weekend in July on the grounds of Webb School and featured Lane Davies as both director and in the role of Oberon.

During that time, the town, cast and crew worked together and got to know each other. The fire department helped with the project, and Davies was named the King of the Moon Pie Festival. It just didn't seem right, said Rodney Simmons, to just let them all leave without some sort of good-bye.

"We just thought it would be neat to give them a dinner," said Simmons, who also provided some of his famous Captain Rodney's products for the gift bags each cast and crew member received. "The Shakespeare Festival was so important to this town. This was an outstanding event for us.

"Of course," he added, laughing. "It doesn't take that much of an excuse for us in Bell Buckle to have a covered dish supper. Fourth of July, Mother's Day, Monday...."

Tennessee poet laureate and Bell Buckle legend Maggie Vaughn provided copies of her books for the gift bags -- and then she provided the entertainment. She read three of her poems, and her off-the-cuff monologue between the poetry had the out-of-towners laughing out loud.

Although final numbers weren't available yet, Simmons estimated 300-400 people attended each performance of the Festival, even the one night it was rained out.

'We had even more people that night," he said. "We had people come from Kentucky and Georgia, Memphis and Knoxville, Alabama... and a whole lot of people from Shelbyville and Bedford County. A full house every night."

Simmons said he got a kick out of reading the reviews visitors left on the web site and other blogs and forums.

"One of them wrote that we 'went from the Moon Pie Festival to Shakespeare in one week -- that must be tough,'" said Simmons. "We went from the ridiculous to the sublime."

Bell Buckle Alderman Jenny Hunt, who spent June juggling the Shakespeare Festival, the Moon Pie Festival and its 10-mile run, as well as her regular work with the Parks & Recreation department, said she felt as though the town had been hit by a whirlwind.

"This has been the best whirlwind Bell Buckle has experienced in a long time," she said.

The guests including Davies and the Shakespeare camp director Ruth Cordell, mingled with the residents -- all on a first-name and "how's your mom doing?" terms after the last few months -- and enjoyed a Southern potluck dinner of fried chicken, cheese grits, cornbread and watermelon.

"From the bottom of our hearts," said Mayor Dennis Webb. "We want to thank you for what you've done. Every performance was outstanding."

One common thread among all the speakers was the request for an encore performance -- every year.

Davies said that was a good possibility. Although he is busy preparing for the lead role in the upcoming Tennessee Repertory Theatre's production of "Sweeney Todd," he's also looking forward to next summer.

"We're thinking about doing 'Romeo & Juliet,' set around the time of the French and Indian War," he said. "But we're thinking about doing this one again, too, for those who missed it this time around."