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A classic 'tale as old as time' will hit the Tivoli's stage for the Owen County Civic Theatre's (OCCT) 10-year anniversary.
With a cast of more than 60 being directed by Jessica Turnbull, the resourceful non-profit is working to put on the Disney classic “Beauty and the Beast.”
Due to the anniversary, Turnbull looked to the Owen County community for inspiration and chose the beloved title.
“We thought it would be nice to tip our hat to people that had been involved in a production over the last two years that was not part of our group as well,” she said.
Along with the community being a part of the decision making, Turnbull’s love of fairy tales also motivated her to direct and put on the show.
With every performance OCCT does, Turnbull hopes to educate and bring the arts to the community.
“I'm bringing the thought of community to this,” she said. “I think that's always a much bigger reason for me doing anything here. I love the arts, and I love bringing that to the community. So, anything I do, I'm trying to do through that lens.”
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One way Turnbull keeps “the thought of community” in mind is through the audition process. She’ll “rarely turn people away,” and instead, she’ll focus on what they can bring to the production. She aims to have the community involved in the process as well as providing them a learning experience.
“It's important to utilize as many people and as many skills as possible, so that you have a very community driven show, and that's more of my goal here,” she said. “Not more so than having a good show, but I think by focusing on community and viewing it through that lens, you will have a good show. You're going to bring your best because you're accessing as many talents as you can. It's a good spirit to carry to the community.”
Turnbull has decided to replicate the historical wear of the time period to make their production of the classic unique. Turnbull and the cast hope to bring the frills and ruffles of the Rococo period to the stage.
“My background in art history and just art at IU [Indiana University] makes me always identify the shows I'm doing through that lens of history and what people might have worn and even the processes of doing their hair,” Turnbull said. “I'm interested in preserving history, that's another element you can educate people with.”
Natasha “Tasha” Shaw in the role of Belle is helping with the historically accurate costumes by making her own costumes for the show.
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To ensure the accurate clothing, Shaw and Turnbull researched fabric that would’ve been used during the Rococo period, which was linen. Shaw ordered the fabric, dyed it herself to get the right shade of blue to connect it back to the cartoon movie, found a historically accurate pattern and sewed it. The whole process for the blue dress took a month.
The cast has many challenges with adapting the production to the stage, given the many different versions of the fairy tale. The most prominent being the 1991 cartoon Disney movie.
"As simple a fairy tale as it is, it has a lot of specificity to it,” Wyatt Tucker, the Beast, said. “I feel like that is its greatest strength as well as a weakness when you're trying to adapt it because everyone has all these preconceived notions about how the role should be played, what you should sound like, [and] what you look like. And I guess at the end of the day, I just respect everything that came — because of course that's what we all grew up on, and we have a great admiration for it. But that's a standard that I may or may not be able to achieve, realistically. So, it's just all about doing our best trying to live up to that, it's something that we aspire to, but not letting it overwhelm me.”
For Shaw the weight of the adaptation is personal.
“‘Beauty and the Beast' was my life growing up. I wanted to be Belle more than anything in the world. I carried books around with me before I could read because I wanted to be Belle,” Shaw said. “I came into rehearsal, knowing exactly how I wanted to play the role, and also knowing that so much of Belle’s character is who I am, too. And I guess that sets me up to a very different standard where I mostly want to put on the best show that I can for myself as opposed for a Disney-loving crowd.”
To Shaw, Belle showed that being different is a “badge of honor," and to be given the opportunity to be Belle feels like her “dreams are coming true.”
Along with the different versions and adaptations of the characters, the cast has been given the opportunity to grow in new experiences.
Tucker, as the Beast, is in a new type of role that he hasn’t been in before. In prior performances of other shows, he has been casted as comedic or villainous roles.
A role like the Beast gives him a chance to try something new.
“I never imagined that I would be in this type of role and [have] the ability to flex my dramatic muscles and really try to get my way into this type of character,” Tucker said. “It's been really, really fascinating.”
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Turnbull is joyed by Shaw’s and Tucker’s portrayals of the characters, noting that Shaw sounds similar to Disney’s animated Belle and finds Tucker’s performance of the Beast brings a “different human element.”
“He's not as ferocious. It's almost like you can see that he's a little defeated. He understands that the curse is almost forever,” Turnbull said. “So it's almost like he's given up hope, and you can see that. So, I think he's taking — from my standpoint as director witnessing how they're playing — it seems like that, and I think that's a refreshing take.”
OCCT will offer four chances for the community to be their guest with the performances taking place at Owen Valley High School’s Auditorium June 7 at 7 p.m., June 8 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and June 9 at 2 p.m.
Ticket prices are $15 for adults, $10 for students, $7 for children 12 and younger, and 2-year-olds and younger are free.
Two of the three Owen County Commissioners are new to their positions. Those new commissioners are former sheriff Sam Hobbs and David Risk.
In fact, the only commissioner who isn’t new to the position is Gary Burton, the board's former president.
At the beginning of the commissioners’ first meeting of 2025, held on Jan. 9, Hobbs was unanimously elected president of the board, and Risk was unanimously elected vice president.
Immediately following the reorganization, Hobbs gave a monologue about what can be expected from the board moving forward.
“It’s going to be kind of a lengthy meeting. We got a lot to go through. I’m not here to upset the apple cart with anybody, but I’m going to. It’s just the nature of the beast,” Hobbs began. “I base my faith off of God being in control because He is. We’re just here to do His will and try to make the best of a community that is falling apart.”
After sharing his long-standing attendance at these sorts of public meetings, Hobbs commented on a trend.
“The thing that I’ve seen in the last several years of coming to the meetings and stuff like that is the discord and dislike between the employees, whether you’re elected or appointed or whatever, has turned into a hatred. And it’s going to end. The reason I say that is we’re a team here together,” Hobbs said. “We were elected to serve the people and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. The people have a voice. You’re taxpayers. You’ll have a voice in every commissioners’ meeting. That’s only right. I expect your ideas, your vision, your goals and your solutions to some of the problems that we have.”
Hobbs then quoted Proverbs 23:19.
“This county is going to have a vision for everybody, not just for self-centered seeking thumb-sucking selfish people. I won’t tolerate it. I won’t tolerate rude behavior from nobody,” Hobbs said. “I’m in no way here to tell anybody to pack up and get going. If you’re not doing your job that’s required of you, there’s going to be a problem.”
Hobbs then said that employees are the county’s biggest liability and the county’s biggest asset.
“We’re going to work together as a team,” he said.
He then reiterated that the commissioners do not have any authority over other elected officials. He also said that commissioners should allow for autonomy and leadership from the county’s department heads saying they have a business to run.
Hobbs was clear that department heads could and should ask for guidance and help from the commissioners when needed and said the commissioners will not interfere unless asked or unless there is an issue.
“I’m new at this part [being a commissioner], but I’m not new at being around here. I’ve seen how some people have been treated and mistreated, and rest assured of one thing. That’s coming to an end, like real soon,” Hobbs said.
Then, instead of making the usual first meeting of the year liaison appointments, Hobbs announced that those appointments would not be made until February. He cited a “legal problem” but did not go into details.
“There’s some things facing this county that is going to be revealed in the next 30 to 60 days that could change the whole outlook on certain things,” he said.
One and only one liaison appointment was made, and that was for Risk to serve as the liaison for the highway department.
“Gary cannot do that because his wife works there,” Hobbs said.
Until appointments are made in February, Hobbs said that he would serve as the liaison for the auditor’s office and appointed department heads. He noted that elected officials can go to any of the commissioners that they want.
The commissioners then began with the routine business of approving the meeting minutes and claims.
In both this meeting and the Jan. 23 meeting, the commissioners addressed the extensive and inappropriate amount of out-of-cycle claims.
The board then went on to new business.
“This is where the rubber is going to meet the road for some of you,” Hobbs said, adding that it was unfortunate that not everything was going to be good news.
The first matter that was addressed was the contract with Dana Kerr for his services as county attorney.
“We’ve been through this for a couple of months. The current attorney is not here today. He is sick. We wish him the best in his recovery,” Hobbs began. “Dana is not here today, but we have to proceed with business. This has been discussed briefly in a couple commissioners meetings. The contract that the current attorney has is on a week-to-week basis at the moment.”
“Mr. Kerr’s last day will be Jan. 31. I’m not going to sit here and bad mouth him, run him down or anything like that. He did what he did and done what he’s done for what he thought was right. He’s an attorney. I do feel and I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that Mr. Kerr was led down a couple roads that he shouldn’t have had to go down. That’s my two cents worth. I think if Mr. Kerr had things to do over again, they would be done different. Again, this is my opinion.”
With that, Hobbs moved to relieve Kerr of his duties as county attorney as of Jan. 31. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
“This is not the end of this story,” Hobbs said.
After allowing him to introduce himself, the commissioners hired Tony Overholt from Frost Brown Todd Attorneys in Indianapolis. Overholt has served as the attorney for the county council. The commissioners hired Overholt, who has been an attorney for 30 years, for six months. Overholt has experience representing local government.
Overholt will be paid between $350 and $375 per hour.
There is $160,000 budgeted for the county attorney. Under Kerr’s extended 2022 contract that served from week to week until the end of January, approximately $13,000 would have been spent from the $160,000 budgeted for county legal expenses.
The council separately has budgeted approximately $40,000 for their legal expenses, as Kerr did not represent the council.
At the high end of Overholt’s rate, the county commissioners would have a total of 392 hours before exceeding the appropriation. This translates to a weekly average of roughly 7.5 hours per week without going to the county council for an additional appropriation.
During the approximately four-hour first meeting, the commissioners also:
The commissioners also held a joint meeting with the Owen County Council on Jan. 23. A story on that meeting will be made available soon on The Owen News website, theowennews.org. The commissioners met again yesterday, Feb. 6, and they will meet again at 6 p.m. on Feb. 20 in the second-floor Commissioners Room of the Owen County Courthouse, 60 S. Main St., Spencer.
In celebration of its 31st anniversary, the Owen County Community Foundation (OCCF) is thrilled to announce the return of the $1 for $1 Anniversary Match Campaign, building on the incredible success of last year’s 30th anniversary event.
In 2024, nearly $200,000 was raised to support local nonprofits serving Owen County. This year, OCCF invites donors and nonprofits to make an even greater impact.
Running from Feb. 1 through Feb. 28, this match campaign offers a $1 for $1 match for donations made to Agency and Designated funds established at OCCF. These funds specifically support the work of nonprofits serving Owen County, providing them with both immediate resources and long-term sustainability.
“Spencer Main Street, Inc., took a big step forward in 2024 by establishing an agency fund with ‘our’ Owen County Community Foundation,” Julie Coffin, President of Spencer Main Street, Inc. said. “I think we don’t even realize yet how this strengthens our organization in terms of keeping us sustainable and giving us longevity. And those are vital qualities to have because we intend to keep working to make sure that Historic Downtown Spencer continues to be the heart and center of our community for another 205 years. The first word of our mission statement is ‘collaboration,’ and we are so grateful for OCCF’s support and collaboration as we all go forward!”
How the Match Works
For every dollar donated to an eligible fund, OCCF will provide a matching gift, which is designed to strengthen nonprofits in two ways:
This model allows nonprofits to meet immediate needs while building a stable financial foundation for the future.Participating Funds
Only Agency and Designated funds are eligible for the match. These funds support a wide range of causes, including youth development, historic preservation, animal welfare, community health, and more. A full list of participating funds is available on the OCCF website or by contacting the OCCF office directly. As of Feb. 5, the following funds were included in the matching campaign:
How to Donate
Organizations can accept donations in the following ways:
Join Us in Building a Brighter Future“The success of last year’s 30th Anniversary Match Campaign was a testament to the generosity and commitment of our community,” Karah Bobeck, OCCF’s Programs and Communications Director said. “We’re excited to offer this opportunity again and look forward to seeing the incredible impact it will have for Owen County nonprofits.”Nonprofits interested in participating in this campaign and establishing a fund at the OCCF, should contact the OCCF’s office at 812-829-1725.
A Gosport home was destroyed by a fast-moving fire that broke out around 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
The first wave of firefighters and emergency personnel arrived on the scene a short time later to find heavy smoke billowing from the roof and flames engulfing the front porch of the home at 246 E. South St.
Homeowner Bryan Rogers was at home when the fire broke out and was reportedly unharmed, declining medical treatment at the scene from the Owen County Emergency Medical Service.
The American Red Cross was later contacted to help meet Rogers’ immediate emergency needs.
According to the Gosport Volunteer Fire Department, a cause for the fire was undetermined.
Firefighters estimated around 30,000 gallons of water was used to battle the morning blaze.
The Gosport VFD received mutual aid from the Owen Valley Fire Territory, Bean Blossom Township-Stinesville VFD, Owen County Sheriff’s Department and the Owen County EMS.
Fire personnel were called back to the scene around 12:30 p.m. where they were able to quickly squelch the rekindled debris at the home, located on the southwest corner of East South and South Second streets.
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