Letters Aloud: Thanks but No Thanks

Letters Aloud has been delighting audiences with thought-provoking, relevant, hopeful, and humorous stories told through the real voices of real people via their personal correspondence. Whether hilarious or heartfelt, these letters showcase humanity’s ability to find hope, meaning, and laughter, especially when times are tough. A Letters Aloud evening is the perfect inspiration and antidote for our challenging times. PERFORMER BIOS: Letters Aloud was founded in 2013 as a way to connect modern audiences to a rapidly disappearing form of correspondence…the written letter. Each episode focuses on a central theme. Letters are carefully chosen to explore that theme and then handed over to some of Seattle’s most accomplished actors…accompanied by live music and a compelling slide show…to read out loud in a theatrical setting. Paul Morgan Stetler – Founder & Producer Paul is the creator and curator of Letters Aloud and a co-founder (and former Co-Artistic Director) of Seattle’s multi-award winning New Century Theatre Company. A well-known Seattle actor, Paul has appeared on numerous local stages over the past 20 years, including ACT Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Village Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Intiman Theatre, and Empty Space Theatre, as well as numerous regional theatres across the country. He holds a BA in English Literature at Cal State Northridge and an MFA in Theatre Arts from Penn State University. Jamie Herlich – Producer Jamie Herlich is a leader in the local performing arts arena, with a particular focus on organizational and community relationship development. She currently serves as the Director of Individual Gifts at the Seattle Repertory Theatre and serves as an adjunct professor at Seattle University. Previous professional experience includes Director of Advancement and Communications at Edmonds Center for the Arts and is a co-founding member New Century Theatre Company (NCTC) where she served as Managing Director until May 2013. Shereceived her MFA in Arts Leadership from Seattle University in 2010. BAND MEMBERS: There are 4 performers to include: a moderator, two readers and one accordion player. We discussed adding a local reader with community recognition to enhance ticket sales. This person would read a few pre-selected letters. Yvonne Odom will be a guest reader. GUEST STAR READER: Yvonne Lee Odom has been an important and influential figure in the Delray Beach community. In her day, she was most remembered for making history on September 28, 1961, as the only black student to walk the halls of Seacrest High School so that the law could be enforced! After 45 years of dedication and commitment to the Palm Beach County School District she retires as a classroom teacher. She can be identified as one of the most influential educational leaders in Palm Beach County. She has a gift of teaching that is rarely identified early in one’s career. In 1967, when she met her first classroom of students and feel in love with her title, “teacher”. “Storytelling is an art form that is thousands of years old. Letters Aloud captures the exact reason why it’s so important. This production draws from such a wide range of emotions that the audience is left crying and then laughing within a short window. Letters Aloud doesn’t need an opulent set with extravagant costume changes. It creates a profound experience with the power of the mere words. Listening to some people’s last thoughts while on this planet is an event no one will forget.” – Brandi Newton, Executive Director, Idaho Falls Arts Council TICKETS Receive 15% off tickets for the ’26-’27 Arts Garage theatre season! Subscription includes 1 ticket to each performance: Behind The Lines: A 9/11 Story; November 8, 2026 at 7pm Letters Aloud: Thanks but No Thanks; December 6, 2026 at 7pm Straight Outta Florida – Throwing Shade on the Sunshine State; January 24, 2027 at 7pm Clowns Like Me; March 21, 2027 at 7pm THEATRE SUBSCRIPTION $128 per subscription