Postcards From Paradise - A Musical Love Letter To Long Beach
*This Will Be A Live Stream Of The Show For Those Who Live Too Far Away To Attend* _The suggested donation for watching the streaming event is $7.50. You can make your donation here under BOCA or Postcards From Paradise_
First Congregational, established in 1888 — the same year as the city of Long Beach — is marking the 100th birthday of its circa-1914 historical sanctuary with an on-stage production that pays homage to the inseparable history of the city and the church.
To mark the sanctuary’s century milestone, First Congregational at Third Street and Cedar Avenue is putting on “Postcards from Paradise: A Love Letter to Long Beach.” Church officials said it will be a Broadway-quality production inside the sanctuary that tells the tale of Long Beach from its very first days.
Told on Nov. 15-16 through music, vintage news articles, hundreds of historical photos and early film footage, the production utilizes First Congregational’s 4,500-pipe organ, a 50-person cast and choir, eight-piece orchestra and partnerships with the Long Beach Historical Society and Long Beach Playhouse.
The Rev. Elena Larssen, senior minister, said much of the sanctuary (added last year to the National Register of Historical Places) looks the same as it did 100 years ago thanks to ongoing preservation efforts. The stained glass is original and so too are the mahogany pews and pulpit. The bell tower still chimes as well. And other traditions have been preserved, including the church’s longstanding choir and a newsletter called The Pilgrim.
Larssen emphasized the church’s commitment to the community, particularly to social justice, has remained constant. Being part of the United Church of Christ, First Congregational welcomes all — and its 450 members, including a large number who identify as LGBT, are a testament to the diversity of the people who live in Long Beach.
“It’s essential to who we are, and there’s been a tremendous consistency to our public service and values,” she said, adding that digging through 100 years of historical archives preserved at the church helped her and other members better appreciate First Congregational’s role in the city’s history. A timeline of events and photos have been added inside the facility for the public to enjoy.
“Our ‘Love Letter to Long Beach’ is a celebration of our community, and what we’ve been and where we are going,” she said, adding that the future looks bright with membership numbers growing and downtown continuing to see improvements.
Church member and production producer Mark Wheeler shared similar sentiments about the goal of “Postcards From Paradise,” which he said is as much or more about the city’s story as the church’s role in it. There are many parallels between what happened historically inside the church and what happened outside it.
“If you look at the city’s history, we (the church) are all over it,” he said. “This isn’t something just for the church, but for the city. We are so intertwined it is easy… What a great gift it is to tell the story of this town.”
For instance, Wheeler said the production will detail how Long Beach was once the fastest growing city in the United States, and that coincided with the church being the fifth largest in the country. That was the late 1930s, and church membership peaked at about 2,000 in the congregation.
The church also happens to be founded by Margaret Bixby, whose is considered by many to be the mother of Long Beach — she and her husband, Jotham, owned Rancho Los Cerritos.
“We’re on the same path,” Wheeler said about the history of the city and the church.
He said members of the congregation would share some of their personal stories during the production, including a man named Spicer Ramsay who will talk about surviving the 1933 earthquake and witnessing changes in the city through the decades. The production also will detail the boom years of World War II, the tragic Empire Day Disaster, the Pacific Southwest Exposition, the 1925 Beauty Parade at The Pike and other larger and lesser known elements of the city’s history.
Larssen said there’s no better stage for the production than the Italian Romanesque Revival sanctuary, which upon its opening was described by the Los Angeles Times: “Its architecture and appointments are without peer in Southern California. It is the largest church in the Southland, and with its 55-foot-high ceilings and beautiful windows, one is given the impression that he is entering one of the great Cathedrals of Europe!”
Admission to the show is free, but a $20 donation is recommended. Arrive early to get a good seat for the 8 p.m. showing on Nov. 15 and the 5 p.m. showing on Nov. 16. First Congregational is at 241 Cedar Ave. There will be a reception following both shows, which will feature Long Beach Press-Telegram columnist Tim Grobaty signing copies of his book “Long Beach Chronicles.”
Beloved by Meredith Brammeier
World premiere performance by Choral Arts Initiative
Conducted by Brandon Elliott
St. Mark Presbyterian Church
Newport Beach, California
June 14, 2019
On October 27, 2018, I awoke to reports of yet another mass shooting in the United States, this time at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Feeling distraught, angry, and helpless, I sat down at the keyboard and began composing “Beloved.”
As a Christian, I have heard 1 John 4:7-8 quoted frequently, but it seems that the lesson these words try to teach still eludes us, as evidenced by the continued acts of violence and hatred that we perpetrate against one another. “Beloved” reflects this dichotomy, juxtaposing the Biblical text with the names of multiple places in the United States that have suffered mass shootings since 1998.
The piece opens quietly with the words, “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.” As the work progresses, the sopranos and altos repeat these words while an undercurrent of indistinguishable text begins to murmur in the tenors and basses. This litany of places in which mass shootings have occurred – first as city and state names, then as names of businesses, festivals, concerts, schools, and places of worship – gradually drowns out the simultaneous Biblical text, creating a cacophony of sound that crescendos to an anguished cry followed by sudden silence. The piece concludes with a crucial phrase from 1 John, “They that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love,” followed by a return to the opening plea: “Beloved, let us love one another.”
Most composers hope that their pieces will continue to be performed for many years into the future; my hope is that this piece will soon become obsolete, a mere historical artifact to be looked upon with sorrow and regret.
Beloved is dedicated to the memory of all those who have lost their lives to gun violence, in the United States and across the world.
Text (1 John 4:7-8 [KJV] and Meredith Brammeier):
Beloved, let us love one another:
for love is of God,
(Tampa, Florida,
Las Vegas, Nevada,
Atlanta, Georgia,
Honolulu, Hawaii,
Irving, Texas,
Melrose Park, Illinois)
and everyone that loveth is born of God,
and knoweth God.
(Allegheny County, Pennsylvania,
Wakefield, Massachusetts,
Sacramento, California,
Oldtown, Idaho,
Rifle, Colorado,
South Bend, Indiana,
Huntsville, Alabama)
Beloved,
(Meridian, Massachusetts,
Birchwood, Wisconsin,
Dallas, Texas,
Kansas City, Kansas,
Goleta, California)
let us love
(Seattle, Washington,
Salt Lake City, Utah,
Crandon, Wisconsin,
Omaha, Nebraska,
San Bernardino, California)
one another.
(Tucson, Arizona,
Mount Airy, North Carolina,
Antioch, Tennessee,
Henderson, Kentucky,
Binghamton, New York,
Skagit County, Washington,
Kirkwood, Missouri)
Beloved,
(Fort Hood, Texas,
Yuma, Arizona,
Manchester, Connecticut,
Buffalo, New York,
Parkland, Washington,
San Francisco, California,
Los Angeles, California,
Hialeah, Florida,
Menasha, Wisconsin,
Grand Prairie, Texas,
Herkimer County, New York,
Norcross, Georgia,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida)
let us love
(Carson City, Nevada,
Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
Minneapolis, Minnesota,
Isla Vista, California)
one another:
(Route 91 Harvest Festival,
Borderline Bar and Grill)
for love is of God,
(Excel Industries,
Weis Market,
Fiamma, Inc.,
Advanced Granite Solutions)
and everyone that loveth
(Club 66,
Pulse nightclub,
Marathon Savings Bank,
Cracker Barrel,
IHOP,
Pine Kirk Care Center,
Westroads Mall)
is born of God, and knoweth God.
(Henry Pratt Company,
T & T Trucking,
Ed’s Car Wash,
Cascades Mall,
Salon Meritage,
Black Road Auto,
Sun Trust Bank)
Beloved,
(Pinelake Health and Rehab Center,
Capital Gazette,
Century Sixteen movie theater)
let us love
(Thurston High School,
Columbine High School,
Sandy Hook Elementary School,
Northern Illinois University,
Santa Monica College,
Youth with a Mission School,
Umpqua Community College,
Oikos University,
Virginia Tech,
Westside Middle School,
Marysville-Pilchuck High School,
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School,
Santa Fe High School,
University of North Carolina,
Red Lake Senior High School,
Rancho Tehama Elementary School,
West Nickel Mines Amish School,
Sikh Temple of Wisconsin,
The Ministry of Jesus Christ,
Sash Assembly of God,
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church,
New St. John Fellowship Baptist Church,
Living Church of God,
First Baptist Church,
Wedgwood Baptist Church,
New Life Church,
Tree of Life.)
They that loveth not knoweth not God,
for God is love.
Beloved,
let us love
one another.