Brogan: 'Open A New Window'

It's not only the start of a new year but also a new decade. What better time to explore interesting new options in life.

Recently composer/lyricist Jerry Herman, a Broadway "Giant" passed away. Among his hit shows were Hello Dolly, Mame and La Cage Aux Folles. One of the popular numbers from Mame was entitled, Open a New Window. It advised you to Open a new window, open a new door. Travel a new highway, that's never been tried before...

Somehow in this time of resolutions and promises, it sounds like great advice. It's always good to mix things up and try a path that might surprisingly turn out worthwhile. On the other hand, there's always a possibility of coming up short but learning from the experience.

The picture above is from the 1969 Concord Community Players production of Mame, which was presented at the "Audi" in November of 1969. My mom directed the production and she was fortunate to have a consummate pro playing the title role - Betty Abbott, a local legend if there ever was one.

Betty was Concord's own Ethel Merman. Betty didn't need a mic to be heard throughout the theater and probably in neighboring Penacook, too. Her voice was honed from having performed professionally and if Betty was in a production, you knew you were in for an extra treat.

Betty started her career singing with bands and later with Doris Day on WLW in the mid-west, long before Doris went to Hollywood and became a superstar. In 1958, Doris and her husband Marty Melcher came to Concord to visit Betty on their way to Connecticut to make a film.

Betty spent some time on Broadway but eventually came to Concord where she and Dr. Grace Pennington "Penny" Surber, a former champion tennis player and esteemed teacher at New England College, settled on Mountain Road. Betty soon became Director of Recreation and Parks (as it was known in those days - today's its Parks and Recreation), a position she held for decades.

From her office in White's Park (Betty ALWAYS referred to it as White's Park not White Park), she oversaw and actively participated in all aspects of programming, planning and helping said programs to grow and prosper in our community. Betty never regretted her segue from professional performer to working in a small town. She once told me that she was nervous about changing the direction of her life for precisely five minutes and then never looked back.

I was fortunate in the 1970's to have the opportunity to play the piano for Betty for a number of appearances. She treated me like a professional, spelling out what she wanted to accomplish with a song and offering suggestions to me as to how I might further enhance our performances with particular flourish or changes in tempo and key. The half a dozen appearances we did together were wonderful lessons in professionalism.

Whenever I would visit Doris Day in California, she would ask me when Betty and I would be coming out west to do a concert because she wanted to attend. Sadly that never happened because Betty retired from the City in 1980 and moved South.

However, she was a living example of taking a chance on something different and finding a whole new life and career as well as impacting the lives of thousands who enjoyed the advances she helped to promote within our local parks.

Betty didn't suffer fools gladly, but once you were her friend, nothing could shake that.

As 2020 begins, look for opportunities to open that new window or at the very least, raise the shade and see what you find.

Happy New Year to all Patch readers.