In early fall 2005, community leaders from Nashville, Indiana, approached Ball State University’s office of Building Better Communities asking for an assessment of the “state of the arts” in Brown County. Long known as Indiana’s “artist’s colony,” thanks to the popularity of T.C. Steele and other pastoral impressionist painters of the early twentieth century, Nashville was searching for a way to expand the artistic identity of the region as a destination for travelers interested not only in visual arts and crafts, but music and live performance.
Jennifer Blackmer was fortunate enough to be a part of this initial exploration, and was drawn to the Brown County Playhouse, the premier performance space of Nashville. At that time, the Playhouse was owned and operated entierly by Indiana University; the community had no input in the season and was not involve in the theater's operations in any way. As a result, the intial commitee was not able to make recommendations regarding the Playhouse, leaving a large "hole" in the area of theatre and live performance.
In 2010, Indiana University decided to cease operations of the Brown County Playhouse as a part of their theatre department. Bob Kirlin, a local realtor and the community leader responsible for contacting Ball State initially, assembled a Board of Directors to operate the Playhouse.
In 2012, Bob again contacted Ball State to follow up on a note in the initial report about Nashville being an ideal site for the creation of new work. Jennifer Blackmer was again contacted to be a part of this process, to develop an idea for new work that could be produced in the Playhouse. Thus, The Liar's Bench was born.
Though the initial proposal for the musical revolved around the music of a local Nashville artist, the project shifted in focus as it evolved. Jen was particularly inspired by "If you Don't Outdie Me," a book containing essays about people in Brown County in the 1920's and written by Dillon Bustin. The text included pictures taken by Frank Hohenburger, an inspiring outsider who photographed and wrote about Nashville.
It is through this text and other research into the Nashville of then and now that the group became familiar with the community. It is through the medium of musical theater that we hope to portray Nashville's enduring ideals and unique identity, and to show why the people who go to Nashville fall in love with it as they do. It is a tough task that the community has entrusted to us, but we are up for the challenge. Keep checking back for updates on showcase dates, times, and our progress in creating this wonderful work of art!
