Army ABC's

Being in Schweinfurt with Garland Travis is like experiencing a crash course in Army lingo. There are lots of acronyms which I'm slowly learning and lots of protocol, about which I'm just scratching the surface. From the outside, it may seem confusing (okay, it definitely IS confusing) but somehow, when you are in it, you learn what you need to know.

Here's a bit of what I've been learning: MWR is the area under which the theatre programs fall. It stands for Morale, Welfare and Recreation, but actually the name is Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation. Nobody has gotten around to changing all of the signs yet, so most people still call it MWR. In addition to the Entertainment Division, which includes theatre, bands, talent contests, etc., it also includes Fitness (AFRC, which stands for Armed Forces Recreation Centers) and Libraries, among other areas (such as bowling, officers' and other clubs on base, etc.) Evidently, certain areas are line-itemed in the budget and others are discretionary. (Guess where theatre fits in?!?!?) The theatres are supported by funding from the Garrison commanders, money they earn, money they raise, etc. That's why the theatre programs on the different bases are so varied, both with production facilities, but also in quality of the technical elements. In addition, some communities have developed a volunteer base who not only perform in the shows, but also do the backstage and front-of-house jobs. There is an Entertainment Director for each base who is responsible for the budget for the theatre and other programs they are running on the base. (Travis is the Director, here at Schweinfurt; Dan LaMorte at SHAPE in Belgium, etc.)

Over the years, what Jim Sohre has been able to do is to create a division of the American Association of Community Theaters (AACT) for the Army theaters. He has worked hard with each base's Entertainment Director to help them develop their programs, so that at the very least they can participate in the AACT's One-Act Play Competition in the Fall and the Tournament of Plays in the Winter/Spring (where I am now.) Winners of this competition go on to the "Nationals" in the States to compete with the winners of the other AACT Divisions. Some bases provide full seasons of theatrical productions; others do the minimum. Jim has even arranged for a "mentor" director to visit all of the sites prior to the One Act Competition to work with the directors of the individual productions to improve them prior to the competition. (I did that job in 2006.)

By the way, MWR is completely separate from USO (United Service Organization) which still sends performers to the bases and military outposts to entertain the troops. It seems odd, but the two don't seem to work too closely together (except, as I have been led to believe that USO consistently asks MWR for funding for its services.)

A challenge for Schweinfurt and some of the other garrisons is that many of the soldiers are regularly deployed to service in Iraq or Afghanistan. So you tend to see lots of plays with women and children here. (The next production here will be Steel Magnolias.) Other times they get PCS'd. (That means Permanent Change of Station -- basically a transfer.) When some soldiers or other workers finish their tours of duty, they return to the States; others can find jobs and stay in Europe. There are different classes of non-military workers that come with different requirements and limitations. There are NAFs and GSs. Evidently, GSs can't get fired even if one's position is terminated; they have to find you an equivalent job, when one becomes available. NAFs get cut loose. But GSs have a five-year limit, unless they get moved to a different level. NAFs don't have a time-limit. This part got pretty confusing as it was being explained. More acronyms; more protocol. Suffice it to say that some people have figured out how to stay here in good jobs, which provides some consistency to the theatre and other programs.
Above is a postcard of Schweinfurt and a photo of Garland Travis, my host there and his colleague, Lisa, who is head of Marketing for MWR Schweinfurt. We had lunch at that Chinese restaurant that you see in the background. Nice to have Chinese for a change! It was pretty good, too. They don't know from brown rice, but the Duck with Garlic Sauce was delicious.