Second annual ‘Boots and Bling’ fundraiser benefits NMSU Theatre Department

The American Southwest Theatre Company, the nonprofit that benefits the students of the New Mexico State University Theatre Department, is hosting its second annual “Boots and Bling” fundraiser beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 11, at New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum, 4100 Dripping Springs Road in Las Cruces.

“Boots and Bling” will include a DJ and freestyle dancing; songs from the NMSU Theatre Department’s upcoming production of “Into the Woods” will be performed live by theatre students; and dinner (salad, tri tip, loaded mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls and assorted desserts) will be catered by Marci Dickerson. There will also be a cash bar.

As she did last year, Denise McElroy will teach simple line-dancing lessons during the evening. McElroy, a dance instructor at Mesilla Community Center and Trails West, has been teaching line dancing for 16 years and has been a dancer since age 7.

The event will include a silent auction with more than 60 items up for bid with an estimated value of more than $8,000. They include jewelry, a wide range of food products, coffee, pet pampering and care, massage, ceramic painting, designer sunglasses, an overnight stay in Ruidoso, a quilt valued at $750, a family steak package, restaurant and coffee shop gift cards, wine, metal art and other original art, theatre tickets and dinner, hand-made clothing, an oil change and vehicle alignment, tickets to the Las Cruces International Film Festival, hair products, yoga products and even a pink ukulele. 

“We had such positive feedback from last year’s silent auction, the line-dancing lessons and everything about ‘Boots and Bling,’ and we are so looking forward to an even bigger and better event this year,” said long-time ASTC Board of Directors President Denise Welsh.

Tickets to “Boots and Bling” are $75 each and are available online at nmsutheatre.ludus.com/index.php.

Proceeds from “Boots and Bling” and other ASTC fundraising “support NMSU theatre students and the productions which provide them with practical experience toward their career goals,” said Theatre department head Wil Kilroy. 

For example, funds from ASTC will help pay for the orchestra and a guest wardrobe supervisor for “Into the Woods” (April 24-May 3 at NMSU), and paid travel expenses for visiting playwrights for this year’s High Desert Play Reading Festival at the university. ASTC also pays expenses for guest artists to visit the Mark and Stephanie Medoff Theatre at NMSU, including professional actors and stage crew, to help theatre students learn what the real world of theatre is like.

“At ASTC, we all have one goal: to support NMSU theatre students,” Welsh said. “ASTC exists to enhance the educational experience of our students.”

A 501(c)(3), ASTC was created by Tony-winning playwright Mark Medoff and Dr. Bruce Streett in 1984. Its board, comprised of community members and NMSU Theatre Department staff and students, meets monthly to raise money and bring audience members to the theatre.

For more information, call Denise Welsh at 575-642-2980.