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Actors Guild of Parkersburg slates yard sale

Costumes, set pieces to be sold

Mexican sombreros modeled Friday by Nancy Bloomer, a member of the costume department committee at the Actors Guild of Parkersburg, will be for sale at a yard sale 9 a.m.-3 p.m. today and Sunday at the guild, Eighth and Market streets. (Photo by Jess Mancini)

PARKERSBURG — A massive yard sale of props and costumes from the many shows produced over the years by the Actors Guild of Parkersburg will be held this weekend at the downtown theater.

The sale includes hundreds, if not thousands, of costumes, old clothing, stage props, equipment and set pieces, representing more than 30 years of history at the guild, said Rod Oden, technical manager for the theater group.

“We have a treasure trove of things we are selling this weekend,” he said.

The sale will be held 9 a.m.-3 p.m. today and Sunday at the theater at Eighth and Market streets.

All proceeds will benefit the Actors Guild, but it’s not about the money, Oden said. The issue is storage and the most efficient use of available space, he said.

Much of the clothing is priced at 50 cents, he said. Evening gowns and prom dresses are $5 and a real fur coat is $5, Oden said. Glassware and other stage props no longer used or needed will be sold, too, he said.

“All at very, very affordable prices,” Oden said.

Oden and Nancy Bloomer, a member of the costume department committee, on Friday sorted and arranged clothing, costumes and other items for the yard sale. Where once there was clutter, now there is some organization, she said.

“We need to stop being pack rats,” she said.

Many costumes are available from past shows, including the “Wizard of Oz,” “Tommy,” “Annie,” “Into the Night,” “White Christmas” and “Shrek” and the more recent productions of “Legally Blonde” and “Spamalot,” she said. By guild policy, a show cannot be presented within a 10-year period, but the costumes are put into the costume shop where they may never again be used, Bloomer said.

“We’re really, really cleaning up the costume show,” Bloomer said.

Much of the inventory in the costume shop is clothing from estates, she said.

“We have to choose what to keep,” she said.

Also in the sale are hats, including sombreros and marching band hats, knick knacks, glassware, arts and crafts supplies, bolts of fabric and theatrical makeup, Oden said. Equipment will be for sale, too, such as stage lights, he said.

The sale is open to the public; however, Oden has been on the phone contacting schools and other theater groups in the area about the sale. He has contacted other theater organizations in Charleston, Huntington, Kentucky and Ohio.

Besides the theatrical makeup, many costumes in the inventory can be used for Halloween, Oden said. Halloween is two weeks away.

“Somebody could probably build an entire Halloween set,” he said.

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