Ross Mitchell recalls interviewing three years ago for the job as executive director of Glen Foerd, 5001 Grant Ave.
“I want to do a Wedding Crashers’ Ball,” he said in the interview.
That seemed natural, as weddings are basically Glen Foerd’s bread and butter. About half of the mansion’s income is from wedding receptions. In addition to the house, there is a large, climate-controlled tent and a dedicated caterer.
“We’re set up for weddings,” Mitchell said.
While Glen Foerd will have 90 wedding ceremonies and receptions in 2022 – generally Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from April to November – the I Do’s of Gwen and Glen on Friday, Oct. 21, will be unlike any other.
Mitchell has contracted with InFLUX Theatre Collective to produce an interactive Wedding Crashers’ Ball on Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. Performers are graduates of the Pig Iron School.
Mitchell describes the night as a “zany romp” and a “fundraiser that’s fun.” He said many members of the public are familiar with the venue, so the show should be a natural fit for them as it begins.
Wedding Crashers’ Ball, though, is “like a wedding, but everything goes wrong,” Mitchell said. “Maybe they’ll drop the cake. People will be involved, if they’re willing.”
The West Philadelphia Orchestra will provide “crazy, fun music,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell will make a cameo in the show, written and directed by Jacinta Yelland, who plays the bride. Rehearsals are this week, with a dress rehearsal on Oct. 20, the night before the show.
Tickets are $150 per person or $75 for Young Friends under 35, artists and others in the arts. Tables of eight are $1,000. There will also be a silent auction, and valet parking is included. The evening also includes an optional afterparty, from 11 p.m. to midnight, in Glen Foerd’s Main House Rathskeller.
Proceeds will benefit outreach, education and preservation at Glen Foerd, an 18-acre site with plenty of needs and even more potential. On the wish list is more signage, lighting and upkeep of the house, along with a project that will add a parking lot and move the front entrance to the intersection of State Road and Grant Avenue
Upcoming highlights include a play in January and concerts once the mansion’s treasured pipe organ is restored.
As for the Wedding Crashers’ Ball, Mitchell has read the outline of the script, and with expected improv, he promises a night of “fun, fun, fun.” ••
For tickets or more information, visit www.glenfoerd.org/weddingcrashersball or call 215-632-5330.
