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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Members of the East Texas theater community were |
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profoundly saddened by the passing of Sarah Frances McMullan on |
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November 15, 2022, at the age of 89; and |
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WHEREAS, The daughter of Thelma and Milton McMullan, Sarah |
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McMullan was born in Newton, Mississippi, on May 5, 1933; she made |
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her first appearance on stage in a Christmas play at the age of |
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five, and her career path was set; while still in high school, she |
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began directing, and after studying theater at Mary Baldwin |
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College, she went on to earn a bachelor's degree in the subject from |
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the University of Mississippi; she founded the Hattiesburg Little |
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Theatre and served as arts/entertainment editor of the Hattiesburg |
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American before settling in Nacogdoches; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1971, Ms. McMullan launched a theater company in |
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the parish hall of Christ Episcopal Church, where she had been |
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teaching young children; the Lamp-Lite Theatre soon moved to the |
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City Spirit Arts Center in a former warehouse, but the site was |
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flood-prone; offered a land lease by the city, the troupe and its |
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supporters helped disassemble the warehouse and rebuilt it at the |
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present-day location; Ms. McMullan's five children, Frank, Amanda, |
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Annabel, Melanie, and Paul, assisted in this project; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. McMullan directed more than 320 productions for |
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the Lamp-Lite Theatre, and her resourcefulness kept it flourishing |
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for over a half century; gracious, kind, and frank, she served as a |
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mentor to many, pushing veteran actors to do their best while |
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recognizing sparks of talent in the inexperienced and offering them |
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opportunities to learn; at her urging, historian Bobby Johnson |
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assembled interviews into plays, resulting in two Lamp-Lite debuts, |
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A Texas Tragedy and Voices of East Texas, that earned recognition |
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from the Theatre Network of Texas; she traveled to New York City |
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regularly to scout new works and brought On Golden Pond and Crimes |
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of the Heart to East Texas playgoers before they were adapted as |
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movies; over the years, she acted in a number of productions and |
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performed in summer stock at the Southern Playhouse; she was also a |
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guest director for the Stephen F. Austin University Summer |
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Repertory Theatre program and directed Nacogdoches: Gateway to |
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Texas in the city's sesquicentennial celebration; and |
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WHEREAS, Through her vision, leadership, and love of the |
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theater, Sarah McMullan contributed enormously to the vibrancy of |
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the arts scene in Nacogdoches, and those she left behind will |
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forever remember her with admiration and affection; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Sarah Frances |
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McMullan and extend sincere condolences to all who mourn her |
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passing; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Sarah |
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McMullan. |
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Clardy |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 660 was unanimously adopted by a |
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rising vote of the House on March 30, 2023. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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