Government Reopens and The Play's The Thing in Waterford

1. Today will be partly cloudy with a high of 72 degrees and an overnight low of 58 degrees. Weather.com is predicting showers this evening, when the chance of rain increases from 10 percent during the day to 60 percent overnight. The weekend promises to be a mix of clouds and sun, with more clouds Saturday than Sunday, with temperatures in the mid-60s dropping into the 40s overnight.  

2. Thousands of furloughed federal employees are returning to work today as federal agencies and parks reopened. On the eve of a deadline to raise the debt ceiling or risk having the U.S. government go into default on its loans, Congress agreed to raise the debt ceiling and reopen the government, without any changes to "Obamacare" that Republicans were demanding that triggered the standoff. The fix is only temporary, however. The game of chicken will begin again in the new year, because the budget is only funded through January 15 and the new debt ceiling deadline looms once more on February 7, 2014.  

3. WaterforDrama's season begins tonight with It's Only A Play, a comedy that makes fun of theater, written by Terrence McNally, with shows October 17, 18, 19. The curtain goes up at 7:30 p.m. at Waterford High School Auditorium.  

4. Waterford's Eugene O'Neill Theater Center is holding the 14th Annual Eugene O'Neill Celebration, with a film, readings, and panel discussions at Monte Cristo Cottage in New London starting on Friday but that's not the only news from the theater center. 

The Board of Selectmen voted on Tuesday to allow the theater center to use the lease it has with the town as collateral to obtain a bridge loan from Chelsea Groton Bank to help pay for its planned expansion. The new center will allow the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center to expand its theater school to accommodate twice the number of students and establish a National Music Theater Institute, which is expected to launch next year.

The bulk of the project is being funded by a $3 million grant from the state. Jeremy Ladyga, director of institutional development said the center has about $1 million more to raise to cover the approximately $4.8 million cost of the project and anticipates that once all the pledges are in, the bank loan will be paid off within three years. The center hopes to break ground sometime in mid-November. 

5. Meetings: Waterford East Lyme Shellfish Commission meets tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Town Hall Auditorium.