The Grand Marais Playhouse ends a very successful summer season thanks to the talented community members who graced the stage in Love Letters, Shout! The Mod Musical, Always, Patsy Cline and Gas and Candles.
Behind the scenes, there was another talented group of people that made the shows run smoothly, assisted the performers with sound, costumes and props, then changed the set each night for the repertory and ran the sound and lights for each show.
Jack Nickolay, Maria Nickolay, Will Brandenburg and Yvonne Block were a dynamic team that kept everything rolling. These people arrived at the Playhouse early and left after everyone else was gone. They were essential to the summer season.
It was unclear back in May as to whether or not we could pay to have a crew for the extended performance schedule, but thanks to support from the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation, these folks went right to work. If you enjoyed the productions this summer, don’t forget to include these four in sharing your appreciation for a job well done!
Grand Marais Playhouse Artistic Director Sue Hennessy and the dynamic Playhouse technical team celebrate the end of the season. (L-R, around table) Jack Nickolay, Yvonne Block, Will Brandenburg, Sue Hennessy, and Maria Nickolay. Part of the celebration was a round of mini-golf. Jack won the tournament!
On September 29, the Grand Marais Playhouse will hold a town meeting at 7 p.m. at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts. The purpose of this meeting is to get feedback from the community on how the organization moves into the future. The Playhouse continues to have many successes into its 41st season but there are challenges as well.
Production costs continue to rise and there is always a need for more actors and backstage crews.
In the 2011 season, the Playhouse experimented with different rehearsal schedules, a stipend to performers, two shows in repertory, and a more structured technical crew set-up.
Along with feedback from the performers and crew, the Playhouse is seeking input from the community on play schedule, rehearsal schedule, and ideas to increase involvement from actors, crew and audience. The Playhouse board is also seeking applicants for the board of directors. There are many paths forward and the Playhouse will most definitely be gearing up for its 42nd season in 2012. How that season will look will be determined in the coming month. We need the community voice to be heard to strengthen this community theater!
This meeting will be a great place to ask questions about auditions, acting, and the many volunteer opportunities available at the Playhouse. If you can’t attend the meeting but want to have your say, you can email at playhouse@boreal.org or send a letter to P.O. Box 996, Grand Marais MN 55604
The next opportunity to act, sing, or work tech will be The Rockin’ Tale of Snow White. The Playhouse is experimenting with a new schedule in hopes of increasing adult participation and making the rehearsal schedule less stressful. Auditions will be on Saturday, October 1 at 4 p.m.. Rehearsals will be after school for the ensemble and early evening for the principle characters. The performances will be on Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon, November 5, 6, 12, 13. There is no cost to participate and auditions are open for grades 1 to adult. Most roles require singing but there are a few that don’t.
More details about this show in the next Backstage Buzz. Grand Marais Playhouse Artistic Director Sue Hennessy provides this behind-the-scenes look at Grand Marais Playhouse activities.
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