The Grand Marais Playhouse would like to thank the community of Grand Marais, the actors, the audience, crews, Playhouse members and business sponsors for making 2017 Summer Theater Festival a success – it was truly a community event!
We had three new actors working alongside fellow community members with 1 to 30 years of Playhouse production experience. The doors are always open to newcomers, and the welcome mat is always there for folks to keep coming back show after show. That is what keeps the Playhouse vibrant, welcoming and alive.
One of the areas rarely getting the limelight is the backstage crew. It is a hurry up-and-wait kind of job and rarely comes with fame. I am personally quite adamant about the crew not taking a bow as they are the magic that holds the scenes together and the less you think of them during the show, the better. I may be old-fashioned in that thinking, but it is not to hide the work they do nor the importance.
Yes, it is always author, actor, audience as the essentials for theater but rare is the show with one set, rare is the actor who is able or willing to move furniture or scenery during the show. So! The need of the stage crew is tantamount to a quality production. The skill at which they perform adds to every performance. The Playhouse is grateful for the 2017 summer repertory stage crews. The run crew consisted of Yvonne Block, an amazing leader and crew chief. Yvonne has demonstrated great talent on stage, but she is also a backstage Ninja. She coordinated the scene changes for “The Pajama Game” with a small crew of mostly backstage newbies. I think she deserves her own standing ovation, so if you see her around you know what to do.
They may not take a bow after a play, but the play would never be possible without the work of the backstage crew. Front row L-R: Bryn Fitzgerald-Wells, Grace Nonnemacher and Kylie Viren. Middle row L-R: Noah Haussner, Linnea Henrickson, Amelia Roth, Robin Henrickson, Ellie Block, Yvonne Block, Sam Seitsema, Kay Carlson. Back row L-R: Lucy Callender, Noah Roth, and Joe James.
The rest of the run crew consisted of Sam Seitsema, Katy Carlson, Ellie Block, and Kylie Viren, Grace Nonnemacher, Gus Hahn and Noah Haussner. These folks sit quietly backstage during the performance and run like bunnies during the scene changes, moving quickly and efficiently in darkness setting the next scene. Bravo crew! And thank you!
This year we had two student stage managers. Robin Henrickson was the stage manager for “The Game’s Afoot, “and Bryn Fitzgerald- Wells was the stage manager for “The Pajama Game.” These young women committed to every rehearsal, writing down blocking, securing prop weapons, running the music and helping the directors stay sane. This is another thankless job, and they deserve many thank yous and applause as well.
The last group is a bunch of high school students who came in late after the performances to change the set from one show to the other. Noah Roth, Amelia Roth, Joe James, Lucy Callender and Aurora Schelmeski joined Yvonne, Robin, and Sam every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to do “changeover.”
They made a great crew and accomplished the task in record time each night. The repertory would have been impossible without them. Thank you!
As you can see, the Playhouse maintains its involvement with local students year round. The skills learned working crew are trade skills that could lead to a career (I speak from experience!) and benefit any path forward in life. The collaboration with the acting company and artistic staff often leads to positive mentoring relationships, friendships, and deeper community ties. The students also receive compensation. Either as paid interns, stipend or through the Incredible Exchange Program through Cook County Extension.
Being on the crew is a lot of fun, and the Playhouse is always looking for people to join the crew. No experience necessary! If you are not someone who seeks the limelight but loves theater (or perhaps lighting, sound, construction, painting or being backstage) and want to help make it happen, the crew is for you. Come to any audition or talk to Sue Hennessy at sue@grandmaraisplayhouse.com for more information.
Next up for the Playhouse was Monroe Crossing on Aug. 31. The evening was dinner and a show with Alyce’s catering dinner before the show with desserts during intermission.
Ole and Lena return for their third summer! This year the show is “Ole as Nursemaid? Call 911!”
The hilarious duo of Mike and Julie Bateson bring our favorite Ole and Lena alive on our stage Labor Day weekend with three performances – Friday, Sept. 1 and Saturday, Sept. 2 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 3 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 adults and $5 under 18. For advance tickets and more information go to grandmaraisplayhouse.com.
Grand Marais Playhouse Artistic Director Sue Hennessy provides this behind-the-scenes look at Grand Marais Playhouse activities.
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