COMMONWEAL THEATRE Year in Review 2018 PROFESSIONAL LIVE THEATRE PROFESSIONAL A Bittersweet End to Three Decades Preparing to launch our fourth decade of the remiss if we did not acknowledge the contributions finest in live professional theatre, we felt it only of retiring Board members Ron Kreinbring (resum- fitting that we share the story of the Commonweal’s ing in 2019) and Jeffrey Mintz; similarly, we warmly 30th season. As has been true for all thirty years of welcome Andre Novack and David Boen to service on our work: the true heroes of this remarkable year our Board. are you, our audience and loyal supporters. Your Finally, the main cause of the bitterness in this commitment to us and our work helped us to make most bittersweet year was the untimely death of momentous strides toward our goal of creating our Development Director Scott Roy Dixon this past sustainability for future generations, much of which November. If you were able to catch his new adapta- you’ll be able to read about in the following stories. tion, Dracula: Prince of Blood, you understand why Whether you soared with us through the starry night his great talents will be sorely missed. To that end, in Silent Sky or delighted in the radio-style retelling the 2019 season is dedicated to his memory. of one of our favorite classics in It’s A Wonderful Life: So, please enjoy this look back at 2018, and we A Live Radio Play, whether we ran into you on the hope you’ll take this as another opportunity to know streets of Lanesboro and shared a smile at the songs just how deeply we treasure each of you. and jokes of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spell- ing Bee, your engagement and response is what truly makes our lives rewarding. Underneath the stories which follow is our deep appreciation for those whose work goes on behind the scenes most of the time. Our Board of Directors, led by President Charles Aug and ably fortified by Hal Cropp Treasurer Barbara De Cramer, provided support and Executive Director impetus for some of this year’s strides. We would be The 2019 Commonweal Resident Company From left to right: Kelsey Heathcote, Josiah Laubenstein, Rachel Kuhnle, Bailey Otto, Thomas White, Elizabeth Dunn, Adrienne Sweeney, Ben Gorman, Hal Cropp, Brandt Roberts, David Hennessey, Lizzy Andretta, Philip Muehe, Jeremy van Meter, Eric Lee, Stela Burdt. Commonweal Theatre Company <1> 2018—Our Year in Review In 1989, Eric Bunge, Scott Putnam and Scott Olson heavens and the earth. Our version also included put their professional lives on hold to open the Com- the remarkable lighting design talent of Paul Epton monweal Theatre with a production of Crimes of the who thrilled audience members with a final moment Heart. Thirty years later, their dream is a strong and which evoked countless “oohs” and “aahs.” thriving reality. The late spring brought a group of quirky middle Our 30th season schoolers to the stage in the hit musical The 25th was indeed a Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Paired with year of celebra- amazing performances by tion and got off adult actors, the stories the ground with of our passionate spell- Our 30TH the warm-heart- ers provided the valuable ed joy of Silent message that life is not season“ was Sky by Lauren always fair as each con- indeed a Gunderson. testant dealt with their year of In 2018, Ms. dreams, fears and expecta- Gunderson held tions through touching and celebration.” the title of the often hysterical tunes. In most produced addition to those storylines, the production featured playwright in volunteer spellers from the audience who were given 1989 the country and the chance to show off their spelling and even their Commonweal dancing skills. The result was a delightful and fun audiences soon found out why. In a play that fea- experience in the theatre all summer long. And who tured the talents of the women in our ensemble, we can forget Eric Lee’s transformation into the tat- were reminded of the power and scope of both the too-covered, beard-sporting giver of hugs ➵ Visiting Artist Residency—Pimsler Dance Typically the month of January finds very little action on the Commonweal stage. That was certainly not the case in 2018 when we welcomed The Stuart Pimsler Dance & The- atre Company into residency the week of January 21-28. Stuart Pimsler Dance & The- ater, founded in 1979, is an internationally recognized performance company led by Stuart Pimsler and co-directed by Suzanne Costello since 1984. The company has been presented throughout the U.S. and numer- ous international locations. While in residence for the week, the company held one workshop with the Com- monweal company, and others in the com- Stuart Pimsler (right, standing) observes a wokshop with the Commonweal company. munity, at Lanesboro Public Schools and a local senior caregiving facility. These workshops This residency collaboration, along with Love Let- were offered in association with, and because of, the ters in February, was offered in part as an explora- Pimsler company’s commitment to its Arts & Health tion of the range of programming possibilities during and Arts & Education programs. Commonweal’s off-season months. The success of The conclusion of the residency featured two these efforts will provide the basis for future pro- public performances on the Commonweal mainstage gramming, either through the Commonweal’s own featuring three critically acclaimed works: At It Again, Wealhouse initiative or outside arts organizations. Bohemian Grove, and Tales from the Book of Longing. 2018 Year in Review <2> Commonweal Theatre Company A Valentine’s Day Treat—Love Letters Silent Sky Mitch Mahoney, the bee’s “comfort counselor”? In June, we were pleased to welcome the witty and clever world of The Clean House to complete the summer repertory. In our production, we were fortu- nate enough to share the talents of three Twin Cities actresses, two of whom made their Commonweal de- but. Guest artists Betti Battocletti (first seen in 2017’s Steel Magnolias), Colleen Barrett and Fernanda Badeo truly filled the summer with joy both onstage and off, and their presence helped us tell a bitter Scott Dixon and Stela Burdt starred in Love Letters and sweet story of the power of love. The perfect life is not always a neat and tidy one. Alongside Spelling In celebration of Valentine’s Day, the con- Bee, it was a summer nection of best friends and the power of love, it to remember as both was our pleasure to present two performances Dracula: Love Letters Prince plays gave a glimpse of the play by A.R. Gurney in Feb- ruary of 2018. Love Letters follows the fiction- of Blood into what it means to al lifelong correspondence between Andrew be human. Makepeace Ladd III and Melissa Gardner. The The fall brought two begin their letter writing as children and a world-premiere continue the practice into adulthood. to the Commonweal The Commonweal’s production was made stage when Dracu- that much more special because the roles of the la: Prince of Blood longtime friends were played by real-life hus- opened on Septem- band and wife Scott Dixon and Stela Burdt. As ber 8. What started many of you are aware, at the time of the per- five years earlier as formances Scott was in a battle with stageDracula: 4 a staged reading colon cancer. Scott passed away last NovemberPrince of Blood following his two-year journey with the dis- grew into a fully ease. Ever the consummate professional, Scott’s realized mainstage production. It quickly became talent and brilliance as an actor shone bright- a highlight of the year as we watched the process ly in performance and although Scott the actor breathe new life into our dear friend and playwright was fatigued, his Andrew was charming and Scott Dixon, who was by then nearing the end of his compelling. Stela’s performance was no less re- two-year battle with cancer. From Elizabeth Dunn’s markable and the result was a not-to-be-missed ever-creepy portrayal of the “Lady in White” to experience in the theatre. Brandt Roberts’ nightmarish Renfield and Jeremy van And as the company Meter’s chilling portrayal of the seductive title char- said farewell to our acter, the compelling adaptation provided something dear friend Scott for even the faint of heart to enjoy. There truly was at the end of the year, his final per- no better way to celebrate Halloween as the chill in formance as an ac- the air approached. tor also gave all of And it was indeed a fitting end to season 30 at the us a memory to last Commonweal to tell the story of George Bailey and a lifetime. the delightful characters of Bedford Falls ➵ 2018 Year in Review Commonweal Theatre Company <3> in It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play. To the radio troupe performance, director Philip Muehe Scott Dixon: added the layer of the character Jake, a man in desperate straits, on the run from the police, who is A Remembrance himself transformed by the character, George, that he is invited to portray on the air. The lesson may On November seem a simple one—to be thankful for what we have 29 last year, the been given—but during the holiday season, and in Commonweal the circumstances the company found itself, the les- Theatre lost one of our most be- son was met with a higher measure of appreciation loved company and solidified the power of friendship in all of us.