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My Name is Rumpelstiltskin in Rehearsal

8/22/2016

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PictureBack row: Rachel Kuhnle, Sidrah Edwards, Michaela Cabreana, Izzy Nelson, Elliana Naegelen, and Brecken Styles. Middle: Cade Anderson, Marguerite Minich, Tristan Bodin and Olivia Dodge. Front row: Ella Anderson, Katelyn Knapp, Abby Ruona and Shaw Styles. (Not pictured, Cooper Thorsten).
Although Festival Theatre’s summer repertory season closed last weekend, rehearsals have already begun for the September Youth and Family Series Production of My Name is Rumpelstiltskin adapted by Vera Morris. Fourteen youth actors have been cast in the production, and are working alongside guest artists Shelly Whitehead and Rachel Kuhnle. Shelley Whitehead is directing the production after appearing in Clue, The Musical and Steel Magnolias this summer. Rachel Kuhnle is returning to Festival to play the Miller's Widow in Rumpelstiltskin after performing in A Streetcar Named Desire and Little Shop of Horrors last summer.

This clever adaptation of the classic Brothers Grimm tale follows Rumpelstiltskin as Griselda, a four hundred year old witch, tells him he must possess a child of royal birth to become the most powerful force in the kingdom.  The wizard plots and schemes and spreads the word that Laura, the miller’s daughter, can weave straw into gold.  Since the kingdom is bankrupt, she’s whisked off to the palace and ordered to spin and spin.  With Rumpelstiltskin’s help she delivers the gold.  She has a high fee to pay — her first born child.  When Laura marries the prince and produces an heir to the throne, she has twenty-four hours to guess the wizard’s name or lose her child.

The youth cast is made up of a mix of talented new and returning actors, including Abby Ruona of St. Croix Falls as Rumpelstiltskin and Sidrah Edwards as the ever-powerful witch Griselda.  Elliana Naegelen and Cade Anderson will play opposite each other as Laura and Prince Tom.  Brecken Styles leads the court as Queen, with Ella Anderson as the Jester, Olivia Dodge as the Prime Minister, Shaw Styles as the Nursemaid, while Michaela Cabreana and Izzy Nelson play Katherine and Charlotte.  The cast is rounded out by Cooper Thorsten as the Huntsman, Tristan Bodin as the Apple Seller and Marguerite Minich as the Customer.

My Name is Rumpelstiltskin is proud to be a part of Take Me To The River with Art Reach St. Croix, where you can experience the intersection of arts and nature in the St. Croix Valley as you explore the region's art fairs, festivals and open artist studios.

Don't miss out on this great production at the Franklin Square Black Box opening Friday, September 9th at 7:30 PM. Tickets for Festival Theatre’s Youth and Family Series are $13.50 for Adults and 18.50 for youth ages 5-25, seating is limited so patrons are encouraged to order tickets in advance.  Festival Theatre is currently located at the Franklin Square Black Box at 125 N. Washington St, Saint Croix Falls, WI. The Box Office can be reached online at FestivalTheatre.org or by calling (715) 483-3387.

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Steel Magnolias and Private Lives Final Weekend at Festival Theatre

8/15/2016

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This weekend marks the end of Festival’s 2016 summer season. While Clue, The Musical  has performed its closing performance to a sold out crowd, Private Lives and Steel Magnolias’ final shows are still to come. WhilePrivate Lives and Steel Magnolias are different in most respects, they each offer something unique to the public;Private Lives is hilarious and original while Steel Magnolias is heartfelt and allows the audience to connect to the characters in numerous ways. There is still time to purchase tickets to laugh and cry in each final show this weekend.  The final performance of Private Lives is at 2:00 Sunday, August 20th.  You have two chances to see the final show of Steel Magnolias at 7:30 PM on Thursday, August 18th and Saturday August 20th.

While many of Festival’s guest artists for the summer are getting ready to leave, this weekend’s shows are not the last you will see of this summer’s artists.  Shelley Whitehead, Robbye Lewis and Daniel Olson will be appearing at Festival Theatre this fall. Rehearsals are already underway for the Youth and Family Series production of My Name is Rumpelstiltskin, which includes 15 local youth actors and is being directed by Shelley Whitehead (Mrs. White in Clue and M’Lynn in Steel Magnolias). Robbye Lewis (Ouiser in Steel Magnolias) and Daniel Olson (Mr. Boddy in Clue) will also be returning for roles in this October’s production of On Golden Pond.  

While the summer is at a close, Festival’s artists are already hard at work for upcoming shows starting September 9th, and like this summer, are sure not to disappoint.
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Auditions for youth roles in A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas and On Golden Pond are taking place this weekend.  Interested Youth should contact the Box Office immediately for information about how to register.  Tickets for Festival Theatre’s Theatre Series are $13.50 for youth ages 5-25 and $26.00 for adults.  Festival Theatre is currently located at the Franklin Square Black Box at 125 N. Washington St, Saint Croix Falls, WI. The Box Office can be reached online at FestivalTheatre.org or by calling (715)483-3387.  
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Audiences Connect to Steel Magnolias at Festival Theatre

8/8/2016

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Steel Magnolias has stayed true to 80’s southern charm in its manifestation on Festival’s stage this summer. The “alley style” seating arrangement puts the audience closer to the women on stage -- and these women are animated, authentic, and comical with and unique southern personalities; the audience is able to partake in the fun and feel like they are in the next styling chair. 
Festival’s re-creation of playwright Robert Harling’s Steel Magnolias has the same laugh-through-the-tears validity as the film, but its atmosphere and unique group of local cast members sets it apart. The cast members each demonstrate a personal flare for their characters, which makes this Steel Magnolias show one that remains fresh.  Interim Artistic Director, Andrew Bradford Benson, highlights the multi-generational feel Steel Magnolias has and reflected that “it's so lovely to see mature women tackling roles with such depth and substance.”  Director Jennie Ward mirrored Benson’s sentiment, and shared how wonderful it has been to work with the cast, “We deeply benefitted - as humans and as artists - from the collective experience of so many different perspectives on life as a woman - from college student to young professional to working parent, to grandparent, to widow and beyond.  As in the play, each of us occupies a very specific time of life *now*, and sharing that with each other was a great blessing.”
Not only do the actors benefit from their amazing work backstage, the audience plays an intimate role in this alley-style production. Elizabeth Albers, who plays Shelby in the production, mentions how every show feels unique based on the audiences’ reactions to certain climactic moments in the show. Robbye Lewis, playing Ouiser, added, “Every performance is different.” Since the space is small and intimate, the cast members can hear every sob and gasp that audience members make. While the actors immerse themselves in their roles, they also pull a lot of their tears, outrage, and joy from the people surrounding them.
When you watch Steel Magnolias this summer, Ward asks that you “try to see the play for itself, with clear eyes.” Remember to treat Truvy’s beauty parlor as a beacon of refuge. While comedy is incessant, so are some of the deepest emotions we all go through at difficult points in our lives. Steel Magnolias is a testament to the raw and sweet emotions, the faults and the successes, the profound and the facile, the squabbling and the loving – it is a testament to the art of community.
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Final Performances of Private Lives and Annual One-Act Play Readings

8/3/2016

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PictureAndrew Bradford Benson, Elizabeth Albers, Josh Weisenburger and Marjorie Gast in Festival Theatre’s Private Lives
Since opening in July, Festival Theatre’s production of “Private Lives” by Noel Coward has delighted audiences with its witty repartee, timeless scenarios, costumes, set, and improperly hilarious emotional outbursts.

The cast and crew of “Private Lives” have enjoyed producing this british comedy.  Marjorie Gast, who shines in the role of Amanda, opposite Andrew Bradford Benson’s Elyot, has loved every minute of the process.  “The thrill of portraying such a beautifully vibrant, witty, and adventurous character has been a delightful challenge,” said Gast.  The quick changes of love and hate between the reacquainted couple resonate with audiences and provide uniquely passionate characters for the actors to explore. Elizabeth Albers, Festival Theatre’s Arts Education Coordinator, plays Sibyl, Elyot’s new wife, in the production. “Her brain operates in a completely different way than mine. She is one of the most honest and emotionally available characters I have ever played,” Commented Albers.  “This cast has been great to work,  they all make me laugh everyday,” Albers continued. “We have so much fun telling this hilarious story and I feel lucky to be working alongside these professional artists.”

There are only three performances left of Noel Coward’s “Private Lives” at Festival Theatre, Thursday, August 4th at 7:30 PM, Saturday, August 13th at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, August 21st at 2:00 PM.  Performances take place at the Franklin Square Black Box, and seating is limited, so patrons are encouraged to order tickets in advance.  The Box Office can be found online at FestivalTheatre.org, by calling (715)483-3387 or by stopping by the Franklin Square Black Box in Downtown St. Croix Falls.  

In addition to these few remaining shows in Festival’s summer season, Festival Theatre will hold its fifth annual One-Act Play reading on Wednesday, August 10th at 7:30 PM.  A one-time only event, this is the culmination of Festival’s fifth annual One-Act Play contest. This year, three plays have been selected for reading.  The plays, original submissions by playwrights with origins in, or ties to, Wisconsin and Minnesota, were selected based upon originality, quality of plot and dialogue, and creativity.  At the reading, first, second and third place winners will be chosen by the reading committee and the impressions of audience members in attendance at the reading.

The three plays cover a broad range of subject matter.  This year the finalists are “After the Bows,” “Twenty Minutes,” and “Until They Forget.”  This annual event always proves to be an interesting and engaging evening at Festival Theatre. Tickets are $10 and seating is limited, reservations can be made online at FestivalTheatre.org or by calling the Box Office at(715)483-3387.

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St. Croix Festival Theatre
​Franklin Square Black Box, 125 N. Washington St.,  PO Box 801, St. Croix Falls, WI, 54024                 
715.483.3387
 festivaltheatreboxoffice@gmail.com  


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