What fictional place would you most like to visit?
~ Narnia (Rachel Bigelow, Director)
~ Atlantis (Paul Willard, Conrad Birdie)
~ Narnia or Neverland (Anna Savage, Teen Ensemble)

What is your “go-to” music when you’re not singing Bye Bye Birdie songs?
~ The Beatles (Trevor Minor, Harvey)
~ Passenger (Emily Elliot, Kim MacAfee)
~ Disney or Showtunes (Miranda Burger, Mrs. MacAfee)

What TV channel should exist, but doesn’t?
~ A channel that only shows musicals or plays (Trevor Minor, Harvey) & ever other response with the exception of…
~ I don’t know (Anna Savage, Teen Ensemble)
~ 1 (Brian Scholin, Mayor)
~ Girls Hockey 24/7 (Lena Roubinek, Ensemble)

What age do you wish you could permanently be?
~ Well, I’m pretty awesome now. (Elisa Mill, Ensemble)
~ 17, too young to pay taxes, but old enough to do the fun stuff (Paul Willard, Conrad Birdie)
~ 23. It just seems like it’d be a fun time. (Emily Elliot, Kim MacAfee)
~ The age I’ll be when I have it all figured out. (Miranda Burger, Mrs. MacAfee)
~ 237: So I’d have a long time to prepare for it (Brian Scholin, Mayor)
~ 22- old enough to be an Scientist and still be young enough to “play”. (Lena Roubinek, Ensemble)

What is your favorite musical or play?
~ “The Sound of Music” or “Les Miserable” (Rachel Bigelow, Director)
~ Seriously? “Nunsense” (Elisa Mill, Ensemble)
~ “Footloose” or “The Phantom of the Opera”. “Bye Bye Birdie” and “Dear Evan Hansen” are close runner ups! (Lydia Struss, Deborah Sue)

The 2017 Summer Musical in Pine City will be “Bye Bye Birdie”, directed by Rachel Bigelow. Performance dates are July 13 – 16 with three evening performances and the closing matinee on Sunday.

The show is set in 1958 and the story was inspired by the phenomenon of popular singer Elvis Presley and his draft notice into the Army in 1957.  Teen heartthrob Conrad Birdie has been drafted, so he chooses All-American girl Kim McAfee for a very public farewell kiss.

Audiences will love the rock-n-roll sound, loveable and laughable characters, and truly have a good time this summer with the cast and crew of “Bye Bye Birdie”.

We are welcoming back a few returning actors and actresses from last summer’s musical “The Music Man” and welcoming many new faces from the Rush City and North Branch communities this year!

BYE BYE BIRDIE CAST LIST

ALBERT PETERSON – Scott Tolzman
ROSE ALVAREZ – Allie Gosen
CONRAD BIRDIE – Paul Willard
MRS. MAE PETERSON – Laura Michels
KIM MACAFEE – Emily Elliot
MRS. DORIS MACAFEE – Miranda Burger
MR. HARRY MACAFEE – Jon Bigelow
RANDOLPH MACAFEE – Owen Neel
URSULA MERKLE – Angel Kidd
MRS. MERKLE – Jenny Simonson
HUGO PEABODY – Nathan Kleppe
GLORIA RASPUTIN – Allison Hammill
MAYOR –  Brian Scholin
MAYOR’S WIFE – Elisa Mill

TEEN CHORUS
NANCY- Laura Meissner
ALICE- Emily Schueller
MARGIE- Kodie Maki
DEBORAH SUE- Lydia Struss
HELEN – Sarah Schmidt
HARVEY JOHNSON – Trevor Minor
SUZIE – Alixe Waxberg
PENELOPE – Emma Johnson
RUTH – Anna Savage

ENSEMBLE
Lena Roubinek
Hannah Theisen
Alana Mangan
Carolyn Mangan
Ashley Peters
Gavin Schueller
Robert Sandell
Andrew Belland
Mikayla May
Kyle Peters
Brandon Strohecker

Our next Songs of the Stage fundraiser concert at the Pizza Pub of Pine City is going to be great! Be sure to join us to hear music from:  Hamilton, Beauty and the Beast, Music Man, Chess, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Shrek, Guys and Dolls, Wicked and many more!

Tickets are now available at Cabin Coffee’s and the Pine City Area Chamber of Commerce office.  Advance ticket discounts are available through Friday, April 7th.

Twenty-five years the Heritage Players have been lucky to have Dennis Howard (and the entire Howard family!) as part of the Heritage Players.  We’ll call him the anchor to this boat of crazy nuns as he portrays the character of Father O’Malley for this production of “Nunsense”.  He has helped build sets, been a stage manager, and played roles in a number of past productions.  His most recent appearance was as the Burglar in “Noises Off”.

His new favorite role?  Grandpa Howard. Enjoying his time with the most adorable baby granddaughter, Lennex.

Bethany is returning for her second production with the Heritage Players this year and her first musical.  She fondly recalls her first production with PCHP, “Noises Off”and the many hours of laughter and the great friendships created by that production.

Things I learned while writing Bethany’s bio for marketing purposes: she doesn’t like to be called Beth, and she likes cats!

Joining the Heritage Players in his most difficult role yet, Jon Bigelow is the stage manager for the production of “Nunsense: The Mega-Musical”.

His first try at writing a biography to include for our show:  Jon Bigelow is the stage manager.

Not good enough (says the marketing manager)…. his second attempt submission:

Jonathan Rhys Bigelow IV has an extensive and exhausting list of previous theatre experience, most of which seem too braggy to list in this biography, but fortunately he has portrayed some lesser-known characters in his hey-day which we are privileged to list below: police officer #3 in the Backdoor Theatre Company of Kaysville, Ottawa, Canada’s revival of The Little Engine that Couldn’t Quite; Tree Stump in The Rain Flows Down; and one he will never forget- Master Mime in King Bartholomew Loses a Button. Jonathan has had a passion for the theatre arts ever since his sister told him he looked just like that guy on that one tv show with the cops- you know the one. He is excited to be involved in this production and would like to thank his lucky mole for always sticking with him, no matter how much he picks at it.

And we wonder why he’s the stage manager?

Bringing a youthful quality to the show is Vanessa Alm and we are excited to have her return for her third production with the Pine City Heritage Players.

This production is her sixth appearance on the local stage.  She appeared in the high school production of “Footloose” and most recently as Mrs. Squires in the Heritage Players summer production of “The Music Man”.  More than just an actress, Vanessa has also been involved in the costume department with Jolynn Howard nearly every year since 2012. In her free time, she loves to draw, sew, and make people smile.  “I want to thank my family and friends for their support. Thank you to my fellow cast members— you are all so awesome! Thank you to everyone who made this show possible— and a special thank you to everyone who comes to see it!”

Jennifer Hansmann has a long history with the Heritage Players and has been involved both on and off stage.  She started with the group in 1992 when she moved to Pine City and began teaching music at the elementary school that fall.

Her first involvement was on stage ~ some favorite roles include Marian (The Music Man), Ado Annie (Oklahoma), Hope (Brigadoon), Sister Leo (Nunsense) and Clara (Don’t Hug Me). She enjoyed being involved as the Vocal & Orchestra Director last summer for “Music Man”, but is excited to be back on stage… and playing a different Nunsense role this time around.  When she’s not on stage, Jen keeps busy with music and crafting…and most importantly, being a wife to Wayne and mom to Mitchell, Austin, and Nicholas.

Joining us for her very first local production is Cassandra Olson, playing the role of “Sister Julia, Child of God”.  Cassandra tell us that perhaps she was typecast in this role as she isn’t known for her cooking skills… but she assured us all that she hasn’t killed anyone yet!

“I am thrilled to be a part of this fun musical after a long stretch off the stage. I’ve spent the last six years singing with a Minneapolis based a Capella group DeCantus. I have enjoyed participating in recent Heritage Players’ Songs of the Stage fundraiser concerts. Previous shows include West Side Story, Guys and Dolls, Bye Bye Birdie, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hay Fever and David and Lisa. I could not have done this without the incredible support of my husband, Nick.  Thank you!”

Joni Nelson has been involved with the Heritage Players both on stage and off.  We are pleased that she agreed to take on the challenge of putting together the orchestra for this show.  

Joni’s previous plays with Heritage Players Include “She Loves Me”, “Quilters” and most recently as Mrs. Paroo in “The Music Man”. She has been playing piano and singing for what seems like forever. Including doing music ministry and giving piano and voice lessons. Thanks to Jay for giving me the opportunity to be part of this fun show with such a talented cast and orchestra.