The owners and staff at Almaelou Music Corporation in New York City will bring you some sassy attitudes, loveable characters, and laugh out loud moments that will bring you back for more!   There are only four performances…. so don’t delay in getting tickets for Thursday or Friday…. then you’ll still have time for a second look!

Scott Tolzman ~ Albert Peterson (Owner of Almaelou Music Corp)
Scott is excited to be taking the stage with Heritage Players as  Albert Peterson! He is very glad to be part of the thriving theatre community in East Central MN, having previously been seen as Paul in “Company” with Play Inc. and Lloyd in “Noises Off” with Heritage Players.  He would like to thank his parents for their love & support, his friends for dealing with work & rehearsal taking him hostage, and his glasses.  He’d be lost without them.

Laura Michels ~ Mrs. Mae Peterson (Owner of Almaelou Music Corp)
Laura attended college at BYU-Idaho where she majored in     Technical Theatre, specializing in scenic art. She has worked  backstage and painted for a variety of shows. More recently she has been directing the plays at North Branch High School, as well as being involved both as a director and actor for PCHP. She also has performed vocally with the Minnesota Mormon Chorale and was the President of the choir for 5 years. Laura wishes to thank her husband for his encouragement and support during this and all other productions she has been involved in.

Allie Gosen ~ Rosie Alvarez (Albert’s Secretary)
This has been Allie’s first show with the Heritage Players and she has enjoyed it immensely. Allie’s former shows have been with Pine City High School and have included the characters of Rachel Lynde (Anne of Green Gables) and Ariel Moore (Footloose). Working on Bye Bye Birdie has been an amazing experience and Allie’s greatest challenge yet. She looks forward to future shows with Heritage Players.

Paul Willard ~ Conrad Birdie (The Talent)
Paul is a recent graduate of North Branch Area High School. This is first stage production with the Heritage Players, along with his first show outside of high school. Favorite roles include the Dentist in “Little Shop of Horrors” and Oliver Warbucks in “Annie”. Paul would like to thank this cast, they dealt with him; the director, she didn’t kill him; and his family, they supported him. Last but not least, Paul would like to thank the United States Armed Forces, and remind them that he respects them very much, regardless of the “funny” things he does when acting like them.

The MacAfee family is ready to share a little comedic flair to the Bye Bye Birdie production…. opening this Thursday, July 13th with a 7:00 PM performance.  Here is a little background info about the fabulously funny MacAfee’s and their Kids!

Jon Bigelow ~ Mr. MacAfee
This actor once had a name but he left it behind for a box of red wine and some Canadian jerky. Coming from the manhole on the north side of the street across from that foot odor repellant factory, (you know the place), he stayed the night with a lisping lizard and inherited a rare fortune of beetle shell husks. That started his segue into theatre and he has since performed in 1 1/2 shows, completely revolutionizing the art of nose puppets. He would like to acknowledge his pet teddy bear for all of the snuggles lately. He hopes you enjoy  the show.

Miranda Burger ~ Mrs. MacAfee
Although this is Miranda’s first Heritage Players show, she is no stranger to the stage. Last summer she was in “Drinking Habits” at the Voyager Village Community Theatre near her home. Before that, she was enrolled at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida. From which she graduated in 2015 with a major in Film. She’s been an avid theatre lover and participant since grade school and was thrilled to have the opportunity to join this cast.

Emily Elliot ~ Kim MacAfee
Emily is from Pine City and is about to enter her junior year at PCHS. This is her second on stage role with the Heritage Players. She also played trumpet in the pit for their winter show, “Nunsense: The Mega-Musical.” Some of Emily’s past roles include: Zaneeta Shinn in “The Music Man” with the PCHP; and Rusty in “Footloose” at PCHS. Emily would like to thank the cast and crew of this show for their love and support, Rachel for this amazing opportunity and teaching her how to breathe, and her wonderful family for their never-ending love and encouragement. Now Emily knows how lovely it is to be a woman, and she hopes you enjoy the show!

Owen Neel ~ Randolph MacAfee
Owen plays the role of Randolph MacAfee and is excited to be part of a show in his home town. Owen has been on stage with many local troupes, including his favorite roles of Jack in “Jack in the Beanstalk,” Clyde Herdman in “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” and Robin Starveling in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”  When Owen isn’t on stage, he’s playing board games and role-play games with his friends, drawing, or working on his stop-motion animation projects.

This show wouldn’t exist without these amazing teenagers! The teens are the heart and soul of the show and they are all very excited to be performing for you. Bye Bye Birdie opens on July 13. Don’t miss it!

Alixe Waxberg – Suzie

Alixe Waxberg is a student at Pine City High School. She enjoys being part of productions at the high school. This is her first show with the Heritage Players.

Laura Meissner – Nancy

Laura Meissner is excited to be part of this production. It is her first show with Heritage Players.

Anna Savage – Ruth

Anna is a junior at North Branch High School. This is her first show with the Heritage Players. She has been in several productions in North Branch including “Annie,” “Women and War,” and most recently “You Can’t Take It With You.” She is also involved in Unum Vox, which is a community choir based in North Branch, as well as NBHS treble choir and Harmonaires.

Emily Schueller – Alice

Emily is a sophomore at PCHS. She likes to write short stories and read novels. She loves being involved in the shows in Pine City, both through the high school and Heritage Players. Some of the shows she has been involved in are “Princess Whatshername,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “Footloose,” “The Music Man,” and “Anne of Green Gables.”

Trevor Minor – Harvey Johnson

Trevor Minor recently graduated from North Branch High School. This is his first production with Heritage Players and third production ever! He most recently was in the ensemble for “Annie” and played Grandpa Martin Vanderhoff in “You Can’t Take It With You.”

Lydia Struss – Deborah Sue

Lydia is a junior at Pine City High School. This is her tenth production she has been involved with, but first with Heritage Players. Favorite past shows include: “Somewhere, Nowhere,” “Footloose,” “Wiley and the Hairy Man,” and “Wizard of Oz.”

Kodie Maki – Margie/ Gloria Rasputin

Kodie is a sophomore at North Branch High School. This is her first show with Heritage Players. Past roles include ensemble in “Annie” and FBI agent in “You Can’t Take It With You.” She is excited to be playing two roles in this show and can’t wait to be part of more productions!

Sarah Schmidt – Helen

Sarah is a student at Rush City High School and has been involved in three of their performances. This is her first show with Heritage Players. She sings soprano and plays flute and piccolo.

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!”