Sign up now for our kids’ summer workshops

April 18th, 2017

WDI CHILDREN’S SUMMER WORKSHOP

Do you know a child who enjoys theater and wants to learn more about performance or technical skills? Wheaton Drama workshops will help build confidence by giving the attendees firsthand experience in creating a live production. Your child will learn how teamwork works in building a theatrical presentation—in addition to having fun and making new friends. The place to be this summer is Wheaton Drama’s Playhouse 111.

Registration is now available: wheatonDrama.org/order-tickets

July 10–15, 2017

Performance Theater

Grades K5* morning session: 8:30 a.m. to noon

Grades K5* afternoon session: 1 p.m. 4:30 p.m.

(Choose one session only)

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July 12–15, 2017

Technical Theater

Grades 612*

July 12: 1 p.m.4:30 p.m.

July 1315: 9 a.m.4:30 p.m.

(Please bring a sack lunch.)

Choose an area that you would like to study:

  • stage managing/backstage crew
  • sound design
  • costume design
  • lighting design

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July 17–22, 2017

Performance Theater

Grades 6-12* full-day session 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

(Bring a sack lunch)

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July 19–22, 2017

Technical Theater

Grades 6-12*

July 20, 1 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

July 21-22, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

(Bring a sack lunch)

Choose area in which you would like to study: Stage managing/back stage
crew, Sound design, costume design or Lighting Design

*Please note that the grade level is indicated as to which grade they just
completed

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Saturday Performance

Grades K5 morning class: July 15, starting at 10:30 a.m.

Grades K5 afternoon class: July 15, starting at 2 p.m.

Grades 68 and high school: July 22, starting at 10 a.m.

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Tuition

$100 for grades K5 (half days)

$100 for Technical Theater (per week)

$200 for grades 612 (full days)

Staff

All staff members are certified teachers and have gone through an extensive
background check. Specific staff is TBA.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at workshop@wheatonDrama.org. 

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Promo video for ‘Outside Mullingar’

March 31st, 2017

Spend a few moments in the Irish Midlands.

“Outside Mullingar” runs through April 15.

(Videographer: Ben Dooley.  Vocals: Teresa Reinalda)

Cast announced for ‘The Producers’

March 30th, 2017

Director Craig Gustafson proudly announces the cast of the hilarious musical comedy, “The Producers,” running May 26 through June 18.

The cast is as follows:

Max Bialystock — Ken Kaden

Leo Bloom — Benedict L. Slabik II

Ulla Inga Hansen Benson Yonsen Tallen-Hallen Svaden-Svanson — Heather
Pauliks

Franz Liebkind — Lars Timpa

Roger DeBris — Mark A. Hutchison

Carmen Ghia — Steven Krage

Usherette 2 (Others) — Lauren Bass

Donald Dinsmore (Others) — Joe Billquist

Lick Me, Bite Me (Others) — Breanna Ghostone

First Nun (Others) — Abigail Hamilton

Springtime for Hitler Tenor (Others) — Scott Kelley

Hold Me, Touch Me, Pretzel Girl (Others) — Aimee Kennedy

O’Houlihan (Others) —  TBA

Beer Girl (Others) — Emma Lanners

Mr. Marks, Jason Green (Others) — Jim Martin

Kiss Me, Feel Me (Others) — Kate McIlvain

Judge (Others) — Anthony Mele

Shirley Markowitz, Sausage Girl (Others) — Heather Miller

Valkyrie Girl (Others) — TBA

Jack Lepidus (Others) — Jeff Pripusich

Trustee (Others) — Alex Rogers

Shows and directors for our 2017-18 season

March 21st, 2017

Wheaton Drama is excited to announce next season’s shows and directors.

The season will open with the classic musical “Fiddler on the Roof,” a
story of maintaining traditions and transitions in an ever-changing
sociopolitical climate—a message as important today as when the show was
written. “Fiddler” will be directed by Carrie Dabelow, who has directed
productions for Steel Beam Theater, Riverside Theatre, and Woodstock
Musical Theatre Company, as well as in public schools in Illinois and
Minnesota.

Next on the schedule is an adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic romance
Sense and Sensibility,” in which we follow the Dashwood sisters, Elinor
and Marianne, as they seek love and happiness in 1790s England. This
promises to be a show for families and Jane Austen aficionados alike and
will be directed by WDI veteran Randall W. Knott, who last directed “Play
It Again, Sam” and “Amadeus” for Wheaton Drama and “One Flew Over the
Cuckoo’s Nest” at Woodstock Opera House.

Wheaton Drama will continue its tradition of holiday radio plays by
presenting that childhood classic “The Cinnamon Bear.” This old-time radio
show was first produced in 1937 and became popular nationwide, particularly
in Chicago when it was broadcast on WGN radio. It will be directed by Ben
Dooley, who has done numerous radio show reproductions with his own
company, Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear, and who directed the Christmas
classic “Miracle on 34th Street” for Wheaton Drama.

Kicking off the new year, WDI will present a modern farce, “Sex in the
Title” by local playwright George Zahora. It concerns two playwrights whose
shows always have the word “sex” in the title, though their shows have
nothing to do with sex. This farce involves doors and windows—and lots of
people coming and going through them. It will be directed by Jay
Fontanetta, a newcomer to WDI who has directed extensively at North
Riverside Community Theatre, at Circle Theatre and in numerous area high
schools.

Following up in stark contrast, WDI will present a searing drama, “A Piece
of My Heart,” which tells of the role women played during the Vietnam War.
Like many of their male counterparts, their service went largely
unappreciated and unrecognized. This show will be directed by WDI veteran
Mike Boyna, who last directed the hilarious and successful “Shrek: The
Musical.”

The season will conclude with the perennial Stephen Sondheim favorite
Company.” Though it debuted on Broadway in 1970, its theme of coping with
cultural changes and social upheavals remains relevant today. “Company”
will be directed by Pam Turlow, who has directed “A Christmas Carol” and
“Mad Mid-Mod Musicals” for Wheaton Drama.

Easy access to the AACT newsletter

March 17th, 2017

It’s now easier than ever to stay atop trends in local theater.

Rich Gannon, from the board of the American Association of Community Theatre, writes:

In the past, SPOTLIGHT, AACT’s bimonthly newsletter, came to you by two methods: by mail to your official address and online. To access online you needed to log in as a member at the AACT website.

SPOTLIGHT can now be viewed by the public without being a member. Each of you will still receive the hard copy in the mail. If you have others in your organization who want to check out the magazine they can now do so.

Go to www.aact.orgClick on NETWORKING, and from the drop down click on SPOTLIGHT.

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