Commentary; Posted: 7/5/06
New Guthrie shows value of theater
By Don Heinzman
The grand opening of the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis highlights the importance of theater in a community.
While the Guthrie is the major league professional theater in Minnesota, there are many theaters in Minnesota communities doing good shows deserving of audiences.
The business and professional leadership in Minneapolis in supporting the Guthrie and St. Paul with the Ordway recognize there is more to the human soul than sports.
Warren Schueneman who has directed plays in high schools, colleges and community theatres says a community without music, dance, theater and visual arts has no spirit.
There are at least 50 community theaters in Minnesota struggling to keep the arts alive despite its obvious values.
One value is to give those who donít have sports talent and interest an opportunity to practice the craft of theater while interpreting some of the great plays and musicals.
Itís an organization where everyone can get involved acting, singing, dancing, playing in orchestras, painting a set, designing costumes, ushering, selling tickets, writing publicity and selling advertising.
It is great fun because involvement in theater crosses generational, racial and socio economic lines. Everyone brings something to the interpretation of the script.
Some communities use the theater to discuss the plays and their lessons.
The audience benefits because they can see plays at reasonable prices without having to travel to professional theatres.
Children who love to act, sing and dance can take classes early and perform, along the Little League model in sports.
A community that has a balance of arts and sports and recreation and entertainment draws people with diverse interests to live and work.
Theater in a community has economic value.
In Hopkins, the art center, transformed the downtown into a delightful place for shopping and dining.
Lanesboro, which was a sleepy farming town, is a big tourist attraction, partly because of the excellent theater.
Theater people purchase many items locally: lumber, paint, printing, advertising.
One problem with community theater, unlike the Guthrie, is itís run by volunteers, who give time and talent to keep it going. It needs a strong board of directors and a season ticket base to succeed. It would flourish if it had a part-time or full-time paid director.
Thatís where the Guthrie and the Ordway have succeeded, first by drawing the funding and second by attracting prominent business persons to the board of directors and having the resources to hire talent.
Everyone wants the professional theater, just as the professional ball teams, to succeed in the new Guthrie and eventually in the new baseball stadium.
Local community leaders, particularly in the Chamber of Commerce should have as one of its objectives the preservation of the arts by supporting and sponsoring arts events.
They enliven the spirit of any size community.
Forest Lake Times
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