Tickets for Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, produced by BrickStreet Theatre, will go on sale Monday, March 25. The show will be performed April 26-28 and May 3-5 in BrickStreet’s 1305 Hwy 69 S. location in Forest City. The curtain opens at 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and at 2 p.m. on Sundays.
Our Town, written by Thornton Wilder, has been described as “the greatest American play ever written.” It depicts the ordinary, everyday lives of citizens of a small New Hampshire town at the beginning of the twentieth century. BrickStreet’s show will adhere to the play’s conventions with a sparse set and actors performing without props. The playwright wanted actors to pantomime their interactions with objects so audiences “are not distracted.”
“Generations of high school students read and studied this play in English class or performed in it as a cast member,” said Joy Newcom, the play’s director. “Its content points to the beauty in everyday life. I’ve enjoyed watching our cast discover how its themes are timeless.”
Newcom and Kathy Garfin, a retired educator, have written a curriculum centered on the play’s themes, characters, and storylines. It’s available to area educators or others interested in studying Our Town. As discussed in the study guide, Our Town explores big, universal questions: What is the purpose of life? What do we value in life? What is the meaning of death?
Newcom also noted how Our Town is a play-within-a-play, guided by a character (Stage Manager) who serves as narrator. The stage manager speaks to the audience through theatre’s “fourth wall” and also steps into a role from time to time.
BrickStreet’s cast includes actors from seven area communities: Angela (Annie) Knipper (Emily Webb) of Clear Lake; George Mortimer (Howie Newsome) of Mason City; Kristi White (Mrs. Webb) of Albert Lea; Jaycelynne Piper (Rebecca Gibbs), Mike Brown (Constable Warren), and Nataly Lattimore (Townswoman) of Garner; Daniel Miller (Simon Stimson) of Buffalo Center; Donna Lair (Townswoman) of Lake Mills; Lauren Maddox (Stage Manager), Noah Hoffman (George Gibbs), Korey Hurni (Dr. Gibbs), Lauren Peterson (Mrs. Gibbs), Jeff Smith (Mr. Webb), Elijah Smith (Wally Webb), Ashlee Davison (Mrs. Soames), Noah May (Joe Crowell, Jr), Dylan Evenson (Si Crowell), Daelynn Coombs (Prof. Willard), Paul Bartelt (Joe Stoddard), Vivian Cronkwright (Samantha Craig), and Maykala Vogt and Barb Ruiter (Townswomen) of Forest City.
Our Town won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1938 (the year of its Broadway debut) and has been translated into 22 languages. A Broadway revival is slated for 2024, and the content of a 2023 best-selling novel, Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett features Our Town. The play continues to be performed at least once every day somewhere in the world.
Tickets are available at www.brickstreettheatre.org or by leaving a message with contact information at 641-585-1800. They may also be purchased at the door, if available. Copies of the study guide will be available at performances. If you’d like one emailed to you before attending a show, call BrickStreet at the number above and leave a message with your email address.
