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I wrote an Irish-themed play (my paternal grandmother was a Fitzgerald) — “Song of Joy — Or the Old Reliables” — from which the Pub Scene was performed at Irishfest. It was the first public performance (and very well-received by our Irishfest audience) from my plays, and it’s nice to see our cast and crew continue to work hard, preparing for our staged reading of the entire play at Aquinas on Friday.
Viterbo’s Colleen Hogan is doing sterling double-duty as director and supporting actress. Rick Weeth and Steve Kiedrowski are anchoring the actors. Sheilagh Lyon, Denise Kachel and Terry and Rachael Coon are doing well with songs, acting, costumes, etc. David Klitzke does lighting especially well. Additional readers for Friday include Channel 8 weatherman Josh Blumenfeld and La Crosse NAACP president Roberta Stevens.
Everyone’s got to dream. As a youngster, I enjoyed reading about King David (who fathered Solomon the Wise), his slingshot that killed Goliath, the temple to house the Ark of the Covenant (Solomon built it), and his surpassing Biblical Psalms.
So far, I’ve written 10 plays (and done other things, too, including help raise my son, Matthew), with this play being the first to come close to full-production. It’s about faith, hope and love in the Dublin tenements of 1940.
This play is based on select characters from Sean O’Casey’s classic “Juno and the Paycock,” set in 1922. My son also helped inspire me to begin writing my play a decade ago, when he played Beethoven’s “Song of Joy” on his recorder-pipe.
It’s hard work producing a successful play — from continual rewriting of the script; to choosing a director of capable temperament and skills; to intelligent mixing of cast and crew in rehearsals; to fusing of company, sponsors and audiences for compelling performances.
I hope our play continues doing well — we thank Patrick Stephens, Donna Finn, Dave Larsen, Penny Sullivan, their crew of volunteers and a great Irishfest audience on Aug. 8, for the very positive response we received there.
Our public reading (including costumes and music) on Friday will help kick off Aquinas High School’s 80th anniversary year. There will be more work and celebrations during the school year, including more plays, produced by Peter Bosgraaf.
Principal Ted Knutson works tirelessly to continue the success of one of the nation’s finest schools, with assistance from the Rev. Sam Martin, the Rev. Michael Gorman, Stephen Murray, Christine Gongaware, Monica Herman, Jennifer Baertsch, Richard Dungar, Charles Casberg and additional teachers and staff.
Our ensemble is grateful to Aquinas, too. There’s a poster in one hallway showing rafters navigating a rapids, saying essentially: Make changes in the difficulties you face or change yourself to face those difficulties better. I hope our team continues to do both.
Aquinas is a great educational institution. Not only do its teams earn athletic championships, but its students also excel academically, spiritually and artistically.
We hope you’ll enjoy our ensemble’s spoken and sung artistry, and the truths and dreams those forms reveal and realize, at our public reading at 7 p.m Friday at Aquinas.
From the Old School that our ensemble and family and friends have strong ties to, the sky is the limit.
