1977 to 2007 - 30 Years of Memories by Nancy Wright
Thirty years ago, Karen Perry rounded up some Mills County friends who were interested in starting a community theater group. The first production was "No Opera at the Op'ry House Tonight (or Too Good to Be True)". This melodrama was staged at the Sundown Supper Club located on the west edge of town along Sharp Street. The villain of that show was played by Bill Rowe, one of the charter members of Mills Masquers, and a major contributor to the development of the organization as well as the physical building of the Barton Theater. The group continued to offer shows to the public over the next few years at various locations in the area, including Jungers' Barn, on an acreage just north of the current theater location, the Glenwood Resource Center auditorium, the West Elementary Auditorium, and the Davies Amphitheatre, to name a few. The first season, back in 1977, included the aforementioned "No Opera at the Opr'y House", "Hansel and Gretel", "The Lighthouse Keepers Daughter", "A Case for Two Detectives", and "Hounded by Basketballs". Two shows were presented in 1978 - then a fundraising opportunity came about with the Silver City centennial celebration. The celebration committee hired the Mills Masquers to stage "Riverboat Rogue" as part of the centennial activities. Now the community theater group had enough funds on hand to try a musical! Many small theater companies avoid musical shows due to the high cost involved with music rentals, royalties, and technical requirements for staging. But when the Mills Masquers took a chance on "Annie Get Your Gun" in 1980, a long-standing tradition was born in Mills County - the annual winter musical! By the time the group's fourth winter musical was offered for the growing group of patrons, a building fund campaign was started. "Sound of Music" helped launch the $100,000 building fund campaign in 1983. Under the leadership of Terry and Mary Barton, the group worked diligently to encourage businesses and residents of the Mills County area to donate funds to build a new theater building. The drive was given a big boost with the donation of land by Clarold and Christel Rogers. By early fall, 1983, the Mills Masquers were able to construct an Astro building shell on the lot. Using volunteer labor, the building was prepared as the site for - what else? - a musical! It took almost a year of hard work, and lots of physical labor, but the theater was ready for "Oklahoma!" to open in September 1984. The theater only had the metal walls - no insulation or sheet rock! The restrooms were in place, and the lobby floor was poured. The stage was a set of wooden platforms placed on the leveled dirt floor. The original seating plan for "Oklahoma!" was to use hay bales for the entire audience. But Terry Barton, always on the lookout for a "good deal", found seats for 60 cents apiece from the Omaha Civic Auditorium. The Mills Masquers' board of directors worked during the summer of 1984 to sand, repaint, and re-varnish the wooden theater seats. Volunteers used shovels to prepare the dirt floor surface for these dark red seats placed on wooden runners. The first theater goers at the Mills Masquers' theater walked over dirt clods to their seats - and there were a few hay bales available for those who wanted to experience the ambience they provided. Although the show opened mid-September, the weather turned unusually cold! There was no heat in the building yet, so large propane heaters were fired up before the opening number to warm those hearty patrons wrapped in blankets and winter clothing. Show pianist Debbie Schmidt wore gloves with the fingertips cut out in order to keep her fingers moving over the sluggish keys of the donated old upright piano. Bill Rowe directed the first production of "Oklahoma!" back in September 1984. (He returns as director again of the 2007 version, with daughter Rebecca Neff as the musical director.) When the Agatha Christie murder mystery "A Murder Is Announced" was staged inSeptember 1985, a concrete floor had been installed in the auditorium. Patrons were delighted to have solid flooring instead of "dirt clods" as they took their seats. The Mills Masquers were later awarded an Iowa West grant for adding a furnace to heat the auditorium and stage area, making it possible to hold productions year-round, instead of just during the warmer months. Eventually the stage area was finished with a dug-out basement and "real" concrete floors. ( It has always been the policy of the Mills Masquers to raise funds and pay for building improvements as money becomes available - the group was in agreement that it would not take out a loan and go into debt. ) The Mills Masquers have also maintained a volunteer organization. Only a handful of shows have been directed by paid metro-area directors. In the early years, the board felt outside expertise would provide an opportunity for the local thespians to learn more about stage craft. For the past 20 years, all directors, actors, stage and technical crew, and musicians have participated as volunteers. It has been a wonderful way for those folks who are new to the area to meet new friends, get to know the "locals", and find a niche in the community. We are proud of the first 30 years of community theater here in the Mills County area, and we are committed to our purpose as "non-profit, educational, civic, and social; to provide its members and other interested persons with an outlet for their interest in the theater, and to educate others in the art and work of the theater". Several of the young people in Mills County started participating here in live theater as children. Having grown up on the Barton Stage, they then returned to the theater as adults! It is hard to believe we are celebrating 30 years of the Mills Masquers in 2007! We have been thrilled to offer at least four shows each year over the past several years - we have not been very successful at counting or listing each and every show, but we feel the number must have reached 100 by now! Comedies, thrillers, musicals, mysteries, melodramas - we love them all! We say to all of you who continue to support the Mills Masquers through your attendance and your donations - Thanks for the memories!
We Need You
Dear Friend, It doesn't seem like that many years ago when the Masquers moved into the "new" building (1984). You could feel the excitement as we opened our first production in that hollow, metal building, complete with dirt floors, hay bales for seating, suspect plumbing, no heating, no air-conditioning. Imagine that group of Mills County residents standing on that "stage", some with experience and some without, transforming the new facility to a different time and place (all as you could hear the trucks rushing by on Highway 275 - at the time we referred to it as the sound of the "swaying wheat").Oh, how the times have changed. That scenario is not hard to remember for some of us who have been involved with the Mills Masquers community theatre since the beginning some 28 years ago. We have seen our building transformed into one of the finest facilities in Western Iowa. It would not have happened without the outstanding support of our patrons and friends. Each year, six shows are performed for the public at the Barton Theatre, just north of Glenwood on Highway 275. Many of you have attended or taken part in some of those shows. For you, those names on the program and faces on the stage are very familiar. Each show is a cherished memory for all of us, and we appreciate your support. Please consider becoming a Sponsor, Patron or Benefactor. Sponsor: $25 to $49 Listed in every program. Patrons: $50 to $99 Listed in every program, and receive two (2) complimentary tickets. Bronze Benefactors: $100 to $199 Listed in every program, and receive four (4) complimentary tickets. Silver Benefactors: $200 to $499 Listed in every program, and receive eight (8) complimentary tickets. Gold Benefactors: $500 or more Listed in every program, and receive ten (10) complimentary tickets. Please know that any amount, large or small, will be put to good use at the theatre. We also appreciate our many advertisers who help support the Mills Masquers. Advertisement cost is $15 for each show, or $80 for all six yearly shows (paid in advance). Please consider supporting the Mills Masquers with a financial contribution today. Please send your tax-deductible donation to: Mills Masquers P.O. Box 183 Glenwood, IA 51534 We will continue to schedule top-notch productions. If you have any questions, please contact any Board member, leave us a message at the theatre at (712) 527-3600 or use the "Talk To Us" section on the website. Sincerely,
2006-2007 The Mills Masquers Board of Directors President.........................Ken Whitacre Vice President......................Jon Coover Secretary.........................Jeff DeYoung Treasurer..............................Jeff Mitts Connie Allan Melissa Dean Kerri Drake Craig Florian Sandra Kittle Jeanne Lincoln Scott Hite Rebecca Neff LeMar Osterholm Lois Pitchfork Carol Schramm Nancy Wright