Workhouse Theatre season starts on high note with the sold-out production of Proof
Camden’s only resident professional theatre, Workhouse Theatre Company (WTC), is off to a strong start with their new season. Their October production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Proof, directed by Victory resident Diane Mountford, was a solid, sold-out hit with audiences and critics. Star Tribune critic Rohan Preston wrote that the production “compared favorably” with the 2003 Broadway production of Proof, which won Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Actress, and that “Sigrid Sutter is engrossing as Catherine.”
New and returning audience members shared Preston’s sentiment. “This is the best thing I’ve seen here,” one said on opening night. Another regular patron took the time to write, “I LOVED the production...Great acting, great directing, great staging, great costumes, great lighting, great everything...Of the three productions I’ve seen of Proof, yours was by far my favorite and the most affecting.” A new patron left the theater saying, “You have something to be very proud of.”
“We’re thrilled with the production, and with the audience response,” WTC Artistic Director Cristopher Tibbetts said. “We’re so blessed to have a loyal audience base, as well as to be operating in a city where people want to see good theatre. The positive response we’ve received from this show makes us all the more excited for the rest of our season.” Tibbetts, in his first season as Workhouse’s Artistic Director, hopes that all the audience members who loved Proof will return to the Warren-An Artist Habitat (4400 Osseo Road) for the kick-off of the company’s Shakespeare on Sunday reading series on Sunday, November 21 at 12:30 p.m.
Continuing its popular partnership with Minnesota Shakespeare Project, Workhouse will be offering three Shakespeare readings this year—on November 21, February 20 and April 10. The event begins at 12:30 each day with a potluck lunch. Patrons are encouraged to bring their favorite dish to share. At 2 p.m., some of the Twin Cities’ finest classical actors take to the stage for a reading of a beloved Shakespeare text, directed by Mountford. The intimate, unorthodox setting allows for patrons to mingle with the actors, share a meal, and feel more connected to, and involved in, the text they’re hearing. Last season, Workhouse presented Cymbeline, T+C and The Tempest. Tibbetts says this year’s titles are still under consideration, but patrons can expect a mix of favorites and slightly less-known texts to challenge and entertain them.
The second and final mainstage show of the 2010-11 season will be A.R. Gurney, Jr.’s popular comedy, Sylvia, May 6-22, 2011.
Tibbetts says that he and WTC Managing Director Mark Webb are already hard at work on plans for next season. “We want to expand our offerings,” Tibbetts said, “as well as thank our regular patrons and neighbors for all the support they’ve given us over the years. We want to be a vital part of this community, a neighbor who gives back as well as enjoys the benefits of such a wonderful community.”