MinneHaHa Players

Who are they?

The MinneHaHa Players are a theatrical troupe drawn from members of the LHS to recreate theatrical performances, tableau vivants, and other dramatic experiences of 19^th century theatre for the edification and amusement of the modern audience. It is hoped that through their research and performance, people will appreciate what entertainments were available during the mid-19^th century.

Using a combination of period plays, costumes, and props, as well as the results of their own extensive research into period dramatics, the MinneHaHa Players have presented their 19^th Century theatricals throughout the upper Midwest at living history sites, private gatherings, elementary and secondary schools, corporate functions, etc. They have performed at

• Civil War Weekend at Historic Fort Snelling, St. Paul, MN
• Civil War Days festival at Pipestone, MN
• Victorian Fair at Winona, MN
• Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, MN
• Oliver H. Kelley Farm, Elk River, MN
• the Holiday on 44^th Parade, Minneapolis, MN
• and for several county historical societies

Upcoming events

• Winter Weekend Theatrical Auditions
  The MinneHaha Players announce auditions for the Winter Weekend Theatrical. Auditions will be held on two Sundays in September in the historic Triune Lodge in St. Paul :
  Sunday, September 16, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
  Sunday, September 23, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.

  Those interesting in auditioning may attend either or both sessions. Anyone who is interested in auditioning, but who is unable to make either of these scheduled dates, may request a private audition with the director, minnehahaplayers@lhsmn.org

  The Players would also like to make it clear that anyone and everyone is welcome to audition. People need not have previously performed with Players. People also need not be current LHS members (though a majority of the total performers for the evening are supposed to be current LHS members). This could be a way to introduce new potential members (especially those with any previous theatrical experience) to a fun activity; also, this will be a good opportunity for LHS members who’d like to give it a try to benefit from an extended, low-pressure preparation period.

  Auditions will include individual and ensemble readings from the play scripts, along with guided movement exercises stressing the poses and gestures used in nineteenth century performance (previous experience is not required).

  Rehearsals will begin as soon as the shows are cast, but will for the initial weeks will include only those individuals needed for a particular scene, and so can be arranged around times of mutual availability. Memorization of parts will be expected (after all, you’ll have a minimum of 15 weeks to learn your roles!).

  The Winter Weekend theatrical scheduled for Friday, February 15 (with a repeat public performance the following Friday, February 22) will include a double-bill, consisting of two short plays linked by the general theme of “Americans Discover the Bard . . . . with Amusing Results.”

  First up on the program is the comedy, in three scenes, “The Stage-Struck Yankee,” originally dating from the 1840s, but frequently performed as an old favorite through the mid-nineteenth century as well. One of a number of “Yankee plays” popular in the theatre cities of the Northeast, and also on the London stage, “The Stage-Struck Yankee” tells the story of an impressionable country lad who, overwhelmed by seeing his first theatre performance, excited by Shakespearean w ordplay (and swordplay), and falling desperately in love with the company’s leading lady, decides to forswear his rural sweetheart and run away from home to join the actors. This play is about 40 minutes in length, with a cast of 6 (4 men, 2 women); 5 of the 6 need to be fairly dedicated and experienced actors, as there is a great deal of memorization involved. The 6th (written for a male, but could possibly be rewritten for a female) is a walk-on supernumerary with minimal lines. This play can be rehearsed with each of the three scenes as separate entities, around the schedules of the performers.

  Second on the bill is the 15-minute (more or less) burlesque “The Ticket-Taker.” The surviving fragments of this piece, which I am in the process of revising, date from the mid-1850s, but there are indications that it was reworked for performance during the 1860s. This is a very episodic piece, basically a succession of comic bits within a framing narrative. The elite citizens of the town are putting on a Grand Ball, and engage a bumbling illiterate to be the ticket-taker and doorman, warning him to guard against gate-crashing riff-raff. But who can resist the social event of the year? One by one, all of the comic undesirables show up and manage to finagle their way inside! The piece calls for 12-13 performers, but could be expanded or condensed a bit in either direction. Lots of opportunity for less experienced people who are interested in exploring period theatre to give it a try, with both solo and small ensemble segments available. “The Ticket-Taker” will be rehearsed piecemeal, and “assembled” in the last couple of weeks. This play ends with a “Plantation Dance” finale, which will be choreog raphed to include the entire cast.

  And a good time will be had by all . . . !

Repertoire

• The History of Minnesota, in Five Acts, with Prologue and Interlude
• One of You Must Marry
• Trying It On
• A Pretty Piece of Business
• L'Etoile du Nord
• The Ghosts of "A Christmas Carol"
• Scenes from Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
• Box and Cox
• This Picture and That

Education and Outreach

The MinneHaHa Players are available for activities outside of those sponsored by the Living History Society. If you would be interested in finding out more about this wonderful theatrical troupe and how they can bring a taste of 19^th century theatre into your next presentation, conference, gathering, etc., please check out their prospectus.

Research on Theatricals

Contacts:

By e-mail: minnehahaplayers@lhsmn.org