October 30, 31, November 1 and 2 at 7:30 pm November 3, 2024 at 2:00 pm
presents
By Genevra Gallo-Bayiates,
Sharon Greene, Chloe Johnston, Bilal Dardai & Andy Bayiates
Director – Nadine Purvis Schmidt† Assistant Director – Sally Tabaka Scenic and Lighting Designer – Tetta M. Askeland† Sound Designer – Alyster Jaden Schmidt† Projections Designer – Priscilla Muehr Stage Manager – Olivia Houseman
This performance runs approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes and is performed without an intermission.
Original songs composed for the 2022 Theatre Pro Rata production of 46 Plays used by special arrangement with the composer, Rhiannon “MaMa Faerie” Fiskradatz.
46 Plays for America’s First Ladies is produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com)
CAST (Each Playing Multiple Roles)
Sariah Cheadle† ...................
Martha Washington, Edith Wilson, Jill Biden, and others
Peder Early ................................... Madame de Lafayette, Andrew Jackson, and others
Lilly Guggisberg ....................
Martha Jefferson, Anna Harrison, Julia Grant, Eleanor Roosevelt, Laura Bush, and others
Bryn Mongeau† ........................
Abigail Adams, Mary Lincoln, Ulysses Grant, Florence Harding, Barbara Bush, and others
Priscilla Muehr .........................
William King, Ida McKinley, Bess Truman, and others
Jazlynn Nelson ...........................
Rachel Jackson, Jane Pierce, Frances Cleveland, Lou Hoover, Jacqueline Kennedy, and others
JJ Ostenson ............... Woodrow Wilson, John Kennedy, and others
Amelia Reid ...................... Thomas Jefferson, James Buchanan, Lady Bird Johnson, and others
Eden Riegle............................
Caroline Harrison, Nellie Taft, Mamie Eisenhower, Betty Ford, and others
Jules Scarborough ........ Dolley Madison, Michelle Obama, and others
Alyster Jaden Schmidt† .................
Sally Hemings, Eliza Johnson, Rebecca Coolidge, Kamala Harris, and others
Arianna Urch ..................... Elizabeth Monroe, Margaret Taylor, Grace Coolidge, Rosalynn Carter, Melania Trump, and others
David Wendt ........................ Franklin Pierce, James Garfield, Grover Cleveland, Harry Truman, and others
WARNING
This show uses pulsing lights, gunshot and explosion sounds, theatrical haze, and simulated tobacco and alcohol use. This show contains adult language, sharp satire about American history and politics, and mentions of difficult subjects, including slavery, war, violence, illness, and the loss of children.
SAFETY MEASURES
We have general admission seating so that ushers can assist the audience in distancing according to their comfort level. You are welcome to wear a mask.
Please take a moment to locate the nearest emergency and fire exit.
THE PRODUCTION TEAM
Director ...................................................................... Nadine Purvis Schmidt†
Assistant Director ...........................................................................Sally Tabaka
Scenic and Lighting Designer .......................................... Tetta M. Askeland†
Board and Spot Operators .......................... Ahmed Ahmed, Sophia Fischer, ............................................................................ Roman Garcia, Leighton Prin, ....................................................................... Saishal Shrestha, Michael Sieling
Dramaturg ..................................................................................Laura Bradley†
Technical Director and Scene Shop Manager ................ Tetta M. Askeland†
Scene Shop Assistants ............................... Kayla Browen, Olivia Houseman, Priscilla Muehr, Michael Sieling, Stagecraft and Theatre Appreciation students
26. Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt (1901-1909) The Definition
27. Helen Herron “Nellie” Taft (1909-1913)
Sylvan/Syllables
28. Edith Bolling Galt Wilson (1913-1921)
First Lady Waltz
29. Florence Kling Harding (1921-1923)
The Duchess of Public Image
30. Grace Coolidge (1923-1929)
Grace and Rebecca
31. Lou Henry Hoover (1929-1933)
Multifaceted
32. Eleanor Roosevelt (1933-1945)
Little Nell
33. Bess Wallace Truman (1945-1953)
Cloudy With a Chance of Clarity
34. Mamie Eisenhower (1953-1961)
Mamie Pinks Pink
35. Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (1961-1963)
Sense and a Sense of History
36. Lady Bird Johnson (1963-1969) Wild. Flower.
37. Pat Nixon (1969-1974) Fellow Traveler: A Questionnaire for Pat Nixon
38. Betty Ford (1974-1977) Kinesthetics
39. Rosalynn Carter (1977-1981)
The Steel Magnolia Loses It
40. Nancy Reagan (1981-1989) Just Say No: A Social Inoculation Play for Developing Effective Tactics Against Peer Pressure
41. Barbara Bush (1989-1993)
Just Like Your Grandma
42. Hilary Clinton (1993-2001)
Hilary, Grendel’s Mother
43. Laura Lane Bush (2001-2009) A Partial Bibliography of Laura Lane Bush
44. Michelle Obama (2009-2017) The Task
45. Melania Knavs Trump (2017-2021)
Play in Search of a First Lady
46. Jill Biden/Kamala Harris (2021-)
Foreword, Afterward
FRIENDS OF THE THEATRE
Producer
Aminu Gomos*
Jan Loft & Doug Pilgrim***
Director
Lori Baker & Larry Magrath*
Jerry & Ricke Bly**
Tyler Bowen***
Jeff & Stephanie Cordes*
Lois Henkel**
Jim & Laurie Johansen***
Robert W. Schwoch***
Marshall Area Stage Company***
Designer
Tetta & Edison Askeland**
Jerry Girton***
Jeff & Pam Gladis**
Jim & Deb Kerkaert**
Bill & Stacie Mulso**
Jan Craig Nelson ‘73***
Paula Nemes & Steven Rasmusson***
2024-25 Members *** Charter Member ** Sustaining Member (3+ yrs) * New Member
Carma Nordahl**
Lee & Norma Raske**
Sara Runchey & Jim Smalley**
Karen Sweetland*
Jim & Sheila Tabaka & Family***
Nadine & Karl Schmidt***
Jennifer & Brian Stucke*
Ross & Sonja Wastvedt*
John & Māra Wiggins**
Actor
Dan & Linda Baun**
Doug & JoAnne Fraunfelder***
Brett & Anita Gaul**
Lorna Rafness**
Mary Jane Striegel**
Charlotte and Marty Wahle*
Jim & Marianne Zarzana***
Apprentice Nancy Marco*
FRIENDS GIFT LEVELS
GIFT CLUB REWARD
$25 Apprentice 2 ticket vouchers« «(Ticket vouchers only for those under age 25 or graduate of SMSU within the last five years.)
$75 Actor 3 ticket vouchers
$125 Designer 6 ticket vouchers
$250 Director 9 ticket vouchers
$500 Producer 12 ticket vouchers and Theatre web page listing
$1000 Angel 15 ticket vouchers and Theatre web page listing
If you would like to join Friends of the Theatre or sponsor a production, please call the SMSU Theatre at 507-537-7103.
The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival , part of the Rubenstein Arts Access Program, is generously funded by D David M. Rubenstein.
Special thanks to The Harol d and Mimi Steinberg Charitable T rust for supporting the John F. Kennedy Cent er for the Performing Arts’ Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.
Additional support is provided by The Honorable Stuart Bernstein and Wilma E. Bernstein ; and the Dr. Gerald and Paula McNichols Foundation.
Kennedy Center education and related artistic programming is made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts.
This production is entered in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF). The aims of this national theater education program are to identify and promote quality in college -level theater production. To this end, each production entered is eligible for a response by a regional KCACTF representative, and selected students and faculty are invited to participate in KCACTF programs involving scholarships, internships, grants and awards for actors, directors, dramaturgs, playwrights, designers, stage managers and critics at both the regional and national levels.
Productions entered on the Participating level are eligible for invitation to the KCACTF regional festival and may also be considered for national awards recognizing outstanding achievement in production, design, direction and performance.
Last year more than 1,500 productions were entered in the KCACTF involving more than 200,000 students nationwide. By entering this production, our theater department is sharing in the KCACTF goals to recognize, reward, and celebrate the exemplary work produced in college and university theaters across the nation.
For more information about the SMSU Theatre Program please call 507-537-7103.Visit the Theatre Arts web page at SMSU.edu/go/theatre or find SMSU Theatre on Facebook and Instagram @SMSUTheatre
UPCOMING EVENTS
SHOUT! The Mod Musical
April 10-13, 2025
SMSU Fine Arts Theatre
The 19th Annual Fine Arts Celebration
March-May 2025
A festival of the fine arts, showcasing creative works from the Department of Fine Arts and Communication, the English Department and the Creative Writing Program
Department Chairperson ............................................Dr. John Ginocchio Theatre Faculty.......................................................................Sheila Tabaka†
Dr. William Hezlep†, Emeritus (Deceased) ......................................................... Charles Autry†, Emeritus (Deceased) Fine Arts Office Administrator.......................................... Jennifer Stucke
