ON THE ROAD TO CREEDE – Four shows in three days . . .
The Village of Creede houses one of the most honored professional summer theatre programs in the nation. Granted it is a drive from Denver – easily four hours – but through some of the most scenic parts of Colorado. The valley that greets you at Monarch Pass which leads to Fairplay. Poncha Pass south of Salida that runs west of the Sand Dunes glistening in the sun. The 17 miles between South Fork and Creede. You will not regret this drive.
The Village itself is nestled in the “V” between two guardian mountains that provide shade far into the morning and early in the evening. A home to under 300 people year-round but providing a welcome landing place for thousands of tourists and theatre lovers in the summer. Savvy visitors know to make their housing and theatre reservations as soon as the season calendar is up and running.
There are restaurants in historic buildings, rowdy bars that cater to music lovers, boutique shops, and sporting goods stores for all sports. There are hiking trails that take you to old mining sites and a town that mostly rolls up its streets early in the evening, providing nighttime tranquility.
But the real reason to be there is for the theatre. Managed by theatre professionals from all over the country who treasure the available positions for crafts people and actors as summer workers. A core company forms quickly with people who have worked every summer for years. A few have even chosen to become year-around residents.
The season running from early June to mid-September usually includes a couple of musicals, a couple of comedies, late night improv, and shows for kids. These are peppered with pre-show “preludes” that implement your understanding of what you will see on stage, backstage tours, the opportunity to watch the changeover from one set to another, and post-show talkbacks with the actors and others who have worked on the show you just saw. A full experience for both the seasoned and novice theatregoer.
Our weekend in Creede yielded four plays in three days. The first was WORKING, an homage to working people based on the book by Chicago columnist Studs Terkel. Originally written in 1977 with music by Stephen Schwartz, the show has been updated several times to include new workers and songs, including two in 2009 by Lin-Manual Miranda. It celebrates the workday of laborers in songs like “Just a Housewife” and “Brother Truckers.” Creede went one step further, interviewing people from Creede and integrating monologues about local workers.
The second show was FULLY COMMITTED, an incredible one-man show whose title embodies not only the character in the play, but the actor involved. Graham Ward plays a harried reservationist at a ritzy restaurant in New York that has more demanding customers than tables available. He plays not only the one answering the phone, but the people calling in, the restaurant staff, personal calls by family and friends and others. Nearly 40 difference characters in total. A tour de force performance in which the audience never loses track of who he is talking to and why.
The third was MORIARITY, a Sherlock-Watson spoof by Ken Ludwig which has two actors in the lead roles and three more who portray 24 additional characters among them. Ludwig pushes the tale of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle hero to comic heights utilizing quick changes, wigs, vocal dynamics, even puppets to tell his story. We watched Sherlock fall in love, confront his mortal enemy and once again solve the mystery. A good time was had by all.
The fourth show was that ode to tweener angst, THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, full of precocious students, each with their own personal obstacle to overcome. Absent parents, too-present parents, personality quirks, awakening sexual awareness, and on and on. All within the framework of a do-or-die spelling bee. Led by a former winner (it seems like the high point of her life) and a school administrator, there is even a “comfort counselor” to assist the kids through losing. Always funny, this production shone with music and humor.
Note that the shows run until the middle of September, so you still have time to catch a show or two. While it was warm this summer, it will be cool by now. In this day and age when stay-cations and keeping close to home makes sense, two or three days in Creede would be a blessing.
The whole weekend warrants a WOW factor of 9.5!!