The main auditorium was about two-thirds full for the one-time performance of “The Miracle Worker” Saturday night at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center. Professional actors from the Montana Repertory Theatre staged the well-known production about Helen Keller, who was born blind, deaf and dumb.
Tickets were $23 for adults, $20 for students; admittedly on the high end for entertainment in this neck of the woods. A bequest from the Sleeper Family Trust helped keep ticket prices affordable. The show has moved on to Texas, where ticket prices range from $27 to $46.
The Alan Sleeper family established the trust in 1975. Proceeds from its investments allow the fine arts center to bring such talent to town at an affordable price on a regular basis.
It’s been a long time since live theater has packed the Bowlus. If it makes production companies feel any better, they are not alone. A survey conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts has shown a dramatic decrease in attendance at art galleries, museums and theater venues.
A live dramatic performance takes a little bit of work on the part of the audience to appreciate. You have to be very present during a production to catch all that is going on, purposefully listening and watching.
Of course with “SHOUT!,” the current musical at Iola’s Warehouse Theatre, the entertainment practically falls in your lap as the characters recreate Britain’s music scene of the 1960s.
No live performance is a passive experience. Both audience and performers feed off each other. The joy of Helen Keller finally understanding the meaning of words had Saturday night’s audience with tears streaming down cheeks and erupting in magnificent applause.
Once you get the hang of it, nothing surpasses a live performance. It’s the real thing with no retakes or dub overs.
“SHOUT!” has another string of performances this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
It’s fun, it’s alive and it’s local.
Attendance at last weekend’s performances was less than desired, but the cast and crew will give it their all, whether it’s before a handful or a packed house.
Because, after all, the show must go on.
-— Susan Lynn
Live theater is not a passive experience â thank goodness!
