Jan. 19, 2022
Contact Dillon McArdle at 608-796-3733 or dtmcardle@viterbo.edu
20TH ANNIVERSARY NATIONAL TOUR OF CHURCH BASEMENT LADIES COMING TO THE VITERBO FINE ARTS CENTER
LA CROSSE, Wis. – The musical comedy Church Basement Ladies will make a special appearance at the Viterbo University Fine Arts Center Main Theatre as part of its 20th anniversary national tour on Thursday, March 17 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Church Basement Ladies is a celebration of the stalwart, stable, sturdy ladies who live and breathe the church basement protocol while attempting to solve the problems of a rural Minnesota church. It’s 1964 when their world and their beloved church are about to go through some major changes. The ladies are in perpetual motion as they attempt to stave off one disaster after another, and the actions between the church basement ladies and the pastor creates “holy hilarity” as one watches them share and debate recipes, instruct the young, talk about hot flashes, and keep the pastor on due course while thoroughly enjoying, (and tolerating) each other.
These four ladies, with four different personalities create the perfect recipe for the “perfect storm.” From the elderly matriarch of the kitchen whose ideas are “cemented in the past,” to the nervous bride-to-be who wants to break out of the mold, to the wife of a farmer who sometimes uses inappropriate actions and words, to the break-down of the “stable” one of the ladies, chaos and comedy, heavily sprinkled with touching moments, is in abundance throughout the production. Audiences begin to see the church year unfold from below the “House of God,” as they witness these ladies aptly handle a record-breaking Christmas dinner, the funeral of a dear friend, a Hawaiian-themed Easter fundraiser, and a steamingly hot July wedding.
Ten years ago, authors/humorists Janet Letnes Martin and Suzann Nelson, the creators and writers of the award-winning book, Growing Up Lutheran, and ten other Scandinavian-American heart-warming humor books, teamed up with Twin Cities based production company, Troupe America, Inc. and its executive producer Curt Wollan. He wanted to create a show that celebrated the under-appreciated, hard-working, dedicated ladies who tirelessly worked in the church kitchen cooking, creating, and arranging the food and coffee for weddings, funerals, youth gatherings, and potluck suppers for the masses.
Wollan commissioned creative writing team Jim Stowell, one of Minnesota’s favorite storytellers, and Jessica Zuehlke, a performance arts educator to develop the book using Martin and Nelson’s writings as the inspiration for the musical. This husband-and-wife duo collaborated with composer/ songwriter Drew Jansen, well-known for his original and creative lyrics and words in the popular homegrown hit musical, How to Talk Minnesotan: The Musical.
The upcoming twentieth anniversary national tour of Church Basement Ladies is choreographed by Wendy Shorty Hays with set and lighting design by Scott Herbst, costume design by Katrina Benedict, and musical direction by Dennis Curley.
Tickets are $39 for main floor, $35 for lower balcony, and $29 for upper balcony seating, plus taxes and fees. Masks are required to be worn in all indoor public spaces on the Viterbo campus. For more information or to order tickets, contact the Viterbo box office at 608-796-3100 or visit www.viterbo.edu/tickets.
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