Be moved, be bold, be theatre - Starting A Professional Theatre Company in Rural America

2

Contents


  Summary  4

  Foreword  6

INTRODUCTION   8

CHAPTER 1  : Corn, Kettle and the Prairie  

Introducing  the State of South Dakota  10

CHAPTER 2  : Broadway. Regional. Community  

  Theatre in the United States  13

CHAPTER 3  : Stage Art for the Prairie - Building Bühnenkunst Theatre  16

3.1.  Prelude: The Preconditions For A Theatre Company in Rural America  

3.1.1.  The Sioux Falls Theatre Market - An Analysis  17

3.1.2.  The Audience in the Midwest  20

3.1.3.  Theatre Artists in the Midwest and Sioux Falls  25

3.2.  Rising Action: Starting the Company  29

3.2.1.  Creating a Legal Entity  31

3.2.2.  Getting on Board - The Company and its Structure  34

3.2.3.  Starting the Theatre Company as a Business  36

3.2.4.  Bühnenkunst Theatre as a Performance Arts Institution  41

CHAPTER 4  : Debut Production - Spring Awakening  

4.1.  The Play and its Appeal to the Sioux Falls Audience  44

4.2.  Gathering A Team  50

4.3.  The Production Design  55

4.4.  Marketing The Show  62

4.5.  Practice Makes Perfect Rehearsals  69

4.6.  Breaking a Leg’ The Show’s Run  71

4.7.  Wrapped up and Archived - Spring Awakening on Record  74

4.8.  Post Production  76

CHAPTER 5  : The Future of Bühnenkunst Theatre Company - A Conclusion  77

3

APPENDIX


A) Certificate
of
Incorporation 79

B) Articles
of
Incorporation 80 C) Bylaws 83

D) Article
by
Jay
Kirschenman
(Argus
Leader
May
29,
2008) 86

E) Theatre
Companies
in
South
Dakota 87

F) Works
Cited i) Print
Sources 87

ii) Electronic
Sources 88

iii) Pictures
and
Figures 90

ATTACHEMENTS


Program
for
Spring
Awakening

4

Summary
­
Zusammenfassung


“Ich
bin
überzeugt,
dass
in
einer
großartigen
Stadt,
sogar
in
einer
Kleinstadt
oder einem
Dorf,
großartiges
Theater
ein
äußerliches
und
sichtbares
Zeichen
einer verinnerlichten
und
glaubhaften
Kultur
ist.” ¹ Das
amerikanische
Theater
lebt
nicht
nur, wie
weit
verbreitet,
in
der
glitzernden
Welt
zwischen
Broadway,
Off‐Broadway
und
Off‐ Off‐Broadway
in
New
York
City,
sondern
pulsiert
vor
allem
im
Herzen
der
USA.
Der Mittlere
Westen
der
Vereinigten
Staaten
ist
mannigfaltig
in
seiner
Geographie, Ökonomie
und
sozialem
Umfeld.
Neben
endlosen
Weiten,
Farmen
und
Bergen
existieren und
wachsen
amerikanische
Metropolen
wie
Chicago,
Minneapolis
oder
Detroit.
So vielfältig
wie
dieser
Teil
Amerikas
ist
auch
dessen
Theaterlandschaft.
Professionelles Schauspiel,
sowie
Amateurtheater
sind
gleichenteils
anerkannt
und
beliebt. Diese
Magisterarbeit
beschäftigt
sich
größtenteils
mit
Berufstheater
in
den Vereinigten
Staaten,
speziell
wird
die
Gründung
einer
professionellen
Theatergruppe im
ländlichen
Amerika
beobachtet
und
analysiert.
Dabei
wird
besonders
auf
die rechtlichen,

geschäftlichen,
künstlerischen
Vorgängen
eingegangen,
die
sich
bis
zur Debütinszenierung
des
Gründers,
nämlich
Frank
Wedekind’s
FrühlingsErwachen, hinziehen. Gleichmassen
werden
die
Voraussetzungen
für
die
Entstehung
von
Bühnenkunst Theatre
im
Zuge
einer
Marktanalyse
von
Sioux
Falls,
SD,
dem
Gründungsort,
näher betrachet.
Durch
Feldforschung
konnten
empirische
und
statistische
Daten
erhoben, analysiert
und
ausgewertet
werden.
Dazu
dienten
vor
allem
Internet‐Befragungen
die an
Theaterkünstler
und
Zuschauer
gerichtet
waren.

¹ 
Sir
Laurence
Olivier


5

Theater
gedeiht
unter
anderem
durch
den
konstant
starken
Rückhalt
und Unterstützung
durch
des
Publikum
und
die
Gemeinde.
Allerdings
ändert
sich
die Theaterlandschaft
je
weiter
westlich
die
Untersuchungen
gehen.
Gibt
es
in
Iowa
und South
Dakota
noch
eine
gewisse
Ansammlung
an
lokalen
professionellen
Theatern, verringert
sich
die
Anzahl
in
Montana
auf

Null.
Es
findet
sich
allerdings
verschiedene Formen
des
Amateurtheaters.
Community‐
und
Universitätstheater
kommen
dort
am häufigsten
vor.

Konzeptionell
ist
diese
Arbeit
unkonventioneller
aufgebaut.
Sie
beruht
nicht
auf einer
zentralen
These,
die
sich
zu
beweisen
gilt,
sondern
ist
vielmehr
eine
Synthese
aus theoretischen,
beschreibenden
Fakten
und
Hintergründen,
und
konkreten,
praktischen Ausführungen,
die
sich
bei
der
Etablierung
des
Theaters
in
der
Kunstlandschaft
von Sioux
Falls
von
der
ersten
Idee
bis
zur
Premiere
des
ersten
Stückes
ergeben
haben.
Die Inszenierung
mit
ihren
künstlerischen,
technischen,
finanziellen,
werblichen,
aber
auch menschlichen
Aspekten,
wird
dabei
ebenfalls
näher
analysiert. Zum
Schluss
wird
ein
Blick
in
die
mögliche
Zukunft
der
Unternehmens
geworfen und
dabei
auf
Möglichkeiten
eingegangen,
die
sich
in
den
nächsten
zehn
Jahren
ergeben könnten.

6

Foreword


“I
regard
the
theatre
as
the
greatest
of
all
art
forms,
the
most
immediate
way
in
which
a


human
being
can
share
with
another
the
sense
of
what
it
is
to
be
a
human
being.”



Oscar
Wilde



Creating
art
and
especially
stage
art
has
become
the
driving
force
in
my
life.
A
journey that
essentially
began
in
2004
is
now
starting
to
unfold
itself
to
a
full
degree. While
studying
abroad
in
Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota
in
2004‐05,
I
became acquainted
with
the
local
theatre
scene
through
the
Augustana
College
Theatre Department.
Over
the
course
of
the
year,
I
was
introduced
to
many
local
theatre
artists and
became
an
active
member
as
an
actor,
scenic
artist,
stage
manager
and
assistant director.
The
passion
and
dedication
of
the
few
performing
artists
in
Sioux
Falls
was infinite
and
aspiring.

During
the
last
four
years,
I
have
participated
one
way
or
another
in
fourteen theatre
productions
of
various
kinds
in
Germany
and
the
United
States.
The
experiences I
made
in
both
quite
diverse
and
sometimes
contrasting
theatre
scenes
gave
me
a unique
perspective
on
functioning
and
daily
operations
of
a
theatre,
as
well
as
the
life‐ style
of
artists
and
factors
that
influence
the
financial
and
artistic
decision‐making. While
I
am
finishing
this
thesis
I
am
not
only
a
full‐time
Assistant
Director
at
the Hans‐Otto‐Theatre
in
Potsdam,
and
the
Founding
Artistic
Director
of
the
Bühnenkunst Theatre
Company
in
Sioux
Falls,
SD.

The
exciting
and
life‐changing
journey
how
I
became
the
latter
and
what
it
took to
create
a
theatre
company
in
the
rural
Midwest
of
the
United
States
will
be
the
central focus
of
this
thesis.

7

While
this
is
still
an
academic
paper,
it
approaches
the
subject
matter
in
an unusual,
more
practical
than
theoretical
way.

It
can
also
be
seen
as
some
sort
of
a
guideline
and
inspiration
for
professional theatre
companies
to
form
and
grow
in
the
Midwest.
Its
potential
in
the
creative
energy of
its
artists,
the
eagerness,
curiosity
and
zeal
of
its
audience,
combined
with
the generosity
of
donors
and
sponsors,
is
incessant.

This
paper
is
supposed
to
inspire
theatre
artists
in
the
heartland
and
shall
give them
hope
and
new
faith
in
the
capability
of
their
region
and
to
further
enrich
the cultural
studies
of
literature
on
the
Midwest
and
its
sundry
theatre
landscape.

I
would
like
to
thank
the
Augustana
College,
Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota
for
their support,
Dr.
Julia
Bennett
and
her
husband
Tom,
for
their
hospitality,
assistance
and advice.
A
special
thank
is
directed
to
all
people
who
supported
the
company
financially. Further,
I
would
like
to
thank
all
individual
participants
in
the
two
surveys
and the
managing
directors
who
made
them
available
to
all
their
artists Last,
but
not
least
I
would
like
to
give
a
special
thank
you
to
my
business
partner and
good
friend
Andrew
Erickson
for
being
part
of
this
thrilling
journey
and
my personal
life. Janek
Liebetruth Berlin,
in
October
2008

8

Introduction


“All
the
world's
a
stage,
And
all
the
men
and
women
merely
players.

They
have
their


exits
and
their
entrances,

And
one
man
in
his
time
plays
many
parts.”



William
Shakespeare
As
You
Like
It
 


In
general,
American
theatre
is
often
equated
with
theatre
produced
and
staged
on Broadway
in
New
York
City.
Yet,
the
American
theatre
scene
is
much
more
diverse
and widespread
than
commonly
believed.

While
the
following
work
is
focusing
primarily
on
founding
a
professional theatre
company
in
South
Dakota,
it
also
gives
an
inside
glimpse
into
the
fascinating
and mysterious
world
behind
the
curtain
of
contemporary
performing
arts,
especially
in
the United
States.

Similar
to
the
author’s
approach
towards
theatre,
this
academic
paper
at
hand
is rather
unconventional
in
nature
‐
it
does
not
make
an
attempt
to
proof
a
central
thesis; it
rather
follows
and
analyzes
the
voyage
of
an
evolving
theatre
endeavor
called Bühnenkunst
Theatre
Company,
founded
in
the
fastest
growing
community
in
the Midwest
region
of
the
United
States
-
Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota. ² In
this
paper,
descriptive,
theoretical
facts
and
explanations
are
being intertwined
with
concrete,
practical
implementations
on
the
process
of
founding
a professional
theatre
company
in
rural
America. In
order
to
understand
the
complexity
of
the
theatre
culture
and
business
in
the United
States,
it
is
crucial
to
familiarize
with
the
current
state
of
the
American
theatre, the
organizations
that
influence
it
the
most
and
all
the
operations
and
functions
of
a

² 
“A
Great
Place
to
Live,”
Forward
Sioux
Falls


9

producing
live
theatre
company
and
the
procedures
before,
during
and
after
a production. Along
the
way,
this
paper
does
not
only
emphasize
the
artistic
and
creative segment
of
theatre,
but
also
the
technical
as
well
as
the
business,
legal
and
of
course human
element.

Furthermore,
the
significance
of
choosing
Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota,
as
a
market for
the
new
company
will
be
explained
and
its
history,
demographics
and
location investigated.
In
order
to
analyze
the
professional
theatre
market
in
the
South
Dakota, two
online
surveys
were
conducted
among
theatre
artists
as
well
as
the
general
public. The
range
of
data,
figures
and
statements
captured
the
genuine
essence
of
not
only
the multiplicity
of
different
communities
in
the
Midwest,
but
also
the
mixture
of
its
theatre landscape. Beyond
the
study
of
the
locale,
the
paper
will
demonstrate
all
issues
that emerged
during
the
formation
process
of
the
new
company,
like
filing
the
articles
of incorporation,
getting
support
from
the
community,
forming
a
board
of
directors
and raising
money,
as
well
as
choosing
the
right
play
for
the
debut
production. The
paper
continues
to
elucidate
the
development
of
that
production
from
a conceptual,
aesthetical,
technical,
financial
and
promotional
point
of
view.
It
will
clarify the
relevance
that
the
selected
play,
Spring
Awakening
by
Frank
Wedekind,
has
for
the Sioux
Falls
audience. Finally,
the
paper
will
take
a
look
into
a
possible
future
of
the
company
and
what might
be
achievable
within
the
next
few
years.

10

CHAPTER 1 Corn,
Kettle
and
the
Prairie
­

 Introducing
the
State
of
South
Dakota


“The
Great
Plains…feel
at
times
like
an
almost
forgotten
region
-
and
yet
there
are wonders
in
it.” Larry
McMurtry

Located
within
the
western
part
of
the
Great
Plains
region,
South
Dakota
became
the fortieth
state
of
America
in
1889
and
is
one
of
the
six
states
of
the
former
Frontier
Strip. Acquired
in
the
Louisiana
Purchase,
the
region
became
part
of
the
Dakota
Territory
in 1861
and
was
split
off
from
North
Dakota
at
the
time
it
achieved
statehood.
The
state consists
of
four
major
land
regions:
The
Great
Plains,
the
Black
Hills,
the
Dissected
Till Plains
and
the
Drift
Prairie.
Therefore,
the
landscape
varies
from
farmland,
over
rolling hills
and
buttes
to
a
range
of
low
mountains.
Especially
the
Black
Hills
are
important
to South
Dakota’s
economy,
since
they
are
rich
in
minerals. 


Fig.
1
South
Dakota’s
location
in
the
United
States 3 Fig.
2
Map
of
South
Dakota 4 


With
the
set
up
of
an
U.S.
fur
trading
post
in
1817,
settlement
in
the
area
began. After
a
fast
growing
number
of
settlements
in
the
region,
the
Indian
tribes
of
Yankton, Dakota,
and
Sioux
left
most
of
eastern
South
Dakota
to
the
U.S.
government
by
signing the
1858
Treaty. ^{3 
NationalAtlas.gov
 4} 
NationalAtlas.gov




11

After
the
eastern
railway
link
to
the
capital
of
Yankton
in
1872
and
the
discovery of
gold
in
the
Black
Hills
in
1874,
a
swarm
of
German,
Scandinavian,
Irish
and
Russian settlers
entered
the
territory.
However,
since
the
Black
Hills
still
belonged
to
the
Sioux tribes,
who
did
not
grant
for
white
people
to
start
mining,
a
war
between
the
Indians and
the
United
States
broke
out.

In
the
following
year,
the
population
of
Caucasians
tripled
and
the
last
major incident
of
this
war
occurred
on
December
29,
1890,
at
Wounded
Knee
Creek,
when
the “U.S.
Army
massacred
three
hundred
Lakota,
mostly
women
and
children” ⁵ .

Today,
the
U.S.
Census
Bureau
estimates
South
Dakota’s
population
at
781,919 people ¹⁰ .
Although
the
state
also
faces
the
population
shift
from
the
rural
to
the
urban area,
the
population
increased
steadily
(U.S.
Census:
754,844
in
2000).
German
is
the largest
ancestry
group
followed
by
Scandinavian
and
Irish.
After
New
Mexico
and Alaska,
the
state
has
the
highest
proportion
of
Native
Americans
in
the
United
States. Five
counties
lay
entirely
within
Indian
Reservations ¹¹ .
Mount
Rushmore
in
the
Black Hills
is
one
of
the
main
American
attractions
and
a
National
Monument
in
the
United States. ⁵ 
Garland
189


^{6 
http://scenicdakotas.info/southdakota/sd‐farm.jpg
 7} 
“Mount
Rushmore,”
Ben’s
Guide


^{8 
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2079/2471486436_8d7c9d778a.jpg?v=0
 9} 
Dempsy,
Photoseek


^{10 
“South
Dakota
Population”
U.S.
Census
Bureau
 11} 
“South
Dakota
Counties,”
South
Dakota
Association
of
County
Officials


12

Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota's
largest
city,
with
currently
153,100
citizens, ¹² is “named
for
the
Sioux
Tribe
of
American
Indians
and
the
waterfalls
of
the
Big
Sioux River,
located
a
few
blocks
from
today's
downtown
district.
The
Falls
of
the
Big
Sioux River
drew
people
to
this
area
as
a
source
of
water.
Industries
prospered
and
a
city grew.
The
Dakota
War
of
1862
briefly
caused
the
city
to
evacuate,
but
many
former residents
returned
in
the
following
years,
along
with
a
wave
of
new
homesteaders.
By the
turn
of
the
century,
the
prairie
settlement
had
grown
into
a
city
of
more
than
10,000 residents.
” ¹³ 



Forbes
named
Sioux
Falls
“the
#1
Best
Small
Place
For
Business
And
Careers
in 2005,
2006,
and
2007
important
location
for
financial
services,
health
care,
and
retail trade” ¹⁴ ,
with
no
state
corporate
income
taxes
and
low
property
rates. Due
to
the
two
major
hospitals
‐
Sanford
Health
and
Avera
McKennan
Hospital, Sioux
Falls
is
a
significant
regional
health
care
center
as
well,
with
a
growing
emphasis on
research
in
medical
technology.
Additionally,
Sioux
Falls
serves
as
the
cultural
center of
the
region;
and
the
economical
and
political
landscape
makes
it
the
ideal
location
for a
new
theatre
company.

Fig.
7
Sioux
Falls
Impressions
(by
Rich
Murphy)


¹² 
“Fact
Finder
2007.”
U.S.
Census
Bureau


¹³ 
“History,”
Forward
Sioux
Falls


¹⁴ 
“Best
Places
Business
and
Career,”
Forbes
Magazine


13

CHAPTER 2 Broadway.
Regional.
Community.



Theatre
in
the
United
States

It
is
neither
easy
to
portray
theatre
in
the
United
States
in
just
a
few
words,
nor
can
it
be done
by
only
describing
it
with
one
umbrella
term.
Since
ancient
time,
when
Thespis developed
the
first
actor
and
the
Greeks
celebrated
their
god
of
wine
Dionysus,
theatre has
been
from
the
people
for
the
people.
Theatre
has
been
part
of
religious
life
in Ancient
Greece,
politics
in
Ancient
Rome,
was
considered
devilish
and
evil
all
through the
Middle
Ages,
has
been
brought
to
new
blossom
and
heights
by
Shakespeare,
has been
a
status
symbol
and
institution
for
the
bourgeoisie,
the
playground
for
virtuosi,
a tribune
for
dissenters
and
revolutionists
and
saw
the
rise
of
abstract
and
postmodern variants.

Theatre
in
the
United
States
today
is
quite
diverse
and
there
are
a
wide
variety
of distinctive
forms,
types
and
sizes
-
professional
and
non‐professional
as
well
as commercial
and
non‐profit
forms.
There
are
tiny
ambitious
companies
that
struggle
for survival
with
hardly
any
budget;
on
the
other
side
there
are
massive
Broadway
shows with
a
budget
of
several
million
dollars. Location
wise,
Broadway
in
New
York
City
is
generally
considered
the
pinnacle of
commercial
U.S.
theatre,
though
the
performing
arts
appear
all
across
the
country. Since
the
midst
of
the
twentieth
century
however,
there
has
been
movement away
from
the
centralized
commercial
theatre
Mecca
of
New
York
Broadway.
But
only the
year
1959
marked
a
breakthrough
in
regional
professional
theatre,
when
an
Irish director
named
Tyrone
Guthrie
established
the
idea
of
a
permanent
resident
theatre outside
of
New
York.
In
1963,
his
dream
came
true
when
the
Guthrie
Theatre
opened

14

right
in
the
middle
of
the
Midwest
and
over
one
thousand
miles
away
from
New
York
in the
city
of
Minneapolis
in
Minnesota. 


Even
today
the
competition
continues.
However,
both
sides
started
to
distinguish itself
from
each
other.
Whereas
Broadway
has
turned
more
and
more
into
a
mass musical
theater
arena,
presenting
more
traditional
staging
techniques
rather
than cutting
edge,
it
is
the
regional
theatres
that
are
producing
a
variety
of
classical
work mixed
with
original
pieces
using
more
avant‐garde
and
venturous
staging
methods
than established
ones.
The
most
influential
not‐for‐profit
regional
theatres
are
organized
in the
League
of
Resident
Theatres
or
LORT.

There
are
different
criteria
that
are
required
for
a
membership
into
LORT.
“The theatre
must
be
incorporated
as
a
non‐profit
I.R.S.‐approved
organization.
Each
self‐ produced
production
must
be
rehearsed
for
a
minimum
of
three
weeks.
The
theatre must
have
a
playing
season
of
twelve
weeks
or
more.
The
theatre
will
operate
under
a LORT‐Equity
contract.” ¹⁵ 


¹⁵ 
“LORT
New
Membership,”
LORT


15

Nevertheless,
Broadway
or
regional
alike,
professional
theatre
is
generally considered
any
production
company
that
pays
their
artists
and
staff.
Officially
and legally
however
professional
is
any
theatre
that
runs
with
an
Actors’
Equity
Association, or
Equity,
agreement
or
contract,
non‐professional
theatre
is
every
theatre
that
is amateur
or
voluntary
based,
like
most
community
and
dinner
theatres. Equity
is
the
premiere
theatrical
performers'
labor
union
in
the
United
States and
was
founded
in
New
York
City
in
1913
as
the
first
of
the
American
actors'
unions. Its
jurisdiction
covers
both
actors
and
stage
managers
in
the
professional
theater industry.

An
Equity
membership
grants
its
owner
full
access
to
the
benefits,
resources
and safeguards
negotiated
by
Equity.
Benefits
include
a
minimum
salary,
work
rules,
a health
and
pension
plan,
agents’
regulations,
anti‐discrimination
guidelines
and
union discounts.
Those
protections
assure
its
members
participate
in
theatrical
activity
that meets
professional
standards. Equity
has
several
agreements
according
to
the
different
kinds
of
theatre,
like LORT
or
SPT,
Smaller
Professional
Theatre,
contracts
or
the
position
within
the
cast
like leading
role,
ensemble
or
dance
captain.
Equity
member
theatres
can
operate
either
as
a commercial
or
as
a
not‐for‐profit
company.

16

CHAPTER 3 Stage
Art
For
The
Prairie
-



Building
Bühnenkunst
Theatre

3.1. Prelude:
Preconditions
For
A
Theatre
Company
in
Rural
America There
is
a
wide
variety
of
theatre
beyond
Broadway
and
bigger
metropolitan
areas; ranging
from
highly
professional
companies,
to
highly
motivated
amateur
theatres,
to honest
and
ambitious
Children’s
Theatre
to
funny
Improvisational
Theatre. Nevertheless,
professional
companies
seem
to
be
centered
in
bigger
metro
areas
like Chicago,
Minneapolis,
Detroit
or
Madison.
Whereas,
more
rural
regions
like
South Dakota,
Iowa
and
Montana,
are
mostly
covered
by
community
theatres,
ranging
from very
amateur
to
high
quality
with
bigger
budgets.
Here
and
there,
professional companies
can
be
found,
that
are
doing
good,
but
there
is
huge
potential
for
more. According
to
the
Theatre
Communication
Group
2007
Theatre
Facts
based
on their
annual
Fiscal
Survey,
there
are
1,910
I.R.S.
approved
not‐for‐profit
professional theatre
companies
operating
all
over
the
United
States. ¹⁶ This
number
represents
all
the different
varieties
of
theatre
groups
ranging
from
large‐scale
resident
companies
to
tiny private
groups
with
only
one
or
two
directors
and
no
permanent
ensemble
or
staff. Taking
in
mind
that
in
2008
there
were
only
seventy‐six
LORT
theatres
within
the United
States ¹⁷ ,
the
vast
majority
lies
somewhere
in
the
space
between,
producing anything
from
one
to
four
full
scale
shows
each
season.
Some
smaller
companies generally
only
have
a
production
occasionally
or
every
other
season. The
age
of
production
companies
is
also
worthy
of
note.
In
bigger
metropolitan areas
like
Chicago
or
Minneapolis
there
are
companies
ranging
back
fifty
or
more
years, operating
amongst
younger
theatres.
Yet,
the
more
westwards
one
goes,
the
younger

¹⁶ 
TCG
1


¹⁷ 
“About
Us”
LORT



17

the
companies
will
be.
Most
professional
theatres
in
South
Dakota,
Iowa,
Nebraska
or Montana
are
not
older
than
five
years.
Occasionally,
an
older
company
has
survived longer,
but
in
general
theatres
are
younger.
The
matter
of
age
is
another
evidence
for the
still
ongoing
westward
movement
and
extension
of
professional
theatre. Then
again,
directly
connected
to
the
preceding
statement
is
the
fact
that
still
the more
westwards
you
go
the
less
professional
theatres
you
will
find.
Again,
those
regions can
have
a
fairly
sophisticated
community
theatre
or
other
amateur
companies. Additionally,
there
is
a
widespread
network
of
bigger
performance
spaces,
which
can host
national
touring
companies. 


3.1.1. The
Sioux
Falls
Theatre
Market
-
An
Analysis

South
Dakota’s
theatre
scene
in
particular
is
much
more
diverse
than
commonly believed.
There
are
forty‐seven
theatre
companies
and
venues
operating
all
over
the Mount
Rushmore
state.
Even
though
more
than
half
of
them
are
community
or
amateur theatres
they
are
spread
all
over
the
state. ¹⁸ However,
there
is
no
resident
or
full‐time Equity
theatre
in
South
Dakota.

Fig.
8
Spread
of
Theatre
in
South
Dakota
 19 Fig.
9
Theatre
Structure
in
South
Dakota

¹⁸ 
cf.
Fig.
7


¹⁹ 
“US
Map,”
Google
Earth


18

In
recent
years,
the
theatre
landscape
in
South
Dakota’s
biggest
city
has
not
been the
most
vibrant,
diverse
ore
professional
one,
nor
does
it
produce
a
lot
of
experimental or
groundbreaking
shows,
but
there
is
a
lot
of
aspiration
and
creative
energy
in
the theatre
artists
who
choose
to
work
and
live
in
Sioux
Falls.
There
are
several
amateur and
more
or
less
professional
theatre
companies
in
the
city
and
its
surrounding
area operated
by
a
few
ambitious
artists
like
Sioux
Empire
Community
Theatre,
Comfort Theatre,
Children's
Theatre
Company
of
Sioux
Falls,
Bare
Bodkins,
Blue
Moon
Theatre, Ephemeral
Productions
or
Big
Fish.
In
opposite
to
regional
theatres,
with
exception
of the
Sioux
Empire
Community
Theatre,
all
those
groups
are
producing
rather
single plays
on
more
or
less
frequent
basis
than
full
seasons. The
Washington
Pavilion
of
Arts
and
Science
for
instance
is
one
of
the
Sioux Empire
region's
premiere
entertainment,
cultural
and
educational
facility.
It
is
the
home of
the
Visual
Arts
Center,
Kirby
Science
Discovery
Center
and
Wells
Fargo
CineDome Theater.
The
Pavilion’s
Husby
Performing
Arts
Center
hosts
the
1,800+
seat
Great
Hall and
291‐seat
Belbas
Theater.
The
state‐of‐the‐art
performing
arts
complex
presents
its own
performance
series
of
Broadway
shows,
music,
dance
and
theatre,
and
is
the resident
stage
of
the
South
Dakota
Symphony. In
addition
to
the
large
performance
hall
that
the
Washington
Pavilion
provides, Sioux
Falls
is
home
to
several
production
companies
of
various
sizes
and
missions. Ephemeral
Productions
for
example
is
one
of
the
smaller
private
companies. Even
without
a
granted
non‐profit
status,
the
theatre
company
is
committed
to
bring award‐winning
literature
featuring
strong
roles
for
women
to
the
stage
in
their community.
Julia
Bennett,
Associate
Professor
of
Theatre
at
Augustana
College,
and
Kim Bartling,
Assistant
Professor
of
Communication
Studies
and
Theatre
at
the
University
of Sioux
Falls
created
Ephemeral
Productions
in
2002
out
of
the
desire
to
produce

19

independent
work
of
quality,
work
with
those
the
founders
admire
and
to
bring
in artists
and
friends
on
collaborations.

Ephemeral
is
the
only
theatre
company
in
Sioux Falls
with
that
kind
of
mission. The
Bare
Bodkins
Theatre
Company
is
another
constant
in
the
Sioux
Falls
theatre scene.
Founded
in
1997
by
Dr.
Ivan
Fuller
of
Augustana
College,
Bare
Bodkins
was created
in
order
to
bring
a
unique
type
of
theatre
to
the
Sioux
Falls
area.
While
not solely
restricting
itself
to
Elizabethan
scripts,
the
works
of
Shakespeare
and
his contemporaries
are
the
primary
sources
for
shows
produced. With
an
average
budget
of
approximately
eight
thousand
dollars,
Bare
Bodkins presents
one
Shakespeare
production
each
summer.

“The
cast
size
is
usually
between six
and
eleven
people.
The
company
employs
community
performers
and
strives
to produce
outstanding,
inexpensive
theatre
using
the
motto:
less
is
more." ²⁰ Like
Ephemeral
Productions,
Bare
Bodkins
is
also
the
only
theatre
company
of its
kind
in
the
Sioux
Falls
area.
Big
Fish
is
a
fairly
new
non‐profit
community
theatre, committed
to
providing
a
fresh
perspective
on
classic
plays
and
exists
to
“offer
quality live
theatre,
increase
exposure
to
influential
works,
provide
ongoing
learning opportunities,
and
encourage
creative
expression
throughout
the
city
of
Sioux
Falls.” ²¹ Another
from
of
theatre
is
the
Comfort
Theatre
Company.
The
Comfort
Theatre Company,
a
small
for‐profit
enterprise,
is
committed
to
bringing
quality
musical
theater to
every
corner
of
the
region.
It
“grew
out
of
the
idea
that
[they]
could
produce
high quality
musical
theater
experiences
almost
anywhere.
In
short,
[they]
make
musical theater
more
accessible
to
the
citizens
of
rural
areas,
while
never
compromising
artistic quality.” ²² 


²⁰ 
Ivan
Fuller
in
an
interview


²¹ 
“About
us,”
Big
Fish



²² 
“About
us,”
Comfort
Theatre



20










Great
Hall
 24 















 Richard
II
(2004) 25  


3.1.2. The
Audience
in
the
Midwest

„The
difference
between
a
theatre
with
and
without
an
audience
is
enormous.
There
is
a palpable,
critical
energy
created
by
the
presence
of
the
audience.“ Andy
Goldsworthy


In
addition
to
the
analysis
of
the
pre‐existing
theatre
scene
within
the
Sioux
Falls
arts community,
another
factor
is
paramount
for
the
success
and
survival
of
a
theatre company.
Those
are
the
people
who
attend
the
performances
‐
the
audience. In
order
to
conduct
this
analysis,
a
questionnaire
was
compiled
over
the
Internet. Afterwards
an
Email
was
sent
to
1,600
students
323
faculty
and
staff
members
at Augustana
College
in
Sioux
Falls,
South
Dakota,
with
the
request
to
complete
the
survey and
to
forward
the
link
to
the
survey
to
their
relatives
and
friends.
When
the
survey
was closed
after
three
months,
113
people
had
completed
it,
67%
of
them
were
women. The
demographics
mirror
the
selection
of
participants
in
a
College
environment. The
largest
number
of
participants
(44%)
were
between
21
and
30
years
old,
70%
had a
Bachelor’s
degree
or
at
least
some
College,
27%
worked
in
education,
31%
were students,
10%
had
a
job
in
retail
and
21%
chose
other. Within
the
scope
of
earnings
35%
gave
their
average
annual
income
as
between

²³ 
“Ephemeral
Production
Logo,”
Personal
property
of
Julia
Bennett


²⁴ 
“Washington
Pavilion”


²⁵ 
“Scene
from
Richard
II,”
Personal
photograph
by
Ivan
Fuller