1999-2000 Season

    Our twentieth anniversary season was crowned by the mid season opening of the Palace Theatre, our new permanent home.  The season started with our 50th production, The Velveteen Rabbit, followed by a searing series of performances of one of the most monumental works of the American theatre, A Streetcar Named Desire.  ACT I opened at The Palace in gala fashion with I'll Be Home for Christmas, a production directed by Kevin Bookmeier, who began with us in 1994 as a seventh grader and who has become in many ways the very personification of ACT I.  By the end of '99 - 2000, Kevin had lent his talents to 22 of ACT I's 55 productions, and he has worked for us in every capacity.
    Later in the season we saw appearances by our Artist in Residence, Miss Kathleen Berger.  The musical The Secret Garden ran in February as our first full scale play production in the new theatre, followed by our children's theatre production of Hansel and Gretel. More comedy ended the season with Life with Mother, the sequel to Life with Father, presented two years earlier with the same cast.
     ACT I and the Palace Theatre have been a labor of love for all involved.  After the growth seen during the past 20 years and the commitment ACT I and the Vinton community have made to the Palace Theatre, we can only say that the best is yet to come.
    Among the many debut performers in our twentieth season, we welcomed Sarah Allyn, Jeff Cumberlin, Elise Dickerson, Greg Douma, Kari (Nordli) Douma, Sue Freet, Shirale Hanson, Mary Horst, Nathan Horst, Lori Kerwin, Abby Larkin, Rachel Larkin, Sarah Larkin, Josie Rundlett, Teri Sellers, and Mary Ann Welchel.

Click either the title or the graphic to visit the show page for each production!

The Velveteen Rabbit
Book. lyrics, and music by Barnes Boffey and Paul Pilcher
Based on the book by Margery Williams

July 30 - August 1, 1999
Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School Auditorium, Vinton



Co-Directors:  Marcy Horst, Shirale Hanson
Music Director:  April Noeller
Choreographer:  Joan Cooling