Rodeheaver Series Rounds Out Season With Songs, Poems
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Staff Report-
The Rodeheaver Series for the Performing Arts rounds out its 2011-2012 season Sunday with a celebration of songs and poems of the Midwest Prairie called “Prairie Voices.” Combining poems by Carl Sandburg, Edgar Lee Masters and Vachel Lindsay with folk and original songs that capture the sights and sounds of the prairie land, actors Aasne Vigesaa and Kevin Purcell weave together a tapestry of heartland America from an era many barely remember. Vigesaa, of Norwegian heritage, grew up on the prairies of North Dakota. She received her master’s of fine arts degree in acting from Northern Illinois University. Aasne acted in New York City and Chicago before moving to Springfield, Ill., in 2005. Favorite roles that she has played include Guenevere in “Camelot,” Peter in “Peter Pan,” Anna in “The King & I,” Rosalind in “As You Like It,” Hedda in “Hedda Gabler” and Nora in “A Doll’s House.” Purcell is an actor, director and singer who has been performing for 35 years. Originally from Chicago, he spent many summers on his uncle’s farm in Chesterton, Ind. Purcell helped found Seattle Public Theater, and Over the Moon Productions in Springfield, Ill., and now lives on 34 acres of prairie about one-quarter mile from where Edgar Lee Masters grew up. Vigesaa and Purcell met while doing the musical “Camelot” produced by Purcell’s company Over the Moon Productions. She was Guinevere to Purcell’s King Arthur. Now they work together on “Prairie Voices,” which Purcell originally created, as well as another original production that Purcell directed and Vigesaa performs, called “The Yellow Wallpaper,” at the Vachel Lindsay Home in Springfield. The play, which was conceived especially for the Lindsay Home, is available on DVD at Amazon.com Purcell’s latest project, another original play titled “Lincoln and Shakespeare,” will be seen at the Illinois Old State Capitol beginning this summer. As for the show “Prairie Voices,” Purcell says it has evolved over time. He said, “I created the first script. I have always loved these three poets. A friend of mine was having her parents’ 50-year anniversary party ... they owned a farm on the Illinois prairie ... she knew they loved poetry ... and commissioned me to create this show. It premiered in 2004. It has played to approx 12,000 people at the Illinois Old State Capitol over the last three summers.”Poems in “Prairie Voices” include “To Contemplate the Prairie” and “Lucinda Matlock” by Masters; “O, Prairie Mother” and “Laughing Corn” by Sandburg; and “General William Booth Enters into Heaven” and “The Traveller-Heart” among many others by Lindsay. Songs include “When I Can Read My Title Clear” and “Wolves-a-Howlin’,” along with pieces written by Julie Babb, David Mahler, Pat Shaw and Jean Ritchie. The Warsaw performance of “Prairie Voices” will be Sunday at 2 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 179 S. Indiana St., Warsaw. The venue is handicapped accessible and listening assistance is available upon request. This and all presentations by the Rodeheaver Series are free of charge. The Rodeheaver Series, established in 1990 and named for the Christian music publishing family, who were members of First UMC, has sponsored more than 75 concerts, recitals and theatrical presentations, concentrating on performers the community would not otherwise have the opportunity to enjoy. For directions to the church, call the church office at 574-267-6933 or visit.
