Children's Play Shows Talent The children' s play was something "completely different". With the entire production created by the cast, it was an example of living improvisation. Some of the material was actually created as the actors performed. There was no set script. The show was directed by Terry Dyrland, who said the reason he did the show in this way was because he wanted to get an idea of the type of acting talent here at Prairie. In his opinion, the show proved that there is so much talent that it gave him the courage to plan two other plays for this spring, "The Glass Menagerie" and "The Importance of Being Earnest". Both of these take good acting abilities. The children' s play was a new experience for Mr. Dyrland, as he had never done a play in living improvisation before. The group began rehearsing in December, and in February traveled to two Cedar Rapids elementary schools: Hayes and Jackson. They were well received by the kids. The final performance was given in the Prairie High School Little Theatre, on February 17. There was a pretty good crowd, about 100 adults and 100-150 students and children. They also enjoyed the play. The cast included: Darrell Truitt, Teri Stockton, John Serbousek, Jim Pitts, Connie O'Connor, Mike Gillette, Jon Gillette, Dian Gallagher, Joan Ely, Tammy Jones, Tom Hofer, Amy Greenlief, Keith Elias, Julie DeNeui, Matthew Clothier, Rhonda Brenda Boland, Chesley, Chris Brentner, Debbie Bottoms, Jim Booth, Mike Bach, Darren Bogner, and Debbie Ashbacher. Student Directors were Dennis Haren and Tammy Scheib. Above:"Me and my Teddy Bear will play and play all day". A little girl (Rhonda Chesley) tries to encourage her Teddy Bear (Julie DeNeui) to dance with her. Right: "Aha! The door says B-E -E -T-H-O-V-EN. That must be the bear' s house/' says Goldilocks (Matthew Clothier). 14 Children's Theatre
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