Toasting the Taste-Makers

Company leaders and community organizers have a certain point of view when it comes to taking stock of the performing arts sphere in Sioux Falls. And our latest Sioux Falls Stage Awards panelists are no exception. From actor/writers to comic/producers to dancer/choreographers, the depth of skills informs their own appreciation for what has been perhaps the first full, season of live entertainment we’ve seen since 2019. 

Pictured: Nancy Tapken, co-founder/actor with Broad Cast Theatre, a local theatre troupe founded in 2019; past performer with Mighty Corson Art Players & Olde Towne Dinner Theatre; one-time board member of Mighty Corson Art Players; recent performer in Premiere Playhouse’s Lombardi, and past performer in Sioux Empire Community Theatre’s God of Carnage; accomplished playwright, having collaborated on the Stage-Award-nominated Broadly Speaking... and Other B.S. (Credit: Peter Chapman)

What makes Sioux Falls an excellent place to create, perform or patronize?

Lisa Conlin: I love collaborating with different theatre groups, musicians, singers—everyone is so supportive of each other, and I love that. I think that there are so many groups in a place like Minneapolis, everyone is sort of fighting for their own audience. My company there, we did collaborate with other dance companies, but it didn’t happen as much as I think it does here.

Nancy Tapken: The back-and-forth—that people from different companies are working in multiple venues. Ten to 15 years ago, Corson felt more like it had its “gang,” and Worthing felt more like it had its “gang.” But now, people from Tea are traveling to Corson to perform. You’re in multiple venues—you’re not ever just in one place. I’m finding that interesting and cool.

Luke Johnson: I love having the options. With comedy, what’s always nice is that the comedy scene works in little bursts. People will start branching out and doing their own thing, you can check it out and be a part of it, and it gets more people interested in comedy in general. So they start coming to more. And then folks going out on the road, meeting new comics and bringing them back to Sioux Falls. One thing we’ve really run into with the (Sno Jam Comedy) Festival is that people come in from all over the country, and they will just fall in love with our strange little town. I’ve heard so many people talk about how much they love spending time here, even when we bring them here in January.

LC: I’ve had people come from out of town and they’ll say, “this is like a little Broadway.” They come to the shows and are so impressed with the talent here.

What have been some of the biggest “wow” moments of the past season?

LJ: As part of the larger arts scene, as one of the panelists I got to see a few more shows than I usually do, and getting to see Little Shop of Horrors was great—I remember getting to see the movie from when I was a kid but I’d never seen the play. And getting to see the play, Suspect—it was amazing. Such a fun show. Sort of bringing the comedy scene into the larger arts scene in Sioux Falls and being a part of that is really cool.

NT: Two wows for me were probably Blood Brothers—I thought that was a high-caliber show. I’d have to give a shout-out to Alexondrea (Thong Vanh)—I’m a fan. I thought she was amazing. I also thought Shawn Shannon was amazing. They had such good character. And I really loved Into the Woods. It was done in a spare way, and, yet, it was very fully fleshed out. I aspire to what Good Night did with that. That made me keep the faith that Broad Cast could get there in a few more years.

LC: I have seen Premiere Playhouse and Good Night Theatre a lot, and I love everything they do, but being on the panel I branched out and had never seen a Monstrous (Little Theatre Company) show. I really loved Rabbit Hole, and it just made me feel like I was in a little theater in New York City in a cool little space with a great house, great audience. The whole experience was wonderful, and everyone did an incredible job. And I really liked going to the Cathedral for Darkness Fell from Transept. I was transformed. I felt like I was in Europe in this beautiful space. The musicians and singers are just so talented. Phenomenal.

What did you find inspiring in the collegiate and educational arts spaces this season?

LC: What I really thought was cool was seeing all these kids “rise up” (in the inaugural Rise Up Mentorship Program), and I felt like they all stepped out of their comfort zones. Each piece that mentors and mentees did together, you could tell they’d developed this friendship and that some still keep in contact. And because it was citywide, you got to know other people in different disciplines. Building those relationships with students is so important to build up the next generation of artists. Also, I saw Matilda the Musical from Dakota Academy of Performing Arts (DAPA), and it was just incredible. That was a highlight. And University of Sioux Falls’ Addams Family—all of the student actors got into their characters so much. So invested, all of them.

NT: I would give a shout-out to (Augustana University’s) Little Women. I thought it was solid and that Magdalen (Eberle) did a great job as Jo. And Jacee (Casarella’s) set was incredible. I emailed her after I saw it that I stopped in my tracks when I walked into the theater and saw it. You don’t always get a set like that, and it was awesome. Strong singing and performances in Little Women.

Pictured: Luke Johnson, local standup comedian and show producer; frequent performer with and one-time co-manager of Boss’ Comedy Club; member of the management board of Sno Jam Comedy Festival, a local multi-day standup event organized to raise funds for area nonprofits, such as Special Olympics South Dakota; host of the Stage-Award-nominated Vocabularious Comedy Show (Credit: Peter Chapman)

What’s your take on the state of the comedy scene in Sioux Falls, and what’s next?

LJ: I think it’s really good because more comics are starting to run their own events, whether it be open mics or smaller shows in Sioux Falls proper, in addition to the larger club down in Tea. We’re still bringing in new people to perform and letting them try it out and figure out what they want to do on stage. One thing I’ve noticed about our scene compared to others’ is that we’re a lot more tight-knit and a lot less cutthroat. Because we have to be—we’re not big enough to have cliques. On top of what Boss’ is doing, Prairie Madness is doing some great stuff, Zach Dresch, Late Night Boomin. It’s so much fun and adds opportunity to get more comics involved, even doing sketches and things like that.

What sticks out as impressive and creative from this season’s dance offerings?

LC: When LiRa started, we were the first professional dance company in Sioux Falls, and now Madison Elliott has Headlights Theater that came out of the pandemic, and that’s such a cool concept. It’s very affordable for people, it’s outside, it’s in the summer. She always has live music and collaborators, so you’re always going to see something different every time you go. And South Dakota Ballet’s Only Human was just beautiful. Madeleine Scott just does an incredible job. The intensive she does for area students who get to be in the show with the professionals—it’s breathtaking. The last piece they did was so athletic—it went on and on and was just so powerful. Really exceptional contemporary and classical ballet dancing. I also love going to the theatre productions and seeing the movement and dance that companies incorporate—Rebekah Merriman deserves a shout-out for Matilda. She’s so brilliant with how she moves people around the stage, and that’s a challenge to do.

Pictured: Lisa Conlin, local dancer/choreographer; co-artistic director of LiRa Dance Theatre Company; founder of Conlin Choreography, recently Stage-Award-nominated company behind Blue Heaven; co-founder of the Rise Up Artist Mentorship Program, currently in its second year, that features pairings of adults and area youth; director/choreographer with Balleraena Dance Studio; choreographer with DAPA children’s theatre program (Credit: Peter Chapman)

What does the Sioux Falls performing arts community need more of?

NT: Affordable space for startups. It can be a stopping point, though people are so creative. There are creative venues being found, but it would be nice if there were city-sponsored, affordable venues. We make the city more vital, so they should want to give us a place to hang our hat.

LC: I think sometimes for companies starting off it can be hard to afford a theater that seats 700 or 500 or more than that. I think spaces can be challenging.

LJ: It’d be nice to see some cross-discipline support and collaboration. Like comedians working with dance troupes or folding burlesque into this whole thing. To get more of our arts community supporting each other. Definitely in comedy, it’s this weird mix of collaborative with competitive. Since it’s kind of natural instinct to focus on the latter, I think we need to put more energy into working on the collaboration.

NT: Maybe it’s just a matter of knowing about it, too. Even just meeting you both today—I didn’t know a lot of what you all are involved in.

LC: And now I can come see what you’re doing and be more aware.

NT: My brain’s whirring.

[Laughter]

LC: I was fortunate enough to work with Move to Heal South Dakota, and we collaborated with an artist, Amy Fill, who was exhibiting her work at the Pavilion. We had a band that played, and I choreographed something for it, so you had these beautiful hanging tree branches in a space the size of a football field at the Pavilion. So we had the visual art exhibit, and she also made moving props for the dancers. That was a cool collaboration of three different aesthetics together.

NT: The sky really is the limit. Whatever your brain can conjure up. Make a phone call, send an email.

LC: And what’s great with the Stage Awards ceremony is you start to meet new people. Sometimes it’s easy to stay in your own little bubble because you’re so busy working and creating and doing your own thing. It’s kind of nice to be able to go to an event where all the different artists in town come together.

What do you find exciting about what’s going on in the local theatre arena?

NT: The fact that we’ve got all these companies bubbling up—even if it’s not quite born yet, there are so many things percolating. All these 25-year-olds and 30-year-olds are percolating on “what am I going to start?” Having Good Night out there as the vanguard of “seven years in” shows you what it could look like with a lot of hard work and sweat. And I love the variety out there—it doesn’t always have to be a musical. Don’t get me wrong—I love a musical. But what else can we do? What else is possible? I love all the risks people are starting to take. And that people are so respectful of dates and in any way infringing on others. Because I also want to go see others’ work myself!

What was the best performing arts element of what you saw this year?

NT: The set of Little Women and the set of Blood Brothers. So much detail. As an actor, those are really fun sets to work in. I love the bare studio or arena, too. But I just loved what they did with those. The costume adds a layer, the makeup adds a layer and the set also adds a character layer.

LJ: One of the shows that sticks out in my mind was from the Sno Jam Comedy Festival—we put on one of our theme shows, called “That’s Debatable.” It’s a debate show, but still comedy. People have about a week to put their arguments together. This was probably the best one of these I’ve seen this season. Everyone absolutely brought their A-game. Everyone was just in stitches the entire time.

NT: How unique is that?! I’ve never heard of such a thing!

LJ: One of the best was a debate between bone-in and boneless wings. One comic came dressed as a judge, complete with a fancy wig. Also, the debate between chunky and creamy peanut butter, including Chris Freier, one of our local comics. Everyone that night did a great job.

LC: I think two things that stick out to me are both children’s theatre shows. Matilda’s characters were so strong—it was so entertaining from start to finish. It was cool to see adults and kids working together. It was also really cool to watch the costumer for DAPA’s Wizard of Oz. Just the work that went into all the costumes for 70-some kids, how it came alive on stage. It was so colorful and so imaginative.

What’s your hope for the next 12 months of performing arts in Sioux Falls?

LC: I want to go to more comedy! After hearing about all the comedy groups and even just listening to Luke (Johnson) during this session—you’re hilarious! I want to start going to comedy more locally.

LJ: Performers are carving out their own little spaces in town, and hopefully that brings more people out to the larger shows, too, kind of feeding itself and getting more talent involved.

NT: I am really looking forward to collaborating with people I haven’t already collaborated with, in addition to some that I have. It’s such a breath of fresh air working with new people. My brain is whirling with at least three years’ worth of things I’m inspired to do. Now to figure out how to do it…