GLENSHEEN Returns To History Theatre For Limited Run In July!

History Theatre has announced that Glensheen will return for performances beginning July 8, 2023.

Many original cast members, led by Jen Maren, Dane Stauffer, and Wendy Lehr will reprise their roles created by playwright Jeffrey Hatcher and composer Chan Poling. Ron Peluso, who retired earlier this year as History Theatre artistic director, will direct. Tickets for this limited run of the blockbuster musical are on sale!

On June 27, 1977, heiress Elisabeth Congdon was found dead in her bedroom in the Glensheen mansion, smothered with a silk pillow. Outside her room, the night nurse, Velma Pietila had been violently beaten to death with a candlestick by an intruder. Roger Caldwell was arrested for the murder and sentenced to prison. Caldwell was husband to Marjorie Caldwell, one of Elisabeth's adopted daughters. What followed has become the most talked-about murder case in the history of Minnesota.

"What a story!" exclaimed director Ron Peluso. "Minnesotans are truly intrigued by these bizarre and tragic murders, the long and public trial, and a justice system filled with shortcomings. Hatcher and Poling created a compassionate, satirical, and entertaining work that has taken the Twin Cities by storm."

Hatcher was attracted to the murder-mystery aspects of the gruesome tale. It was Hatcher's wife who shared the story of the brooding mansion, the staircase, the candlestick, the pillowcase, a matriarch, a will, a twisty murder plot, and an unending number of unexpected turn of events.

"Glensheen is like an episode of Columbo that has been cast by the Coen brothers. Marjorie and Roger are desperate characters, not so far removed from the world of Fargo," describes Hatcher. "The play is based on fact, but we play in the realm of fiction. Unlike most plays and films and television series that purport to be fact-based or "inspired by" real-life events, we don't try to confuse the audience and make them think that what we're telling them is exactly what happened. In Glensheen, by the time the show is over, you'll know what was true, what was false, and what questions remain."

Writing the music for Glensheen challenged and inspired Poling in surprising ways, starting with the very concept of telling this "crazy" story through music. He credits Hatcher for the idea. "Maybe he sensed a melancholic and humorous vein in my music. I immediately got the dark humor and beauty of it. And we both grasped the real human tragedy of it which adds real baseline emotion and immediacy to the work."

"The music is the emotional title wave of this work," said Peluso. "It brings an incredible element of passion, humor, and an exploration of greed, deceit, alcoholism, heartache, and perhaps mental illness."

"We remember and acknowledge the fact that lives were lost and that relatives of the deceased are living today," said Peluso. "Remembering lives, examining, honoring, and celebrating them is what History Theatre does, after all. Our most important goal is to create intelligent, entertaining, and enlightening drama, and we do our utmost to pay respect to the facts as they are known, the truth as it is interpreted, and the people at the story's center."

Jen Maren will reprise her role of Marjorie Caldwell and Dane Stauffer will portray her husband, Roger. The talented ensemble cast features Gary Briggle, Ruthie Baker, Wendy Lehr, Randy Schmeling, and Sandra Struthers.

Ticket Information

Tiers 1-4: $55-74 (senior discounts available). Tier 5: $30. Students ($15) and patrons under 30 ($50) must call to purchase. Box office: 651-292-4323 or historytheatre.com. Group discounted rate for of 10 or more: 651-292-4320 or email groups@historytheatre.com to book a group.

History Theatre strives to make all events accessible to all patrons. Please alert the box office of any accommodation or assistance needed. Accessibility offerings include hearing enhancement receivers, seating for patrons with wheelchairs and their companions, accessible restrooms. Accessibility entrance is located on Cedar St., and elevator to the theatre level for easy access. Call 651-292-4323 or visit historytheatre.com/box-office/accessibility

About the Artists

Jeffrey Hatcher (Playwright): Jeffrey Hatcher's plays have been produced on Broadway, off-Broadway, and at hundreds of theaters throughout the United States and abroad. History Theatre audiences have seen All the Way With LBJ, A Piece of the Rope, Tuesdays with Morrie (with Mitch Albom), and the Ivey Award-winning Tyrone And Ralph. He has written the films "Stage Beauty," "Casanova," "The Duchess," and "Mr. Holmes." For television, he has written for "Columbo" and "The Mentalist." He is a core member of The Playwrights' Center.

Chan Poling (Composer/Lyricist): Chan Poling is a Minnesota-based pop songwriter and performer, and composer of theatrical and film scores. His alternative rock band, The Suburbs, voted among the "100 Most Influential Minnesota Musical Entities of the Twentieth Century" by Star Tribune, became a touchstone of the "Minneapolis Sound" in the 1980s. His other group, The New Standards, produces the highly popular The New Standards Holiday Show. He has received an Emmy and a Cine Golden Eagle for his film scores, the Minnesota Music Awards recognized Chan with their lifetime "POP" (Perpetually Outstanding Performer) Award. His work for theater includes "1789", "Cyrano", "The Nightingale", and "Children of Paradise" (Yale Rep, La Jolla Playhouse) for Theatre de la Jeune Lune & "Heaven" (Winner: Sage Cowles Award) directed by Joe Chvala at the Guthrie Theater.

Ron Peluso (Director): At History Theatre, Ron Peluso has commissioned over 60 playwrights and composers and produced more than 50 original works, including the popular Sisters of Swing and Beyond the Rainbow. He has also commissioned and directed Jeffrey Hatcher's critically acclaimed scripts A Piece of the Rope and Tyrone & Ralph. He commissioned The Incredible Season of Ronnie Rabinovitz from Eric Simonson after directing his Broadway-hit play Lombardi in 2012. He has directed over 150 professional productions with Florida Stage, Riverside Theatre, Pennsylvania Opera Theater, Mixed Blood Theatre, Old Creamery Theatre, and the Minnesota Opera. Ron holds an M.F.A. in Directing from the University of Minnesota.

History Theatre entertains, educates, and engages through creating, developing, and producing new and existing works that explore Minnesota's past and the diverse American experience. Its work provides a unique lens which links our past to the present, explores our common heritage, and illuminates our understanding of what it means to be American. www.historytheatre.com

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