History Theatre Presents SISTER KENNY'S CHILDREN, Opens 1/23

History Theatre brings a world premiere to the stage about the heroic nurse who took on
the male-dominated medical establishment in the 1940s and revolutionized the treatment of polio. Sister Kenny's Children will honor the Australian-born nurse who is remembered as a lifesaver by thousands of families in Minnesota and throughout the world who faced the crippling disease of polio.

History Theatre kicks off the New Year with a powerful, theatrical telling of the story of Sister Elizabeth Kenny in new play by Doris Baizley. The idea for the play was delivered to Artistic Director Ron Peluso's doorstep, literally, by his neighbor, author and retired Star Tribune feature writer Peg Meier. She was carrying a box of letters from polio patients and parents, and the book Sister Kenny: The Woman Who Challenged Doctors. Peg had come across these materials when she was writing a book about children in Minnesota and thought there was a very compelling story that would make an excellent play. "She even told me should play the part," said Peluso. "She told me: 'You've got to cast Claudia Wilkens!' A little cart before the horse, and yet..."

Peluso read through the letters and was moved by the stories of survival and the effusive expressions of gratitude and admiration from the many people whose lives Sister Kenny had touched. That same day he was scheduled to speak with playwright Doris Baizley who was working on History Theatre's production of Peace Crimes: The Minnesota 8 vs. The War at the time. Peluso mentioned the idea of a play about Sister Kenny and Baizley loved it. After a series of discussions and further research, Baizley was commissioned to write the play and a draft was read in last season's RAW STAGES festival. During the reading students from the St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists played the roles of the various people who surround Sister Kenny. "They were exceptional," said Peluso. "Theses talented young performers giving voice to the young patients whom Kenny treated brought a wonderful energy and a touching, almost haunting, quality to the story and we decided to move forward with the concept."

Sister Kenny's Children was written by Doris Baizley. It is directed by Ron Peluso with scenic design by Justin Hooper, lighting design by Pamela Kildahl, costume design by Shannon O'Black, sound by C. Andrew Mayer, properties design by Gunther Gullickson, and stage managed by Elizabeth MacNally. Starring Claudia Wilkens as Sister Elizabeth Kenny; and a chorus of doctors, nurses, lawyers, reporters, polio survivors, and others in Sister Kenny's life played by students from the St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists: Devin Blanchard, Suzie Cheng, Iman Fears, Andrea Flowers, Molly-Margaret Johnson, Ethan Nienaber, Brandon Reese, Mary Elisa Rosen, Ashton Schneider, Shaadiah Swensen, Alan De León Taverna, and Scarlett Thompson (a student at JJ Hill Montessori School).

Opens: Saturday, January 23, 2010
Through: Sunday, February 14, 2010
Thursdays @ 10 a.m. & 7:30 p.m.
Fridays & Saturdays @ 7:30 p.m. (Performance on 2/6/10 closed for SKRI gala event)
Sundays @ 2:00 p.m.

At the History Theatre, 30 East Tenth Street, St. Paul, MN
Directions and parking information

TICKETS: Adults: $25-$30.00; Seniors: $22-$28.00; Students: $15.00; Children: $10.00.
Discount rates are available for groups of 12 or more.
To purchase tickets, call the History Theatre Box Office at 651.292.4323 or go to www.historytheatre.com.

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