Borger Community Theatre is excited to open its doors again. We are moving forward with our 2022 season and producing Steel Magnolias, The Odd Couple and Annie this year.
Our season will begin with Steel Magnolias June 3rd - June 5th, 2022.
Thank you to all the acts who partcipated in Hutchinson County's Got Talent!
Borger Community Theatre, Inc.
Celebrating Local Talent!
Our Philosophy:
- We strive to involve community members in all aspects of the theatre.
- We offer the chance for newcomers to learn new skills and test their wings.
- We encourage individuals to share their best talents with others on and off the stage.
- We aim to provide our audience with a quality performance suitable for families to enjoy.
- We are a company of volunteer thespians and we recognize the demands placed on them and respect the time they have to offer.
2021-2022 Officers:
President – Don Bates
Vice President – Jesse Shuffield
Secretary – Kelci Courtney
Treasurer – Wes Hukill
Trustee #1 – Jackie Brand
Trustee #2 – Ryan Charlton
Trustee #3 – Kee Ruland
Trustee #4 – Brigett Pomerhn
Trustee #5 – Megan Malone
Steel Magnolias - June 2022
Showtimes:
June 4th at 7pm
June 5th at 7pm
June 6th at 2pm
Steel Magnolias The action is set in Truvy's beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are "anybody" come to have their hair done. Helped by her new eager assistant, Annelle, the outspoken, wise-cracking Truvy dispenses shampoos and free advice to the town's rich curmudgeon, Ouiser; an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee; and the local social leader, M'Lynn, whose daughter, Shelby, is about to marry a "good ole boy." Filled with hilarious repartee and not a few acerbic but humorously revealing verbal collisions, the play moves toward tragedy when the spunky Shelby (who is a diabetic) risks pregnancy and forfeits her life. The sudden realization of their mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength - and love - which give the play, and its characters, the special quality to make them truly touching, funny, and marvelously amiable company in good times and bad.
Southern Fried Funeral - June 2021
Showtimes:
June 18th at 7pm
June 19th & June 20th at 2pm
Southern Fried Funeral Dewey Frye is dead and the rest of his family is left to pick up the pieces -- that is if they don't kill each other first. Not only does matriarch Dorothy have to contend with sudden widowhood, but she's also faced with church-committee harpy Ozella Meeks sticking her nose in the family business, Dewey's snake-in-the-grass brother making a grab for her house, and two grown daughters reliving their childhood rivalry. Funerals bring out the worst, the best, and the funniest in people, and the Frye’s are no exception. A big-hearted comedy about family -- Southern-style.
Seussical the Musical – October 2019
Showtimes:
Friday, October 18th @6:30pm
Saturday, October 19th @2:00pm
Sunday, October 20th @2:00pm
Seussical is a fantastical, magical, musical extravaganza! Tony winners, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Lucky Stiff, My Favorite Year, Once on This Island, Ragtime), have lovingly brought to life all of our favorite Dr. Seuss characters, including Horton the Elephant, The Cat in the Hat, Gertrude McFuzz, lazy Mayzie and a little boy with a big imagination – Jojo. The colorful characters transport us from the Jungle of Nool to the Circus McGurkus to the invisible world of the Whos. The Cat in the Hat tells the story of Horton, an elephant who discovers a speck of dust that contains the Whos, including Jojo, a Who child sent off to military school for thinking too many "thinks." Horton faces a double challenge: not only must he protect the Whos from a world of naysayers and dangers, but he must guard an abandoned egg, left in his care by the irresponsible Mayzie La Bird. Although Horton faces ridicule, danger, kidnapping and a trial, the intrepid Gertrude McFuzz never loses faith in him. Ultimately, the powers of friendship, loyalty, family and community are challenged and emerge triumphant.
The Foreigner - March 2019
Showtimes:
Friday, March 15th @7pm
Saturday, March 16th @7pm
Sunday, March 17th @2pm
The Foreigner is a fun, two-act comedy by American playwright Larry Shue. The story takes place in a fishing lodge in rural Tilghman County, Georgia where two Englishmen, Froggy and Charlie, arrive as guests. The shy Charlie agreed to accompany Froggy on the trip after his sick wife begged him to go. When people at the lodge try to talk to Charlie, however, he remains silent: he is terribly shy, depressed about his wife's illness, and cannot find the words to reply. Froggy claims that Charlie cannot talk because he is a "foreigner" from an exotic country, and does not understand English. Taking the explanation that he's a non-English speaker as fact, the lodge's guests quickly begin revealing their secrets, and Charlie soon discovers scandals amongst some of the residents of the lodge.
A Tuna Christmas - November 2018
The first performance of our season will be held at the Frank Phillips College Auditorium the weekend of November 16th-18th.
Showtimes:
Friday, November 16th @7pm
Saturday, November 17th @7pm
Sunday, November 18th @2pm
"A Tuna Christmas is the second in a series of comedic plays, each set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, the "third-smallest" town in the state. The trilogy was written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard." -Wikipedia
This play will have the audience rolling in laughter from curtain open to curtain close. Prepare for a night of comedy, laughter, and a cheerful cast portraying the lives of the locals from Tuna, TX.
Southern Fried Funeral Cast:
Dorothy Frye - Megan Malone
Sammy Jo Frye-Lefette - Kelci Courtney
Harlene Frye - Kandee Ooley
Dewey Frye Jr. - Ryan Charlton
Dub Frye - Wes Hukill
Atticus "Attite" Van Leer - Milton Ooley
Beckham Lefette - Noah Hernando
Martha Ann Fox - Michelle White
Fairy June Cooper - Kee Ruland
Benny Charles Greenwood - Jesse Shuffield
Ozella Meeks - Don Bates
Artist Director - Jesse Shuffield
Asst. Artistic Director - Ryan Charlton
Stage Manager - Brigett Pomerhn
The Seussical Cast:
Cat- Jaiton Hernandez
Thing 1 & Thing 2- Saidee Williams, Molly Kirk
Jojo- Brooklyn Cano
Horton- Don Bates
Gertrude- Elisha Kelly
Mayzie La Bird- Stephanie Price
Lead Bird Girl- Kelci Courtney
Bird Girls- Abigail TeBeest, Brenna Jackson, Sydney Green
Sour Kangaroo- Kandee Ooley
Young Kangaroo- Taylor Minh
Wickersham Brothers- Richard Alejandro (lead), Ryan Charlton and Aidyn Madron, Aaron Bates
Vlad- Lillie Turner
Marshall- Michele White
Mr Mayor- Jesse Shuffield
Mrs Mayor- Megan Malone
Grinch- Joe Price
General Scmidtz- Milton Ooley
Cindy Lou Who- Addison Stein
Yertle the Turtle- Mandy Hernandez
Elephant Bird- Zaylee Howell
Chorus Cadets- Ansley McWilliams, Brenna Bugg, Donella Banks, Thetta Banks
Chorus Who’s- Ansley McWilliams, Brenna Bugg, Donella Banks, Thetta Banks, Kee Ruland and Lillie Turner
Fish- Tech Crew
Understudies:
Richard Alejandro (JoJo)
Ryan Charlton (Horton)
Kelci Courtney (Gertrude)
Brenna Jackson (Mayzie & Lead Bird Girl)
Dirk Vangaeelen (Mr. Mayor/Schmidtz)
Directors: Stephanie Price, Don Bates, Dirk Vergaeelen and Kandee Ooley
Stage Manager: Brigett Pomerhn
The Foreigner Cast:
Wes Hukill as “Froggy” LeSueur
Don Bates as Charlie Baker
Brigett Pomerhn as Betty Meeks
Joe Price as Rev. David Marshall Lee
Stephanie Price as Catherine Simms
Kelci Courtney as Owen Musser
Riley Elliott as Ellard Simms
A Tuna Christmas Cast:
Thurston Wheelis - Dirk Vergaelen
Elmer Watkins - Brigett Pomerhn
Bertha Bumiller - Dirk Vergaelen
R.R. Snavely - Ryan Charlton
Aunt Pearl Burras - Brigett Pomerhn
Sheriff Givens - Devon Ronsse
Ike Thompson -Brigett Pomerhn
Inita Goodwin - Dirk Vergaelen
Leonard Childers - Ryan Charlton
Phoebe Burkhalter - Lillie Turner
Joe Bob Lipsey -Ryan Charlton
Arles Struvie - Doug Bair
Didi Snavely - Lillie Turner
Petey Fisk - Jaron Baker
Jody Bumiller - Aaron Bates
Charlene Bumiller - Jaron Baker
Stanley Bumiller - Jaron Baker
Vera Carp - Don Bates
Dixie Deberry - Kee Ruland
Helen Bedd - Ronaldo Sastoque
Farley Burkhalter - Kee Ruland
Garland Poteet - Devon Ronsse
Don is Chief Executive Officer of Golden Plains Community Hospital and President of Critical Access Billing. He is the Founding Director for Borger Community Theatre and serves as its Managing/Artistic Director. Don holds an Associate’s degree in Finance, a Bachelor’s in Business Management, and an MBA in Health Care Management.
He loves to travel, enjoys musical and community theater, collecting art and spending time with his family. Don is the father of five sons: Kenneth; Brandon, Jonathon; Andrew; and Aaron. Kenneth and Jonathon currently serve active duty in the U.S Air Force & U.S. Marines, respectfully. He is also the grandfather of two: Vadikan and Tamsyn.
Don’s passion for the arts started with singing on his local church’s radio broadcast and volunteering at the Ardmore Little Theatre in Ardmore Oklahoma in the 1980s. Shortly after, he worked with the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority and appeared in the mini-series “Oklahoma Passage”. Don was the founder of Vision Entertainment and produced “Jeffrey” at The Hickory Street Annex in Dallas. Since then, Don served on the board of directors for the Brown Grand Theatre in Concordia, Kansas. His last stage performance at The Brown Grand Theatre was in “A Tuna Christmas”.
His love for the performing arts and philosophy of celebrating local talent were the driving force behind the formation of this community theatre. This endeavor would not be possible without the partnership with Frank Phillips College and their dedication to promote the arts within the community.
General Housekeeping:
- If you are under 16 years of age, a parent or guardian must be present during all rehearsals.
- Timeliness and attendance are extremely important.
- No food or drinks in the audition/rehearsal space or auditorium.
- If you make a mess, you clean it up.
- The Texas Panhandle Youth Choir also uses this space, so we will be respectful of them, their space, and their belongings.
- Do not touch the concert piano, lights or sound systems, unless you have been trained and have permission to do so.
- Identify location of restrooms.
- Be respectful of those auditioning or rehearsing. Be quiet! Keep entering and exiting the room to a minimum - it's distracting.
- The characters in most plays can be male and females, young and old, and some are "very colorful". Take risks and get outside your comfort zone.
- If you are cast, you are expected to know your lines and be "off book" within two weeks.
- The cast list will be posted on our Facebook page and on the front door of the Fine Arts Building at Frank Phillips College the Sunday immediately following the audition. If you are not cast, please don't let this stop you from volunteering or trying out again.
- HAVE FUN!
Borger Community Theatre is rooted in reflecting the Borger community through art and authentic storytelling. We recognize that in order to do that, it's imperative that everyone regardless of ethnicity, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability/disability, religion or socioeconomic status, is represented by our productions. All are welcome into the Borger Community Theatre and we invite you to join us in providing art that challenges, entertains and represents us - Borger.
*original statement referenced from the Amarillo Little Theatre in Amarillo, TX
Follow Us On Social Media!
- In The News -
Panhandle Spirit: Borger Community Theater
by David Bradley |
BORGER, Texas(KVII) — Borger Community Theater returned to the stage this month with a play called “The Foreigner” at Frank Phillips College, a mission that the theater’s artistic director, Don Bates, said was born three years ago after the Boomtown Theater closed.
“Those of us who love community theater needed to find a new home that was safe for patrons to come visit, and somewhere we could celebrate local talent,” Bates said.
Bates says that talent comes from some unexpected places.
“Our technical director is the GM of Chevron-Phillips. In this cast is the President of the Happy State Bank local branch,” he said.
That would be Wes Hukill, who was recruited into playing one of the leads after he watched the group perform “A Tuna Christmas” last winter.
“I came and I was talking to Don, and that’s when he said, ‘I’ve got a role that I want you to do.’ And I said, ‘Well, how can you pass up an opportunity like that?’,” Hukill said.
Bates says the theater creates another way for people to connect, whether they’re on stage showing off their creative side, or in the audience sharing the experience with the crowd and the performers. Actress Bridget Pomerhan says that connection is vital for towns all over the panhandle.
“The more that we can get the community involved, and get the community theater up and running, and the college back involved in it again, then all of that talent that we have here in the Texas Panhandle will have a place to go,” Pomerhan said.
Actress Stephanie Price urges the people of Borger and surrounding towns to recognize the value an outlet like community theater brings.
“Arts are important. Arts enrich our lives. They make us excited and happy and they give us emotion, and I think it’s really important for people to celebrate their local arts,” Price said.
Bates said they’re looking at summer programs to increase youth involvement, such as acting classes, and joint projects with the Texas Panhandle Youth Choir. They’re planning to stage a musical in the fall.
SEE THE FULL ARTICLE AT: https://abc7amarillo.com/news/panhandle-spirit/panhandle-spirit-borger-community-theater