Missoula Children's Theater

While we were still in Montana, one afternoon Bob and I went into Missoula to see his cousin Don. He met us at the Missoula Children’s Theater and gave us a tour.

The building had been a school, now converted to a theater with basement storage for props, costumes, furniture, risers, scenery, and everything else that is needed for a theater. A lobby for the theater was the only addition to the building. The upstairs houses all the business offices, sewing room, etc. that is used to run the Missoula Children’s Theater.

The first time that I met Don, I believe it was just before Bob and I were married, he and his first wife were involved in getting the Missoula Children’s Theater going. As we toured the building, he told us about the program and how it has evolved.

In 1970 an out of work actor from Chicago, Jim Caron, was on his way to a friend’s wedding in Oregon. Just outside of Missoula his VW bus broke down. While he was waiting for it to get fixed, he saw a poster for the casting of “Man of La Mancha.” He tried out for the part of Cervantes and got it. Don was playing Don Quixote. When the play was over, Don talked him into staying and working with him to put a group together to take plays to schools that had no drama program, to “bring the theater experience to children.”

They did this for a few years. As Don said, it wasn’t making enough money to support two families. So he ended up in Seattle singing with the Seattle Opera. That is another story in itself. Don maintained contact with Jim and was a sounding board for him. Don again works full time with the MCT and spends part of his time in Seattle and part in Missoula.

The touring group consisted of ten adults. One February, Miles City called to see if the group could come to their school and do “Snow White.” Miles City is 480 miles away and it was winter roads. However, since they were so strapped for money, the answer was yes. Don was in Seattle at this time. Not everyone in tour group was able to go, so it was decided to try and cast the dwarfs with kids from the school, if they could get enough kids whose father, from this cowboy town, would let them try out. They notified the school to try and get some kids together.

When they got there they asked the principal for a room to do the try outs in. He told them they could use the gym. When they opened the doors, there were 450 kids, from a town of 4,000, waiting to try out. Besides the dwarfs, they tried to create as many other roles as they could to use kids in.
That was a turning point in why and how they would use the Missoula Children’s Theater. On Friday night, at the end of a week of practices, kids who had been made fun of on the playground, received cheers from those who had teased them. Others, who didn’t feel they were good at anything, found out they had accomplished something. From then on the goal became “Teaching Life Skills Through Theater.”

The several tour groups now consists of two people traveling in a red truck that holds scenery, costumes, and everything else that is needed. The costumes are designed to fit many sizes. They are on the road from about October through May with two weeks off at Christmas. There are five different plays on the road. Each year a new play is introduced and one is retired. Sometimes it is brought back and used again. The plays are familiar children stories with music, but with a twist. They take turns directing. When not directing, the other tour member will be one of the actors if needed.

One of the things that the company tries to do is to make the playing field level for everyone. They will not let a principal tell them anything about any of the children. They also try to cast children with handicaps. They use children from Kindergarten and on up.

Don told us about an interesting thing that happened with one of the tour couples that were in Ireland. They had gone to an area that is industrial and poor. There are two gangs, that they call mobs, in the area. After checking in with the principal upon their arrival, and just prior to casting, he said, “I have something to tell you about.” Since they want all to have a fair chance, they cut him off. Twice more he tried, each time cutting him off. So he stopped trying. After the play on Friday and while taking things down, the principal approached them and said that he would like to take them out for a beer when they were done as he had something he wanted to tell them. They accepted his offer.

“A week prior to your arrival, there had been a mob war. Two people, from opposing mobs were killed. We thought about canceling the play because we have kids from families on both sides here. We realized it was probably too late so we decided to leave it up to you when you arrived. This is what I was trying to tell you. The leader of one of the mobs was killed. You cast his son as Romeo. There was also a man killed from the rival gang. You cast his daughter in another lesser role. We knew the parents would be passing each other in the hall as they brought kids to and from practice. We didn’t know what would happen. We had guards posted tonight in case a fight started. Instead, tonight parents were cheering for all the kids. It didn’t matter whose child it was. This was for the children. Afterwards, some of the parents were even talking to ones from the other mob.”

Don also told us of a similar incident in a town in the south that isn’t yet “integrated.” By the end of the week, new friendships were made across the lines of color. His comment was, wouldn’t it be great if we could put on a play in Jerusalem with Israeli and Palestinian children in it.

We have a grandson who is looking forward to his fourth time to be in one of the Missoula Children’s Theater plays. His younger sister is also looking forward to it as last year she got to be a mouse.

Besides the plays during the school year, there are camps in the summer. They are trying to expand their area with these. The company is also becoming involved with a program that the tour couple would present to youth through assemblies in becoming aware of one’s surroundings and getting outside. There are some studies that show that kids who get outside have less trouble with obesity.
Some people may not make a lot of money, but they make a big difference in the lives of others. All kids need a chance to realize that they are special and can succeed at what they try. This is another way for some to learn that.