April 10, 2024 • 44 mins
Did you know the Davenport Junior Theater is the second-oldest kids' theater in the country? Daniel Sheridan shares with us the secrets to the theater's longevity and some updates on what's in store for the community staple.
Imagine a place where the vibrancy of young performers infuses life into the rich tapestry of arts in the Quad Cities. Daniel takes us behind the scenes, sharing how his personal evolution from a reserved child to a theater aficionado led him to shape the future stars of the stage. As we traverse the landscape of local live entertainment, you’ll see how community, history, and the sheer love of performance blend together to create a truly dynamic cultural scene.
Our conversation also peeks into the future, revealing the ambitious plans for the Junior Theater’s relocation and renovation. Daniel's heartfelt message underscores the importance of nurturing the potential within every child and invites us all to play a role in their growth. And don't miss out on the upcoming summer delights! With a host of programs and a main stage show that’s open to all, the Davenport Junior Theater continues to be a beacon for the young—and young at heart—in the arts community.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Because we don't normally have to.
The other thing, the crisis ofthis situation, of this moment
of a move is it makes you like,okay, what do we actually do?
Okay, we need to find thenumbers of what our impact is.
We need to be ready to tellthis story, because we can't
just sit on our hands and belike, oh really, you're going to
cancel our program.
Well, we need to be a proactiveplayer in our own future, and
(00:24):
so that's been.
That's been fun I see a rentstyle musical, uh, out of the
numbers talking about that, like, can we do like a rent video
with, like you know, 2,256,300minutes?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
yes, that might be coming because I think that that
will be fun.
Where do you find a family ofcommunities connected by the
storied Mississippi River, whereyoung explorers and dreamers,
investors and entrepreneursthrive?
Where can you connect with realpeople living and creating in a
place that's as genuine as itis quirky QC?
(01:03):
That's where Genuine as it isquirky QC, that's where Welcome
to QC.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
That's where I'm Katrina, your host.
I'm here today with DanielSheridan, the Performing Arts
Supervisor at Davenport JuniorTheater.
Daniel, hello, how are you?
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Hello, I'm great.
Thank you so much for having mewith you today.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So excited to have you on because I know we were
talking a little bit before.
You are a wealth of knowledgein the theater space, davenport
Junior Theater specifically.
Let's real quick, drop thatstat about being the second
oldest in the country.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yeah.
So I mean, most people stilldon't know this and we've really
been trying to get it out thereover the last 15 years, but we
are the second oldest children'stheater in the United States.
So we are in the middle of our72nd season and we have this
long legacy of service for kidsin our community.
And there are some theatercompanies around America who are
(02:01):
older and will do kids shows,but we are for kids, by kids.
The kids are our focus.
They're the ones doing theperforming, they're the ones
backstage running the show,they're the one learning front
of house customer service, theunique children's theater where
the second oldest in the country.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Do you happen to know the oldest one?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
I do, yeah, yeah, yeah.
So Junior Theater.
Funny enough, their name isalso Junior Theater.
That's totally coincidental.
But Junior Theater San Diego.
You'd think it'd be out east,it's actually out west.
Junior Theater San Diego is intheir 75th season now.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
So pretty close 72, 75.
Yeah, that's pretty close.
That's absolutely wild.
I think people don't realizethat.
You know it's really easy totake for granted what's in your
backyard.
You know.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
And you know just real quick,briefly, about the history of
the organization.
Mary Fleur Niswander was thefounder of the program and she
started the program back in 1951when when her husband moved
here they were traveling actorsand performers and he died
suddenly of a gallbladdercomplication and she was sort of
(03:14):
stranded here with her threekids and just herself and she
started teaching voice dictionand elocution classes in the
late 40s and then she got linkedup with somebody from the
Women's Recreation League to goout into the parks in 1951 to
offer basically theater classesto kids.
And that's how Junior Theaterwas born, was out in the
(03:35):
Davenport Park system, and thenall of those kids from Davenport
wanted to meet all the otherkids in Davenport who thought
theater was pretty great andthey did their first production
in 1952 of Oscar Wilde's StarChild and then things just
continued to grow from there.
And then today not only do wehave Davenport kids but we have
(04:00):
kids from over 35 cities andcommunities who are registered
participants in our programevery year.
So we're a vast regional drawwith around 2000 enrollments a
year.
And you know the averagestudent when we say enrollment
the average student is getting18 hours of lead instructed time
(04:22):
.
So 2000 times 18 are the directhours that we're kind of in
there and serving the kids.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
So so it's a great place for, you know, kids who
are interested in theater, butalso kids who just want to maybe
socialize, try something new,um learn a skill yeah, well, and
I mean, ultimately, our goal isnot to create the next Tony
award-winning actor.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
So, although we do have a Tony award-winning
producer amongst our, amongstour alumni, which is pretty cool
, but but really I mean, thegoal is, yeah, exactly that Fun
is.
The most important thing tolearning is that the kids are
here having fun and then usingtheater and dance, you know, we
build those communication skillsso that kids can lead with
(05:07):
clarity and confidence and becreative their whole life.
So, whether that's coaching theLittle League team or, you know
, working a job in sales orstanding up in the boardroom,
that they can just contribute ascitizens to our community room,
that they can just contributeas citizens to our community.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
So bring it back to your beginning with Davenport
Junior Theater.
How did you get started andwhat was your draw to it?
Speaker 1 (05:34):
So beginning, beginning me as a kid, or
beginning, beginning me as aprofessional.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
Take us back as far as it goes.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
Okay, cool.
So I grew up in Davenport.
I grew up in the West End ofDavenport over by Gunchy's Pizza
, went to Hayes Elementary,smart and then West High.
But when I was in elementaryschool I started to get
interested in acting andstorytelling from blooper reels
on TV shows when I realized likeoh my gosh, those are like
(06:05):
people telling stories thatmatter to me, and so I'd ask my
parents, I want to take theaterclasses.
I was really shy.
They didn't sign me up becauseit was all the way across town.
But I just happened to win afree class at a big school event
and it changed.
But it set the course of mylife and I've been doing theater
(06:28):
ever since.
So I started doing juniortheater here when I was about 12
years old, so around 1995.
And then I have not been herethat whole time, but that's when
I first got involved and I tooka class and then I joined the
main stage and then I was ateenage staffer here growing up.
(06:50):
So it was pretty cool.
We still have a teenage staff,we call them the junior staff
and there's not many.
There's six of them and there'snot many people who can say as
a teenager I was paid andemployed at a theater to help
run and develop classes andcostumes and props and sets.
So yeah, that's when my initialcontact with the organization
began.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
And then, as you kind of developed your theater
career, did you study that incollege?
What was kind of your likeeducation background?
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Yeah, so I actually I did end up studying theater at
St Ambrose University.
I was there for four years andI actually, you know, when I
went into St Ambrose, initiallymy exclusive focus was going to
be just on acting.
You know that was, that was theexclusive area I thought I was
going to pursue.
(07:38):
And then, over the course of acouple years, I ended up getting
really interested in directingand then I ended up getting
really interested in design andthe whole theater experience of
the.
As far as art forms go, this isa.
This is a live art form thatrequires a bunch of artists to
come together, wrap their headaround the same vision and then
(08:01):
present it live to the publicand it makes it really special.
So I did that.
And then I studied abroad atthe University of London, queen
Mary, studying performance art.
And then I went on to get I wasat the University of
Connecticut for three yearswhere I got my MFA, my Master of
Fine Arts in Acting andStorytelling and so and I
(08:26):
traveled around in the summers,working in California and
Northern Minnesota, did somestuff in New York and places
like that.
So that was kind of myeducational career and a little
bit of my early professionalcareer outside the Quad Cities.
And then obviously, the QuadCities brought you back career
outside the Quad Cities and then, obviously, the Quad Cities
brought you back.
It did so.
I found out that.
(08:48):
So, okay, as far as the historyof Junior Theater, from 1951 to
1990, mary Niswander ran thisorganization and she didn't
found it, you know, young.
She founded it in her mid-40sand she was, you know, close to
90 when she passed, and she wasclose to 90 when she passed and
she was still running it.
So she ran it for that wholetime.
And then, from 1990 to 2005,bonnie Gunther ran the
(09:10):
organization, but she'd beeninvolved for 25 years before
that.
And then from 2005 to 2008,there were five leadership
changes for an organization thathad such consistency.
Um, and it caused a lot of pushand pull and fracturing.
Um and the, the Davenport parksand recreation, was looking to
(09:33):
maybe not maybe looking toseparate ties with junior
theater Inc, the nonprofit.
Um and I applied for a $15 anhour, 20 hour a week, part-time
job out of out of getting mymaster's degree, to come back
and just ask for a year.
Just give me one year and we'llsee what happens.
And I've I've been here for 15and a half.
(09:56):
Um and I only plan to stay for afew years, but I love it.
I love it Like being able tohelp create more arts
opportunities for kids and thenthe community.
Because of that there's.
For me that is um, it's just areally valuable way to get to
spend my my time.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
To get to spend my time you mentioned earlier um,
how junior theater plays intothe full scope of, like, the
theater ecosystem.
And for people who necessarilyaren't familiar with the Quad
Cities, I think it's soimportant to like take a step
back and look and see what alllive theater, live entertainment
(10:35):
I mean, from music to.
You know plays and you knoweverything in between.
I mean there's so much talenthere and like you know the
Spotlight Theater in Moline, youknow professional grade theater
in Rock Island at Circa 21,.
You know two examples of somany music guild.
(10:56):
You know there's so manyperforming arts opportunities,
arts opportunities.
Can you kind of talk about howyou know how junior theater is
just like step one on theplatform of everything else that
we have?
Speaker 1 (11:11):
here?
Yes, absolutely, Because if youlook back 72 years ago, there
were not a lot of theatercompanies there, you know I
don't know if any from 72 yearsago still exist and so junior
theater, starting and developinga passion and love and
understanding of this art form,you know, then we have we have
Genesius Guild and Playcrafters,and we have the, the Music
(11:36):
Guild and eventually a Circa 21and then a Countryside, and you
know all of these and there's somany more.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
That's just scratching the surface totally.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
Yeah, forgive me anyone who's listening to this
if I left you out.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
There's so many.
There's too many to mentioneverybody yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Yeah, yeah, and I mean even just the arts
opportunities for kids.
So you know, junior Theater nowserves kids ages 3 to 18.
So we have a preschool programand, you know, an early
elementary program.
The one really unique thing wedo now in the Quad Cities is
that we're really the onlytheater youth program that does
(12:15):
the pre-K through like7-year-olds.
But you know, about 20 yearsago Center for Living Arts
started in the in the Districtof Rock Island and Dino Hayes
runs that and they have atotally different formula than
what we do.
But they've been there for 20years now serving kids and they
(12:38):
do fabulous work.
And then you have SpotlightTheater Company has their youth
model and engages kids, haveSpotlight Theater Company has
their youth model and engageskids and you know, I think
they've been around for, youknow, six years now.
And then Double Threat Studiosis another one that's popped up
recently and they have adifferent model for serving kids
and I think it's great.
I, you know our students, we wetry to like love them with an
(13:01):
open hand, like serve them withan open hand and encourage them
to go and and do other things,like I don't think it benefits
anyone to be territorial about akid's Sure Element, like go cry
, you know what I mean.
Like come back to us if you'reenjoying yourself here or go do
other things.
So you know it's.
It really does contribute tothat that ecosystem of theater.
(13:25):
And a recent very big loss inthat ecosystem was St Ambrose
University eliminated theirtheater department a year and a
half ago and it was like anaward winning, nationally
recognized up until the very end, just this amazingly dynamic
theater department, and theyeliminated it and we're going to
(13:47):
start feeling, I think, theloss of those trained theater
artists that live here locallyat some point.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
But yeah, yeah, there's.
I mean there's so much, there'sso much on the spokes of the
wheel of of, you know,performing arts around here, and
the arts and culture scene isjust booming in every single way
, like you know.
Not to mention still art, youknow, photography, I mean
there's.
It's just a creative culture.
We are the creative capital ofthe Midwest.
(14:16):
I will stand by that statementbecause, just like people like
yourself, you were brought uphere.
You had a chance, you weregiven an opportunity to you know
, explore it, and that's what ittakes.
That's step one, and I lovethat.
That is the beginning of yourstory, because I think so many
people resonate with that.
You know they, they just neededthat chance.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Yeah, exactly yeah.
They just needed that chanceand that's something we're
constantly looking at here.
You know we just were able toset up a scholarship fund with
the have Life organization tohelp kids access theater,
because even though I know whenyou look across the region we
are affordable by comparison.
(14:59):
But affordable does not equalaccessible.
A hundred dollars to me is animpossibility for someone else.
And so how do we develop thoseresources to make arts
accessible?
And part of that accessibilityjourney for junior theater the
nonprofit arm of what we do, ourmain stage company that the
(15:22):
nonprofit runs.
You know they coming out ofCOVID we used to charge for
tickets for entry was $6 forkids, $8 for adults.
They just got rid of it andthey said there's no more
tickets.
Who, whoever, can make it inthe door, like let's serve them
and let's just bring them in andlet those families experience
theater.
And then they built on that.
(15:42):
They've added interpreters, soevery performance has one
interpreted performance, so morekids can engage with the art
form, and then they're actuallyplanning now kind of a
neurodiversity bag that you canpick up that has.
You know, you come in with yourkid.
I have a kiddo with ADHD andsensory processing disorder.
(16:04):
So he's five.
So if I could pick up a littlebackpack and it's got a fidget
inside and it's got some overears and things that he might
find he needs as the show or hemight not need it at all, but,
like, sometimes it's hard forhim to sit for an hour, but if
he has some of those tools hecan and so it's just like that
stuff on.
I'm really lucky to be aroundso many passionate and creative
(16:27):
people on the team here who areconstantly looking for ways to
do what we do better.
It's inspiring.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So talk me through some of your favorite
performances that these kidshave put on.
Oh, wow OK so you can pick afew.
I'm sure it's hard.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Uh, okay, so you can pick a few.
I'm sure it's hard.
Well, yeah, I can say, I cansay this, with the exception of
being overseas one time, I in my15 years, every single class at
junior theater, theater anddance, every single class, I
have watched every singleperformance.
I have never missed one, um,and you know that's, that's
hundreds and hundreds ofperformances a year, um, and I
(17:08):
love it, Like it is the fuelthat keeps you going, like
because this job is hard andmaking arts is hard and
resources are hard, um, and thatthat just is always put.
You know, you see a four yearold up there, you know, singing
Five Little Monkeys jumping on abed carrying props, like it's
(17:28):
great.
But then, favorite performanceswith our main stage company we
did a production of Pinocchiothat I really feel was
comprehensive, a really amazing,because for a main stage
company, even though it is allkids, the goal is to present
(17:48):
powerful theater because it'sfor kids, by kids.
So we do the by kids component.
But we really have to think thequality of this experience
matters.
So Pinocchio was a greatproduction, maybe 10 years ago
now, maybe a little less thanthat, but it was authored.
It was a local, you know localplaywright who worked on it, and
(18:10):
then a director, and we haddesigners from Augustana and
Ambrose involved and then thoseand other professionals.
It was just a really great showabout the exploration of what
it is to be human and always bebecoming something.
I mean, that's what we're alldoing and I think kids are
(18:31):
experiencing that on hyperdriveand we forget it, like they're
literally becoming something.
And that story of what is this,what am I, what will I be, is I
don't know.
I just love it.
Speaker 3 (18:47):
I think it's a great story.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
Yeah, so another production we did is I'm also a
mask maker, so we did aproduction of Jungle Book.
Mask work was something Istudied in graduate school, so
even though it's an audio format, you can see the masks up here
on the wall behind me from ourproduction of Jungle Book, where
(19:08):
the kids all wore half masksand were designed.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Oh, so I'm seeing, like I'm seeing a bird, I'm
seeing a tiger, I'm seeing isthat a wolf?
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Blue, the bear, a wolf and a bird and all that,
and so learning how to use lessof your face as a performer
actually makes you aware of yourwhole body and how you tell the
story, so it's just interesting.
Yeah, and so it's not just likeyou know, oh, we're putting up a
play.
Most people think theater comeswith like a book, and this is
(19:40):
how you do it and this is whatyou need to build, and it is
anything but that, like you justhave the words and then you
have to create everything, andso it's tiring, but it's good,
it's a tall order.
That is yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
Do the kids seem to rise to the occasion.
You know when you are, whenyou're blocking and you're
coming up with new.
You know props.
Or you know, move this way, go.
You know coming up with new.
You know props.
Or you know, move this way, go.
You know, are they like down?
Speaker 1 (20:04):
for the flexibility of it.
Yeah, yes, absolutely, andactually I.
Just.
One of the reasons I reallylove working here is and
especially with young people is,you know, there's just very
little ego and so much curiosityto learn.
They don't feel like they knowit, they're learning it and I
don't feel like I know it.
I feel like I'm learning it.
And so much curiosity to learn.
They don't feel like they knowit, they're learning it and I
don't feel like I know it.
(20:25):
I feel like I'm learning it,and so I love to be around
people who are learning.
And the kids really do rise tothe challenge, and I've learned
never to count a kid out, likein my first year or two.
I learned it within the firstyear or two that if a kid keeps
showing up, even if you're like,why does this kid keep showing
(20:46):
up?
This doesn't seem likesomething that they're apt to do
or succeed in.
And then they break through andlike, oh my gosh.
And I learned very early onthat it is not my business to
have any preconceived notion onwhy a kid's here.
If a kid's here, they geteverything and they're here for
(21:06):
a reason.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
So that's a very cool perspective.
You know something good tobuild on.
And yeah, I mean it goes backto the.
You know, just show up and putin the effort and you get out of
what you put into it.
I'm sure you see all the time.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
And that's something too that maybe people don't know
about.
Our program is we not only dothe acting musical theater,
improv on the theater end, butwe also do costume design,
scenic design.
I mean, you know, it takes alot of craftsmanship and art and
technology and engineering todo lighting.
(21:46):
Now, lighting is nothing butcomputer networking in the air,
now it's.
It's changed and grown umdrastically, and so you know
there's so much to learn andcontribute um playwriting, all
of those things.
Uh uh, it doesn't just need theperson who wants to be out
there on the stage.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Sure.
So, as an actor yourself, I didstumble upon a blog I mentioned
earlier to you from when youwere maybe in a different
position at Junior Theater, andthere was a lot of references to
Shakespeare.
Are you a Shakespeare fan bychance?
Are you a Shakespeare fan bychance?
Speaker 1 (22:22):
I, yes, no, I absolutely am.
That is one I.
So University of Connecticut isa physically classical theater
training, so it's very physical.
It's a lot of, like I said,mass comedia, red nose, clown,
understanding your body, butthen the classics plopped on top
(22:42):
of it.
And one of my favoriteexpressions was you can go from
learning how to do Shakespeareto doing a commercial about
laundry detergent.
You can't go from a commercialabout laundry detergent to
performing Shakespeare.
It is the ultimate trainingground, because you know one
thing, one thing that I thinkmakes Shakespeare so special, is
(23:05):
when you see it performed bypeople, by anyone, but
especially by people whounderstand.
It's kind of like going to asymphony and not trying to
figure it out, but having peoplewho can play the instruments so
well that it just sort ofhappens to you.
Shakespeare speaks in imagesand in poetry and if you're
(23:25):
watching people who arecommunicating that poetry, the
experience can just like happento you.
And I know so many people say Idon't like Shakespeare, oh my
gosh, I would never go seeShakespeare.
But I kind of feel like that'sbecause we're introducing
Shakespeare sitting in aclassroom reading books,
dreading being called on to readyour one line out loud in the
(23:46):
class or popcorn, you know whatI mean.
Like it's your first experienceis often kind of terrifying, and
I don't even know what they'resaying.
Um, so it's.
It's kind of like trying toteach someone how a symphony
works before you like, just golet them hear a symphony and
then they'll know how to makethat music, you know?
So, yeah, I do.
(24:08):
I love Shakespeare.
I think it's the ultimatetraining ground for
communication and storytelling.
And then Shakespeare as a sorry, you got me on a rant that I
love.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
I wanted to hear this .
Yeah, okay, cool yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Shakespeare is somebody who is managing his own
theater company.
I mean, he was managing thetheater company, he was writing,
he was performing, um, and hewas prolific.
Uh, and just the, you know,necessity is the mother of
invention, and using what theyhad to create the stories they
did through yeah, through greatpolitical upheaval at the end of
(24:49):
Queen Elizabeth's reign, was inthe middle of his career.
You know, these huge politicalwins all around, it's just, it's
just good stuff.
It's theater that shouldn'thave happened and it did happen,
and that's that's what I loveabout it.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
So in your opinion, has there been a modern day
Shakespeare?
You know someone who's kind offilled in the shoes and you know
like revamped it but been justas powerful, withstanding the
test of time?
If the answer is no, that'scool, just curious yeah, I mean
I'll be.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
You know some of the playwrights that come to mind?
Are you know Oscar Wilde hasbeen?
I mean he's'll be.
You know some of theplaywrights that come to mind?
Are you know Oscar Wilde hasbeen?
I mean, he's not a contemporary.
Somebody a little morecontemporary, I think, is Arthur
Miller or Tennessee Williams,is at so Shakespeare now you
(25:46):
know you do Julius Caesar, butit might be set in the White
House.
or you know you do Macbeth andit might be set at a dockyard.
Um, and we've moved from like.
When, once a play journeysoutside its own time, it can be
reinterpreted again and thatwill be interesting to see.
As, like Arthur Miller wrote,death of a Salesman.
(26:07):
Death of a Salesman happens ina very specific period of time,
but if you listen to the words,the core of what they're
struggling with is not just, youknow, being a business person
in the 1950s.
It's deeper than that.
And so you know, as the peoplewho experienced it as
contemporaries die, it unlocksthe preconceived notion of what
(26:30):
it should be and you could placeit somewhere else or put it
somewhere else and listen andtry to hear it again in a
contemporary way.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
So Thank you, thank you for that, thank you for that
perspective.
I, yeah, I just wanted to getdown kind of the the theater
rabbit hole because I know thatyou do have a wealth of of
information and, with thebackground, it's fun to kind of
kind of fun to get thatperspective and, you know, see
how you're uh able to, like,excite the next generation of
(26:58):
theater right, yeah, yeah, andyou can always edit me if I get
long-winded we don't edit onthis podcast all right, all
right the whole thing um so thebuilding.
We should talk about the anniewittenmeyer complex.
You guys been there since thebeginning.
And what is next?
Speaker 1 (27:20):
so, um, when junior Theater started in 1951,
obviously it was a programbefore it was a facility.
And so for the first few yearsJunior Theater kind of bopped
around doing classes here andthere.
But they built a show wagon andit was a mobile stage that
traveled around to the parks andthey would perform on a mobile
(27:41):
stage.
But as the program grew itreally necessitated a facility
for the program.
And so from 1951 until 1978,the Junior Theater program moved
its home base 15 times, so youknow, essentially every less
(28:03):
than two years the program'sbeing.
And it was in.
It was in the basement ofchurches, it was above a jewelry
store, it was in a pool lockerroom, it was, you know, wherever
they could keep growing.
But the nonprofit was foundedin the early sixties to help
find a home.
So the nonprofit raised themoney and the plan was always to
(28:27):
build a performing artsfacility for the junior theater
program.
And as the fundraisingcontinued, the opportunity to
move into the Wittenmeyer campuspresented itself, because the
orphanage had closed in 1970.
And then orphans still livedhere until 75, 76.
And then Junior Theater Inc.
(28:49):
The nonprofit jumped on theopportunity to take three
cottages in the old chapel andthey spent three years
renovating.
They started with theclassrooms first, because if you
don't have a place to do yourprogram, the theater doesn't
matter.
And then they got to thetheater and opened that in 1981.
So we've been here.
(29:09):
We kind of say we've been here,been here since 1981 when the
theater opened, but we've reallybeen here since 77, 78.
So it's a long time of 45, 46years.
This has been our home.
But the facility itself it's alarge campus.
You know I said we were inthree cottages.
Well, now we're in all 10.
(29:30):
And we have a scene shop andlarge scenic storage.
So we're in 12 buildings nowand about 43,000 square feet to
operate our programs.
We have this beautiful greenspace that we're able to use for
camps in the summer, but thatis still probably only a quarter
of the campus.
The campus is historical, itdates back to the Civil War and
(29:54):
it's falling apart.
This city doesn't have thebudget to invest in and maintain
the campus, and so Chris Ailes,who's the developer who
proposed the idea of rehabbingthe entire campus into workplace
housing and senior housing it'sa great vision for the campus
(30:18):
and he has the opportunity tobring, you know, like $40
million to the table.
And if you're here, like JuniorTheater is a program and this
has been our home.
But we really do love thiscampus and facility and it is
deteriorating and so the projectis not a bad one.
I think it's great.
It saves our history here inthe area.
(30:39):
It creates housing that'sgreatly needed, our history here
in the area.
It creates housing that'sgreatly needed.
But it creates an awfullydifficult timeline for our
program.
You know, we kind of found outabout this last December, so
December 2023 kind of timeframereally is when we started to
really look at and acknowledge,yeah, this is going to be
(31:00):
happening, and then thepotential of being out by May of
2025 is like a, you know, 17month, 18 month transition for
what is the next program, tofind a place to go.
But the ultimate goal is to findan interim home that we can
(31:21):
make ours for the next two tofour years and then, while we
also plan, the Parks andRecreation Department would
right now would like to see usbuild that performing arts
center that Mary Niswander, ourfounder, and all those board
members were and volunteersinitially dreamed for the
(31:41):
program.
Board members were andvolunteers initially dreamed for
the program, and we are.
We have grown and become thatregional program that I think
continues to draw from, like Isaid, over 35 cities and towns,
and in the summer we have peoplefly in from Los Angeles or come
down from Madison, because theyhave family here and they plan
their entire and they're, youknow, alumni who want their kids
(32:02):
to do junior theater.
They plan their entire trip backto the quad cities around our
camps so that kids can do juniortheater and they can be here
with their family and friendsthat are still in town, um, so
it feels like a huge opportunityfor Davenport to own the
performing arts, and thebenefits that it gives kids and
(32:24):
then therefore gives ourcitizens to be creative
collaborators and invested inthis community is really
important.
Speaker 2 (32:33):
So you know, it sounds like with a move of that
scale, you know, your first gutreaction, for me anyway, is like
, oh, that's going to presentsome challenges when you know
you guys have like programming,um schedules to maintain and you
know, like you said, you wantto make sure that people still
can count on when they come here, they, they make their whole
(32:53):
year around.
You know X, y and Z performanceor camp, so.
But it's also, you guys have agood plan, you know, for the
interim, so that you can kind ofgo seamlessly through all of
the production plans that you'vealready got set in motion.
So what do you think will be,what do you think will be the
biggest obstacle?
Just to, you know, jump fromthis building to where you'll be
(33:16):
housed temporarily.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Well, we still have to actually lock in on the
actual place we're going.
Yes, so, um, it's, it's, we canhave ideas and plan, but until
we know where that destinationis, um, you know, it's, it's
really hard.
Like you know, here we have 12buildings we're operating out of
.
You know what would be in asingle building?
Will we be in a location thatcan also house a theater?
(33:41):
Will we also be able to houseour dance program and our tumble
classes?
Will we, you know?
And so I think the uncertaintyis the hardest part.
Um, and and definitely, uh, Iwas like I grew up in this
facility and in this vein, andso initially I was just like
(34:02):
whoa you know I don't want tosay crush because I didn't
squish, I'm still alive, but Imean it was very heavy to think
about what all is going to beentailed moving.
But now that we are gettingsome things looking forward.
You know, one of the bigoptions on the table right now
(34:23):
for junior theater ispotentially the Yonkers box in
the mall.
It's 100,000 square feet.
You know we bring traffic wise.
You know we're bringing 500enrolled kids a week come
through our programs and theirfamilies just sit here for an
hour.
You know, maybe potentiallythey could eat at the food court
(34:46):
or go to the bookstore or goshopping or, you know, be right
there in more of an economic hub.
That again, if we're going todraw these people from.
You know there's only oneDavenport, so the 35 plus other
places to come here also maybespend some money here and, you
know, help the local economy aswell.
That would be.
(35:07):
That would be an interestingone.
But we've been looking, youknow we've been looking at
collaborations with theDavenport schools or we've been
looking at just differentbuildings and properties that
people have presented.
Sometimes it's pretty easy tosay thanks for the idea.
It's 10,000 square feet and andthere's no theater.
Thank you, we appreciate youreaching out.
(35:28):
And then other things we do golook at and investigate and
explore.
So, yeah, we're still somewhatexploratory right now.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Okay, I mean it's a great.
Like you said, it's a greatopportunity and you know we will
see what comes.
One cool thing about the QuadCities I've kind of noticed
since I've been here the lastdecade or so is like people step
up to you know, if they see aneed, they step up to fulfill it
.
I've, I've seen that time andtime again and like one of the
examples I always draw back tois unrelated to you know what
(35:57):
you guys are going through, kindof, but like the flood in 2019,
you know all of downtownDavenport not all of downtown
Davenport but like there was agood like three block chunk of
downtown Davenport that was justout of business for a little
while because because of thefloodwaters off the Mississippi
river.
But what we saw was we saw, youknow, businesses come help each
(36:19):
other, um, ones that wereunaffected or even affected.
They were coming to help youknow, do like sandbagging.
They were um housing eachother's um you know product.
I remember like one of thebreweries downtown had a partner
brewery, kind of like canningfor them or, you know, housing
their product for a while.
(36:41):
I mean, we step in, we step up,we talk, and I'm seeing that
that could also be, and has been, the way that people are going
to help junior theater, you know, thrive during this kind of
unknown time.
What's going to come, what'sgoing to happen?
Speaker 1 (36:59):
Yeah, and that I mean that that, right, there is one
of the main reasons I even movedback to the Quad Cities, having
been out West and out East andup North and overseas, and just
like the hardworking, trulyavailable, collaborative, caring
(37:19):
community, I think istremendous.
And yeah, and you do see it, incrisis as well, as people
coming together to especiallywhen they know people need help
or that something is good and wedon't want it to go away,
people really do come togetherto help, and so that's another
thing that makes me incrediblyhopeful about this challenging
(37:40):
time for us is the amazingcommunity that people know and
understand the gravity of whatDavenport Junior Theater is and
how it is the let's say it againthe second oldest children's
theater in the United States.
Speaker 2 (37:58):
That is so huge something that every Quad
citizen should be and once theyhear that, will be extremely
proud of.
What a cool asset to thecommunity.
Speaker 1 (38:12):
Yeah, and I have, so we came up with some, some
really cool stats that I want toshare with you.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
real, quick, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
So of our, our students who are enrolled.
So these are they're.
They're all paid enrollment.
This isn't counting, like allthe kids who come to see what we
do, just the, the directcontact led hours.
The direct contact lead hoursin 2023, we had 2,256,300
(38:40):
minutes of direct leadperforming arts instruction,
which equals out to 4.45 yearsof direct lead instruction in a
calendar year affecting kids.
And like that's cool, it's socool to get to be part of that.
Um, yeah, yeah, we were justplaying around and trying to
calculate, you know, because wedon't normally have to.
The other thing, the crisis ofthis situation, of this moment
of a move, is it makes you like,okay, like what do we actually?
(39:02):
Okay, we need to find thenumbers of what our impact is.
We need to, we need to be readyto tell this story, because we
can't just sit on our hands andbe like, oh really, you're gonna
get rid of, you're gonna cancelour program.
Well, like, we need to be aproactive player in our own
future, and so that's been,that's been fun.
I see a rent style musical uh,out of the number talking about
(39:25):
that, like can we do, like arent video with, like you know,
two million two hundred fiftysix thousand three hundred
minutes?
Yes, that might be coming,because I think that that would
be fun, but it's a great ideawe'll share it, we will share it
hard if you guys make that.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Oh my gosh, it's already in my head.
I, I know.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:54):
So what is your message to the community If you
had five seconds with someonewho's never been here before?
Hey, I'm Daniel.
I'm the performing artssupervisor at Davenport junior
theater.
This is the one thing you needto know about us.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
One thing you need to know about us.
Um, one thing you need to knowabout us, uh, uh, that the one
thing you need to know about usis we are servants to kids.
We are 100% committed toimpacting the lives of the youth
in our program, and we that isour, they're our number one
priority, and everything wecreate and build is around them
(40:32):
and their success.
So, um, yeah, I think thatwould probably be it thank you
so much for peeling back thecurtain.
Speaker 2 (40:40):
Uh, no pun intended on everything about junior
theater.
Um, I I really think oncepeople listen to this podcast
and hear the stats that we justtalked about and kind of feel
the passion that you and youknow I'm sure your co-workers
share, it will just be nothingbut like support and outreach.
(41:02):
And hey, how do I get my kidinvolved?
You know, I mean, I have twokids of my own that are going to
be coming up in the pre-K agesoon, so definitely something
that I've tossed around gettingthem involved in as well.
I think it's just a greatprogram.
So on that note, I love to endthe podcast with the guest
(41:25):
filling in the blank of our QC,that's when slogan.
So would you please fill in theblank Q, our QC, that's where
slogan.
So would you please fill in theblank QC, that's where.
Speaker 1 (41:33):
Kids matter.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
I love it.
I love it, I support that.
Speaker 1 (41:37):
I mean they matter everywhere, but I mean I think,
I think they really matter here.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
Really matter, one of our kind of pillars that we try
to share with people who aren'tfrom here if they're coming to
look for, you know, inspiration,to visit with the family.
What we say QC, that's wherewe're all in for family, you
know, there's something foreveryone.
We're not going to, you know,we can't and we don't exclude
(42:01):
based on, you know, age.
If you come with yourone-year-old or you come with
your 18-year-old, like, you'regoing to find something that
suits both interests.
You love to be family friendly.
We, you know we love to havethat kind of attitude.
So you guys are obviouslyplaying right into that.
Speaker 1 (42:19):
Yeah, I get, I get.
Something that's interestingabout theater is they don't call
it kids theater, they call ittheater for young audience
audiences.
You know TYA and I'm probablyyou get the stink eye from
people because I just talk a lotabout kids.
I I feel like, yes, we can,theater for young audiences is
(42:39):
great but, like the kids element, just they're kids.
I, like you know, serve them tohave fun and be a kid and be a
child and yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, so kids matter.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
They do Kids matter.
I love that QC.
That's where um how can peoplefind you on social media and
learn more about you?
Speaker 1 (42:59):
Sure, yeah, um, you know Facebook, instagram,
davenport, junior theaters.
There you Google us on on orsearch us anywhere.
We'll we'll pop right up to thetop of that Ask.
Speaker 2 (43:08):
ChatGPT.
Speaker 1 (43:10):
Yeah, you can ask your chatbots and everything.
They'll get you there.
So, and you'll find.
You know, we're constantly openfor enrollment.
We're coming up on a big summerwith classes and camps and we
have another production that'sopening in the end of April,
beginning of May, One of ourmain stage shows that's free for
families to see.
So we just, you know, you don'thave to sign up for a class to
(43:35):
come and just have a good timewith your family seeing theater
as well.
So there's lots of ways toexperience the program.
Speaker 2 (43:39):
Well said, and please explore all the rest of the
creative energy in the QuadCities.
Visit quadcitiescom and thankyou again, daniel.
Speaker 1 (43:47):
Yeah, thank you so much.
This was a blast, and thank youfor letting me talk about
Shakespeare.
Speaker 3 (43:52):
Thanks for listening to QC.
That's when a podcast poweredby Visit Quad Cities Text
VISITQC to 38314 for insiderevents, activities and updates
sent straight to your phone.
That's V-I-S-I-T-Q-C, one wordto 38314.
(44:15):
Message and data rates mayapply.
Because we don't normally have to.
The other thing, the crisis ofthis situation, of this moment
of a move is it makes you like,okay, what do we actually do?
Okay, we need to find thenumbers of what our impact is.
We need to be ready to tellthis story, because we can't
just sit on our hands and belike, oh really, you're going to
cancel our program.
Well, we need to be a proactiveplayer in our own future, and
(00:24):
so that's been.
That's been fun I see a rentstyle musical, uh, out of the
numbers talking about that, like, can we do like a rent video
with, like you know, 2,256,300minutes?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
yes, that might be coming because I think that that
will be fun.
Where do you find a family ofcommunities connected by the
storied Mississippi River, whereyoung explorers and dreamers,
investors and entrepreneursthrive?
Where can you connect with realpeople living and creating in a
place that's as genuine as itis quirky QC?
(01:03):
That's where Genuine as it isquirky QC, that's where Welcome
to QC.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
That's where I'm Katrina, your host.
I'm here today with DanielSheridan, the Performing Arts
Supervisor at Davenport JuniorTheater.
Daniel, hello, how are you?
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Hello, I'm great.
Thank you so much for having mewith you today.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So excited to have you on because I know we were
talking a little bit before.
You are a wealth of knowledgein the theater space, davenport
Junior Theater specifically.
Let's real quick, drop thatstat about being the second
oldest in the country.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yeah.
So I mean, most people stilldon't know this and we've really
been trying to get it out thereover the last 15 years, but we
are the second oldest children'stheater in the United States.
So we are in the middle of our72nd season and we have this
long legacy of service for kidsin our community.
And there are some theatercompanies around America who are
(02:01):
older and will do kids shows,but we are for kids, by kids.
The kids are our focus.
They're the ones doing theperforming, they're the ones
backstage running the show,they're the one learning front
of house customer service, theunique children's theater where
the second oldest in the country.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Do you happen to know the oldest one?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
I do, yeah, yeah, yeah.
So Junior Theater.
Funny enough, their name isalso Junior Theater.
That's totally coincidental.
But Junior Theater San Diego.
You'd think it'd be out east,it's actually out west.
Junior Theater San Diego is intheir 75th season now.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
So pretty close 72, 75.
Yeah, that's pretty close.
That's absolutely wild.
I think people don't realizethat.
You know it's really easy totake for granted what's in your
backyard.
You know.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
And you know just real quick,briefly, about the history of
the organization.
Mary Fleur Niswander was thefounder of the program and she
started the program back in 1951when when her husband moved
here they were traveling actorsand performers and he died
suddenly of a gallbladdercomplication and she was sort of
(03:14):
stranded here with her threekids and just herself and she
started teaching voice dictionand elocution classes in the
late 40s and then she got linkedup with somebody from the
Women's Recreation League to goout into the parks in 1951 to
offer basically theater classesto kids.
And that's how Junior Theaterwas born, was out in the
(03:35):
Davenport Park system, and thenall of those kids from Davenport
wanted to meet all the otherkids in Davenport who thought
theater was pretty great andthey did their first production
in 1952 of Oscar Wilde's StarChild and then things just
continued to grow from there.
And then today not only do wehave Davenport kids but we have
(04:00):
kids from over 35 cities andcommunities who are registered
participants in our programevery year.
So we're a vast regional drawwith around 2000 enrollments a
year.
And you know the averagestudent when we say enrollment
the average student is getting18 hours of lead instructed time
(04:22):
.
So 2000 times 18 are the directhours that we're kind of in
there and serving the kids.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
So so it's a great place for, you know, kids who
are interested in theater, butalso kids who just want to maybe
socialize, try something new,um learn a skill yeah, well, and
I mean, ultimately, our goal isnot to create the next Tony
award-winning actor.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
So, although we do have a Tony award-winning
producer amongst our, amongstour alumni, which is pretty cool
, but but really I mean, thegoal is, yeah, exactly that Fun
is.
The most important thing tolearning is that the kids are
here having fun and then usingtheater and dance, you know, we
build those communication skillsso that kids can lead with
(05:07):
clarity and confidence and becreative their whole life.
So, whether that's coaching theLittle League team or, you know
, working a job in sales orstanding up in the boardroom,
that they can just contribute ascitizens to our community room,
that they can just contributeas citizens to our community.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
So bring it back to your beginning with Davenport
Junior Theater.
How did you get started andwhat was your draw to it?
Speaker 1 (05:34):
So beginning, beginning me as a kid, or
beginning, beginning me as aprofessional.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
Take us back as far as it goes.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
Okay, cool.
So I grew up in Davenport.
I grew up in the West End ofDavenport over by Gunchy's Pizza
, went to Hayes Elementary,smart and then West High.
But when I was in elementaryschool I started to get
interested in acting andstorytelling from blooper reels
on TV shows when I realized likeoh my gosh, those are like
(06:05):
people telling stories thatmatter to me, and so I'd ask my
parents, I want to take theaterclasses.
I was really shy.
They didn't sign me up becauseit was all the way across town.
But I just happened to win afree class at a big school event
and it changed.
But it set the course of mylife and I've been doing theater
(06:28):
ever since.
So I started doing juniortheater here when I was about 12
years old, so around 1995.
And then I have not been herethat whole time, but that's when
I first got involved and I tooka class and then I joined the
main stage and then I was ateenage staffer here growing up.
(06:50):
So it was pretty cool.
We still have a teenage staff,we call them the junior staff
and there's not many.
There's six of them and there'snot many people who can say as
a teenager I was paid andemployed at a theater to help
run and develop classes andcostumes and props and sets.
So yeah, that's when my initialcontact with the organization
began.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
And then, as you kind of developed your theater
career, did you study that incollege?
What was kind of your likeeducation background?
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Yeah, so I actually I did end up studying theater at
St Ambrose University.
I was there for four years andI actually, you know, when I
went into St Ambrose, initiallymy exclusive focus was going to
be just on acting.
You know that was, that was theexclusive area I thought I was
going to pursue.
(07:38):
And then, over the course of acouple years, I ended up getting
really interested in directingand then I ended up getting
really interested in design andthe whole theater experience of
the.
As far as art forms go, this isa.
This is a live art form thatrequires a bunch of artists to
come together, wrap their headaround the same vision and then
(08:01):
present it live to the publicand it makes it really special.
So I did that.
And then I studied abroad atthe University of London, queen
Mary, studying performance art.
And then I went on to get I wasat the University of
Connecticut for three yearswhere I got my MFA, my Master of
Fine Arts in Acting andStorytelling and so and I
(08:26):
traveled around in the summers,working in California and
Northern Minnesota, did somestuff in New York and places
like that.
So that was kind of myeducational career and a little
bit of my early professionalcareer outside the Quad Cities.
And then obviously, the QuadCities brought you back career
outside the Quad Cities and then, obviously, the Quad Cities
brought you back.
It did so.
I found out that.
(08:48):
So, okay, as far as the historyof Junior Theater, from 1951 to
1990, mary Niswander ran thisorganization and she didn't
found it, you know, young.
She founded it in her mid-40sand she was, you know, close to
90 when she passed, and she wasclose to 90 when she passed and
she was still running it.
So she ran it for that wholetime.
And then, from 1990 to 2005,bonnie Gunther ran the
(09:10):
organization, but she'd beeninvolved for 25 years before
that.
And then from 2005 to 2008,there were five leadership
changes for an organization thathad such consistency.
Um, and it caused a lot of pushand pull and fracturing.
Um and the, the Davenport parksand recreation, was looking to
(09:33):
maybe not maybe looking toseparate ties with junior
theater Inc, the nonprofit.
Um and I applied for a $15 anhour, 20 hour a week, part-time
job out of out of getting mymaster's degree, to come back
and just ask for a year.
Just give me one year and we'llsee what happens.
And I've I've been here for 15and a half.
(09:56):
Um and I only plan to stay for afew years, but I love it.
I love it Like being able tohelp create more arts
opportunities for kids and thenthe community.
Because of that there's.
For me that is um, it's just areally valuable way to get to
spend my my time.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
To get to spend my time you mentioned earlier um,
how junior theater plays intothe full scope of, like, the
theater ecosystem.
And for people who necessarilyaren't familiar with the Quad
Cities, I think it's soimportant to like take a step
back and look and see what alllive theater, live entertainment
(10:35):
I mean, from music to.
You know plays and you knoweverything in between.
I mean there's so much talenthere and like you know the
Spotlight Theater in Moline, youknow professional grade theater
in Rock Island at Circa 21,.
You know two examples of somany music guild.
(10:56):
You know there's so manyperforming arts opportunities,
arts opportunities.
Can you kind of talk about howyou know how junior theater is
just like step one on theplatform of everything else that
we have?
Speaker 1 (11:11):
here?
Yes, absolutely, Because if youlook back 72 years ago, there
were not a lot of theatercompanies there, you know I
don't know if any from 72 yearsago still exist and so junior
theater, starting and developinga passion and love and
understanding of this art form,you know, then we have we have
Genesius Guild and Playcrafters,and we have the, the Music
(11:36):
Guild and eventually a Circa 21and then a Countryside, and you
know all of these and there's somany more.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
That's just scratching the surface totally.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
Yeah, forgive me anyone who's listening to this
if I left you out.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
There's so many.
There's too many to mentioneverybody yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
Yeah, yeah, and I mean even just the arts
opportunities for kids.
So you know, junior Theater nowserves kids ages 3 to 18.
So we have a preschool programand, you know, an early
elementary program.
The one really unique thing wedo now in the Quad Cities is
that we're really the onlytheater youth program that does
(12:15):
the pre-K through like7-year-olds.
But you know, about 20 yearsago Center for Living Arts
started in the in the Districtof Rock Island and Dino Hayes
runs that and they have atotally different formula than
what we do.
But they've been there for 20years now serving kids and they
(12:38):
do fabulous work.
And then you have SpotlightTheater Company has their youth
model and engages kids, haveSpotlight Theater Company has
their youth model and engageskids and you know, I think
they've been around for, youknow, six years now.
And then Double Threat Studiosis another one that's popped up
recently and they have adifferent model for serving kids
and I think it's great.
I, you know our students, we wetry to like love them with an
(13:01):
open hand, like serve them withan open hand and encourage them
to go and and do other things,like I don't think it benefits
anyone to be territorial about akid's Sure Element, like go cry
, you know what I mean.
Like come back to us if you'reenjoying yourself here or go do
other things.
So you know it's.
It really does contribute tothat that ecosystem of theater.
(13:25):
And a recent very big loss inthat ecosystem was St Ambrose
University eliminated theirtheater department a year and a
half ago and it was like anaward winning, nationally
recognized up until the very end, just this amazingly dynamic
theater department, and theyeliminated it and we're going to
(13:47):
start feeling, I think, theloss of those trained theater
artists that live here locallyat some point.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
But yeah, yeah, there's.
I mean there's so much, there'sso much on the spokes of the
wheel of of, you know,performing arts around here, and
the arts and culture scene isjust booming in every single way
, like you know.
Not to mention still art, youknow, photography, I mean
there's.
It's just a creative culture.
We are the creative capital ofthe Midwest.
(14:16):
I will stand by that statementbecause, just like people like
yourself, you were brought uphere.
You had a chance, you weregiven an opportunity to you know
, explore it, and that's what ittakes.
That's step one, and I lovethat.
That is the beginning of yourstory, because I think so many
people resonate with that.
You know they, they just neededthat chance.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Yeah, exactly yeah.
They just needed that chanceand that's something we're
constantly looking at here.
You know we just were able toset up a scholarship fund with
the have Life organization tohelp kids access theater,
because even though I know whenyou look across the region we
are affordable by comparison.
(14:59):
But affordable does not equalaccessible.
A hundred dollars to me is animpossibility for someone else.
And so how do we develop thoseresources to make arts
accessible?
And part of that accessibilityjourney for junior theater the
nonprofit arm of what we do, ourmain stage company that the
(15:22):
nonprofit runs.
You know they coming out ofCOVID we used to charge for
tickets for entry was $6 forkids, $8 for adults.
They just got rid of it andthey said there's no more
tickets.
Who, whoever, can make it inthe door, like let's serve them
and let's just bring them in andlet those families experience
theater.
And then they built on that.
(15:42):
They've added interpreters, soevery performance has one
interpreted performance, so morekids can engage with the art
form, and then they're actuallyplanning now kind of a
neurodiversity bag that you canpick up that has.
You know, you come in with yourkid.
I have a kiddo with ADHD andsensory processing disorder.
(16:04):
So he's five.
So if I could pick up a littlebackpack and it's got a fidget
inside and it's got some overears and things that he might
find he needs as the show or hemight not need it at all, but,
like, sometimes it's hard forhim to sit for an hour, but if
he has some of those tools hecan and so it's just like that
stuff on.
I'm really lucky to be aroundso many passionate and creative
(16:27):
people on the team here who areconstantly looking for ways to
do what we do better.
It's inspiring.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So talk me through some of your favorite
performances that these kidshave put on.
Oh, wow OK so you can pick afew.
I'm sure it's hard.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Uh, okay, so you can pick a few.
I'm sure it's hard.
Well, yeah, I can say, I cansay this, with the exception of
being overseas one time, I in my15 years, every single class at
junior theater, theater anddance, every single class, I
have watched every singleperformance.
I have never missed one, um,and you know that's, that's
hundreds and hundreds ofperformances a year, um, and I
(17:08):
love it, Like it is the fuelthat keeps you going, like
because this job is hard andmaking arts is hard and
resources are hard, um, and thatthat just is always put.
You know, you see a four yearold up there, you know, singing
Five Little Monkeys jumping on abed carrying props, like it's
(17:28):
great.
But then, favorite performanceswith our main stage company we
did a production of Pinocchiothat I really feel was
comprehensive, a really amazing,because for a main stage
company, even though it is allkids, the goal is to present
(17:48):
powerful theater because it'sfor kids, by kids.
So we do the by kids component.
But we really have to think thequality of this experience
matters.
So Pinocchio was a greatproduction, maybe 10 years ago
now, maybe a little less thanthat, but it was authored.
It was a local, you know localplaywright who worked on it, and
(18:10):
then a director, and we haddesigners from Augustana and
Ambrose involved and then thoseand other professionals.
It was just a really great showabout the exploration of what
it is to be human and always bebecoming something.
I mean, that's what we're alldoing and I think kids are
(18:31):
experiencing that on hyperdriveand we forget it, like they're
literally becoming something.
And that story of what is this,what am I, what will I be, is I
don't know.
I just love it.
Speaker 3 (18:47):
I think it's a great story.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
Yeah, so another production we did is I'm also a
mask maker, so we did aproduction of Jungle Book.
Mask work was something Istudied in graduate school, so
even though it's an audio format, you can see the masks up here
on the wall behind me from ourproduction of Jungle Book, where
(19:08):
the kids all wore half masksand were designed.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Oh, so I'm seeing, like I'm seeing a bird, I'm
seeing a tiger, I'm seeing isthat a wolf?
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Blue, the bear, a wolf and a bird and all that,
and so learning how to use lessof your face as a performer
actually makes you aware of yourwhole body and how you tell the
story, so it's just interesting.
Yeah, and so it's not just likeyou know, oh, we're putting up a
play.
Most people think theater comeswith like a book, and this is
(19:40):
how you do it and this is whatyou need to build, and it is
anything but that, like you justhave the words and then you
have to create everything, andso it's tiring, but it's good,
it's a tall order.
That is yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
Do the kids seem to rise to the occasion.
You know when you are, whenyou're blocking and you're
coming up with new.
You know props.
Or you know, move this way, go.
You know coming up with new.
You know props.
Or you know, move this way, go.
You know, are they like down?
Speaker 1 (20:04):
for the flexibility of it.
Yeah, yes, absolutely, andactually I.
Just.
One of the reasons I reallylove working here is and
especially with young people is,you know, there's just very
little ego and so much curiosityto learn.
They don't feel like they knowit, they're learning it and I
don't feel like I know it.
I feel like I'm learning it.
And so much curiosity to learn.
They don't feel like they knowit, they're learning it and I
don't feel like I know it.
(20:25):
I feel like I'm learning it,and so I love to be around
people who are learning.
And the kids really do rise tothe challenge, and I've learned
never to count a kid out, likein my first year or two.
I learned it within the firstyear or two that if a kid keeps
showing up, even if you're like,why does this kid keep showing
(20:46):
up?
This doesn't seem likesomething that they're apt to do
or succeed in.
And then they break through andlike, oh my gosh.
And I learned very early onthat it is not my business to
have any preconceived notion onwhy a kid's here.
If a kid's here, they geteverything and they're here for
(21:06):
a reason.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
So that's a very cool perspective.
You know something good tobuild on.
And yeah, I mean it goes backto the.
You know, just show up and putin the effort and you get out of
what you put into it.
I'm sure you see all the time.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
And that's something too that maybe people don't know
about.
Our program is we not only dothe acting musical theater,
improv on the theater end, butwe also do costume design,
scenic design.
I mean, you know, it takes alot of craftsmanship and art and
technology and engineering todo lighting.
(21:46):
Now, lighting is nothing butcomputer networking in the air,
now it's.
It's changed and grown umdrastically, and so you know
there's so much to learn andcontribute um playwriting, all
of those things.
Uh uh, it doesn't just need theperson who wants to be out
there on the stage.
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Sure.
So, as an actor yourself, I didstumble upon a blog I mentioned
earlier to you from when youwere maybe in a different
position at Junior Theater, andthere was a lot of references to
Shakespeare.
Are you a Shakespeare fan bychance?
Are you a Shakespeare fan bychance?
Speaker 1 (22:22):
I, yes, no, I absolutely am.
That is one I.
So University of Connecticut isa physically classical theater
training, so it's very physical.
It's a lot of, like I said,mass comedia, red nose, clown,
understanding your body, butthen the classics plopped on top
(22:42):
of it.
And one of my favoriteexpressions was you can go from
learning how to do Shakespeareto doing a commercial about
laundry detergent.
You can't go from a commercialabout laundry detergent to
performing Shakespeare.
It is the ultimate trainingground, because you know one
thing, one thing that I thinkmakes Shakespeare so special, is
(23:05):
when you see it performed bypeople, by anyone, but
especially by people whounderstand.
It's kind of like going to asymphony and not trying to
figure it out, but having peoplewho can play the instruments so
well that it just sort ofhappens to you.
Shakespeare speaks in imagesand in poetry and if you're
(23:25):
watching people who arecommunicating that poetry, the
experience can just like happento you.
And I know so many people say Idon't like Shakespeare, oh my
gosh, I would never go seeShakespeare.
But I kind of feel like that'sbecause we're introducing
Shakespeare sitting in aclassroom reading books,
dreading being called on to readyour one line out loud in the
(23:46):
class or popcorn, you know whatI mean.
Like it's your first experienceis often kind of terrifying, and
I don't even know what they'resaying.
Um, so it's.
It's kind of like trying toteach someone how a symphony
works before you like, just golet them hear a symphony and
then they'll know how to makethat music, you know?
So, yeah, I do.
(24:08):
I love Shakespeare.
I think it's the ultimatetraining ground for
communication and storytelling.
And then Shakespeare as a sorry, you got me on a rant that I
love.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
I wanted to hear this .
Yeah, okay, cool yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Shakespeare is somebody who is managing his own
theater company.
I mean, he was managing thetheater company, he was writing,
he was performing, um, and hewas prolific.
Uh, and just the, you know,necessity is the mother of
invention, and using what theyhad to create the stories they
did through yeah, through greatpolitical upheaval at the end of
(24:49):
Queen Elizabeth's reign, was inthe middle of his career.
You know, these huge politicalwins all around, it's just, it's
just good stuff.
It's theater that shouldn'thave happened and it did happen,
and that's that's what I loveabout it.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
So in your opinion, has there been a modern day
Shakespeare?
You know someone who's kind offilled in the shoes and you know
like revamped it but been justas powerful, withstanding the
test of time?
If the answer is no, that'scool, just curious yeah, I mean
I'll be.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
You know some of the playwrights that come to mind?
Are you know Oscar Wilde hasbeen?
I mean he's'll be.
You know some of theplaywrights that come to mind?
Are you know Oscar Wilde hasbeen?
I mean, he's not a contemporary.
Somebody a little morecontemporary, I think, is Arthur
Miller or Tennessee Williams,is at so Shakespeare now you
(25:46):
know you do Julius Caesar, butit might be set in the White
House.
or you know you do Macbeth andit might be set at a dockyard.
Um, and we've moved from like.
When, once a play journeysoutside its own time, it can be
reinterpreted again and thatwill be interesting to see.
As, like Arthur Miller wrote,death of a Salesman.
(26:07):
Death of a Salesman happens ina very specific period of time,
but if you listen to the words,the core of what they're
struggling with is not just, youknow, being a business person
in the 1950s.
It's deeper than that.
And so you know, as the peoplewho experienced it as
contemporaries die, it unlocksthe preconceived notion of what
(26:30):
it should be and you could placeit somewhere else or put it
somewhere else and listen andtry to hear it again in a
contemporary way.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
So Thank you, thank you for that, thank you for that
perspective.
I, yeah, I just wanted to getdown kind of the the theater
rabbit hole because I know thatyou do have a wealth of of
information and, with thebackground, it's fun to kind of
kind of fun to get thatperspective and, you know, see
how you're uh able to, like,excite the next generation of
(26:58):
theater right, yeah, yeah, andyou can always edit me if I get
long-winded we don't edit onthis podcast all right, all
right the whole thing um so thebuilding.
We should talk about the anniewittenmeyer complex.
You guys been there since thebeginning.
And what is next?
Speaker 1 (27:20):
so, um, when junior Theater started in 1951,
obviously it was a programbefore it was a facility.
And so for the first few yearsJunior Theater kind of bopped
around doing classes here andthere.
But they built a show wagon andit was a mobile stage that
traveled around to the parks andthey would perform on a mobile
(27:41):
stage.
But as the program grew itreally necessitated a facility
for the program.
And so from 1951 until 1978,the Junior Theater program moved
its home base 15 times, so youknow, essentially every less
(28:03):
than two years the program'sbeing.
And it was in.
It was in the basement ofchurches, it was above a jewelry
store, it was in a pool lockerroom, it was, you know, wherever
they could keep growing.
But the nonprofit was foundedin the early sixties to help
find a home.
So the nonprofit raised themoney and the plan was always to
(28:27):
build a performing artsfacility for the junior theater
program.
And as the fundraisingcontinued, the opportunity to
move into the Wittenmeyer campuspresented itself, because the
orphanage had closed in 1970.
And then orphans still livedhere until 75, 76.
And then Junior Theater Inc.
(28:49):
The nonprofit jumped on theopportunity to take three
cottages in the old chapel andthey spent three years
renovating.
They started with theclassrooms first, because if you
don't have a place to do yourprogram, the theater doesn't
matter.
And then they got to thetheater and opened that in 1981.
So we've been here.
(29:09):
We kind of say we've been here,been here since 1981 when the
theater opened, but we've reallybeen here since 77, 78.
So it's a long time of 45, 46years.
This has been our home.
But the facility itself it's alarge campus.
You know I said we were inthree cottages.
Well, now we're in all 10.
(29:30):
And we have a scene shop andlarge scenic storage.
So we're in 12 buildings nowand about 43,000 square feet to
operate our programs.
We have this beautiful greenspace that we're able to use for
camps in the summer, but thatis still probably only a quarter
of the campus.
The campus is historical, itdates back to the Civil War and
(29:54):
it's falling apart.
This city doesn't have thebudget to invest in and maintain
the campus, and so Chris Ailes,who's the developer who
proposed the idea of rehabbingthe entire campus into workplace
housing and senior housing it'sa great vision for the campus
(30:18):
and he has the opportunity tobring, you know, like $40
million to the table.
And if you're here, like JuniorTheater is a program and this
has been our home.
But we really do love thiscampus and facility and it is
deteriorating and so the projectis not a bad one.
I think it's great.
It saves our history here inthe area.
(30:39):
It creates housing that'sgreatly needed, our history here
in the area.
It creates housing that'sgreatly needed.
But it creates an awfullydifficult timeline for our
program.
You know, we kind of found outabout this last December, so
December 2023 kind of timeframereally is when we started to
really look at and acknowledge,yeah, this is going to be
(31:00):
happening, and then thepotential of being out by May of
2025 is like a, you know, 17month, 18 month transition for
what is the next program, tofind a place to go.
But the ultimate goal is to findan interim home that we can
(31:21):
make ours for the next two tofour years and then, while we
also plan, the Parks andRecreation Department would
right now would like to see usbuild that performing arts
center that Mary Niswander, ourfounder, and all those board
members were and volunteersinitially dreamed for the
(31:41):
program.
Board members were andvolunteers initially dreamed for
the program, and we are.
We have grown and become thatregional program that I think
continues to draw from, like Isaid, over 35 cities and towns,
and in the summer we have peoplefly in from Los Angeles or come
down from Madison, because theyhave family here and they plan
their entire and they're, youknow, alumni who want their kids
(32:02):
to do junior theater.
They plan their entire trip backto the quad cities around our
camps so that kids can do juniortheater and they can be here
with their family and friendsthat are still in town, um, so
it feels like a huge opportunityfor Davenport to own the
performing arts, and thebenefits that it gives kids and
(32:24):
then therefore gives ourcitizens to be creative
collaborators and invested inthis community is really
important.
Speaker 2 (32:33):
So you know, it sounds like with a move of that
scale, you know, your first gutreaction, for me anyway, is like
, oh, that's going to presentsome challenges when you know
you guys have like programming,um schedules to maintain and you
know, like you said, you wantto make sure that people still
can count on when they come here, they, they make their whole
(32:53):
year around.
You know X, y and Z performanceor camp, so.
But it's also, you guys have agood plan, you know, for the
interim, so that you can kind ofgo seamlessly through all of
the production plans that you'vealready got set in motion.
So what do you think will be,what do you think will be the
biggest obstacle?
Just to, you know, jump fromthis building to where you'll be
(33:16):
housed temporarily.
Speaker 1 (33:19):
Well, we still have to actually lock in on the
actual place we're going.
Yes, so, um, it's, it's, we canhave ideas and plan, but until
we know where that destinationis, um, you know, it's, it's
really hard.
Like you know, here we have 12buildings we're operating out of
.
You know what would be in asingle building?
Will we be in a location thatcan also house a theater?
(33:41):
Will we also be able to houseour dance program and our tumble
classes?
Will we, you know?
And so I think the uncertaintyis the hardest part.
Um, and and definitely, uh, Iwas like I grew up in this
facility and in this vein, andso initially I was just like
(34:02):
whoa you know I don't want tosay crush because I didn't
squish, I'm still alive, but Imean it was very heavy to think
about what all is going to beentailed moving.
But now that we are gettingsome things looking forward.
You know, one of the bigoptions on the table right now
(34:23):
for junior theater ispotentially the Yonkers box in
the mall.
It's 100,000 square feet.
You know we bring traffic wise.
You know we're bringing 500enrolled kids a week come
through our programs and theirfamilies just sit here for an
hour.
You know, maybe potentiallythey could eat at the food court
(34:46):
or go to the bookstore or goshopping or, you know, be right
there in more of an economic hub.
That again, if we're going todraw these people from.
You know there's only oneDavenport, so the 35 plus other
places to come here also maybespend some money here and, you
know, help the local economy aswell.
That would be.
(35:07):
That would be an interestingone.
But we've been looking, youknow we've been looking at
collaborations with theDavenport schools or we've been
looking at just differentbuildings and properties that
people have presented.
Sometimes it's pretty easy tosay thanks for the idea.
It's 10,000 square feet and andthere's no theater.
Thank you, we appreciate youreaching out.
(35:28):
And then other things we do golook at and investigate and
explore.
So, yeah, we're still somewhatexploratory right now.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Okay, I mean it's a great.
Like you said, it's a greatopportunity and you know we will
see what comes.
One cool thing about the QuadCities I've kind of noticed
since I've been here the lastdecade or so is like people step
up to you know, if they see aneed, they step up to fulfill it
.
I've, I've seen that time andtime again and like one of the
examples I always draw back tois unrelated to you know what
(35:57):
you guys are going through, kindof, but like the flood in 2019,
you know all of downtownDavenport not all of downtown
Davenport but like there was agood like three block chunk of
downtown Davenport that was justout of business for a little
while because because of thefloodwaters off the Mississippi
river.
But what we saw was we saw, youknow, businesses come help each
(36:19):
other, um, ones that wereunaffected or even affected.
They were coming to help youknow, do like sandbagging.
They were um housing eachother's um you know product.
I remember like one of thebreweries downtown had a partner
brewery, kind of like canningfor them or, you know, housing
their product for a while.
(36:41):
I mean, we step in, we step up,we talk, and I'm seeing that
that could also be, and has been, the way that people are going
to help junior theater, you know, thrive during this kind of
unknown time.
What's going to come, what'sgoing to happen?
Speaker 1 (36:59):
Yeah, and that I mean that that, right, there is one
of the main reasons I even movedback to the Quad Cities, having
been out West and out East andup North and overseas, and just
like the hardworking, trulyavailable, collaborative, caring
(37:19):
community, I think istremendous.
And yeah, and you do see it, incrisis as well, as people
coming together to especiallywhen they know people need help
or that something is good and wedon't want it to go away,
people really do come togetherto help, and so that's another
thing that makes me incrediblyhopeful about this challenging
(37:40):
time for us is the amazingcommunity that people know and
understand the gravity of whatDavenport Junior Theater is and
how it is the let's say it againthe second oldest children's
theater in the United States.
Speaker 2 (37:58):
That is so huge something that every Quad
citizen should be and once theyhear that, will be extremely
proud of.
What a cool asset to thecommunity.
Speaker 1 (38:12):
Yeah, and I have, so we came up with some, some
really cool stats that I want toshare with you.
Speaker 2 (38:15):
real, quick, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
So of our, our students who are enrolled.
So these are they're.
They're all paid enrollment.
This isn't counting, like allthe kids who come to see what we
do, just the, the directcontact led hours.
The direct contact lead hoursin 2023, we had 2,256,300
(38:40):
minutes of direct leadperforming arts instruction,
which equals out to 4.45 yearsof direct lead instruction in a
calendar year affecting kids.
And like that's cool, it's socool to get to be part of that.
Um, yeah, yeah, we were justplaying around and trying to
calculate, you know, because wedon't normally have to.
The other thing, the crisis ofthis situation, of this moment
of a move, is it makes you like,okay, like what do we actually?
(39:02):
Okay, we need to find thenumbers of what our impact is.
We need to, we need to be readyto tell this story, because we
can't just sit on our hands andbe like, oh really, you're gonna
get rid of, you're gonna cancelour program.
Well, like, we need to be aproactive player in our own
future, and so that's been,that's been fun.
I see a rent style musical uh,out of the number talking about
(39:25):
that, like can we do, like arent video with, like you know,
two million two hundred fiftysix thousand three hundred
minutes?
Yes, that might be coming,because I think that that would
be fun, but it's a great ideawe'll share it, we will share it
hard if you guys make that.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Oh my gosh, it's already in my head.
I, I know.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (39:54):
So what is your message to the community If you
had five seconds with someonewho's never been here before?
Hey, I'm Daniel.
I'm the performing artssupervisor at Davenport junior
theater.
This is the one thing you needto know about us.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
One thing you need to know about us.
Um, one thing you need to knowabout us, uh, uh, that the one
thing you need to know about usis we are servants to kids.
We are 100% committed toimpacting the lives of the youth
in our program, and we that isour, they're our number one
priority, and everything wecreate and build is around them
(40:32):
and their success.
So, um, yeah, I think thatwould probably be it thank you
so much for peeling back thecurtain.
Speaker 2 (40:40):
Uh, no pun intended on everything about junior
theater.
Um, I I really think oncepeople listen to this podcast
and hear the stats that we justtalked about and kind of feel
the passion that you and youknow I'm sure your co-workers
share, it will just be nothingbut like support and outreach.
(41:02):
And hey, how do I get my kidinvolved?
You know, I mean, I have twokids of my own that are going to
be coming up in the pre-K agesoon, so definitely something
that I've tossed around gettingthem involved in as well.
I think it's just a greatprogram.
So on that note, I love to endthe podcast with the guest
(41:25):
filling in the blank of our QC,that's when slogan.
So would you please fill in theblank Q, our QC, that's where
slogan.
So would you please fill in theblank QC, that's where.
Speaker 1 (41:33):
Kids matter.
Speaker 2 (41:35):
I love it.
I love it, I support that.
Speaker 1 (41:37):
I mean they matter everywhere, but I mean I think,
I think they really matter here.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
Really matter, one of our kind of pillars that we try
to share with people who aren'tfrom here if they're coming to
look for, you know, inspiration,to visit with the family.
What we say QC, that's wherewe're all in for family, you
know, there's something foreveryone.
We're not going to, you know,we can't and we don't exclude
(42:01):
based on, you know, age.
If you come with yourone-year-old or you come with
your 18-year-old, like, you'regoing to find something that
suits both interests.
You love to be family friendly.
We, you know we love to havethat kind of attitude.
So you guys are obviouslyplaying right into that.
Speaker 1 (42:19):
Yeah, I get, I get.
Something that's interestingabout theater is they don't call
it kids theater, they call ittheater for young audience
audiences.
You know TYA and I'm probablyyou get the stink eye from
people because I just talk a lotabout kids.
I I feel like, yes, we can,theater for young audiences is
(42:39):
great but, like the kids element, just they're kids.
I, like you know, serve them tohave fun and be a kid and be a
child and yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, so kids matter.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
They do Kids matter.
I love that QC.
That's where um how can peoplefind you on social media and
learn more about you?
Speaker 1 (42:59):
Sure, yeah, um, you know Facebook, instagram,
davenport, junior theaters.
There you Google us on on orsearch us anywhere.
We'll we'll pop right up to thetop of that Ask.
Speaker 2 (43:08):
ChatGPT.
Speaker 1 (43:10):
Yeah, you can ask your chatbots and everything.
They'll get you there.
So, and you'll find.
You know, we're constantly openfor enrollment.
We're coming up on a big summerwith classes and camps and we
have another production that'sopening in the end of April,
beginning of May, One of ourmain stage shows that's free for
families to see.
So we just, you know, you don'thave to sign up for a class to
(43:35):
come and just have a good timewith your family seeing theater
as well.
So there's lots of ways toexperience the program.
Speaker 2 (43:39):
Well said, and please explore all the rest of the
creative energy in the QuadCities.
Visit quadcitiescom and thankyou again, daniel.
Speaker 1 (43:47):
Yeah, thank you so much.
This was a blast, and thank youfor letting me talk about
Shakespeare.
Speaker 3 (43:52):
Thanks for listening to QC.
That's when a podcast poweredby Visit Quad Cities Text
VISITQC to 38314 for insiderevents, activities and updates
sent straight to your phone.
That's V-I-S-I-T-Q-C, one wordto 38314.
(44:15):
Message and data rates mayapply.
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