Summer/Fall 2010 Events

New York, New York event a big hit

Click to view photos by Ken Schmierer of the Ellendale Opera House 'New York, New York' performance

Full house for Country Night/O.P.E.R.A. auction

Main Street looked a lot like it used to look back on Saturday nights in the fifties. No parking left and people everywhere.

Singers on the Friday, June 11, Country Night program included Jolene Maunu (recently elected to the Ellendale City Council), the wonderful 10-year-old singer Alyssa Nishek and the amazing Hope "Patsy Cline" Jury. Willie Wolff and his great band were joined by 95-year-old Frank Smith and his daughter Laura Barry all the way from Tuscon, Arizona.

Click on the links below to see all Friday night activities.
Country Night photos by Ken Schmierer
More Country Night photos by Ken Schmierer

TBC band concert in Opera House auditorium draws large turnout

The Opera House Auditorium hosted only its second public performance in more than 35 years April 19 when the Trinity Bible College Symphonic Band performed "A Night in Hollywood."

Approximately 200 people enjoyed a variety of songs performed by the 21 band members under the direction of Ken Kelly. Selections included music from Grease, Phantom of the Opera, Pink Panther, Bossa Nova and other Hollywood classics.

Everyone was amazed at the acoustics of the auditorium, and more programs and theatrical performances will be held there in the future.

Click to view slideshow of the performance. Photos by Ken Schmierer.

'Journey Stories' completes very success run

Thanks to our wonderful volunteers and sponsors, the Ellendale visit of 'Journey Stories' was very successful. Dozens of docents staffed the exhibit during the 7-week stay, and we welcomed visitors from not only other states, but from other countries, too!

We are very grateful to the North Dakota Humanities Council which provided the opportunity for us to host the exhibit and to its wonderful support during the time it was here. Our group would welcome the opportunity to host another Museum on Main Street exhibit in the future. Thanks again, docents and donors.

Journey Stories opened in May 2009 in Illinois, Kansas, Mississippi, North Dakota and Oklahoma. The Smithsonian's William Withuhn curated the exhibit as part of the Museum on Main Street program. The exhibit explores the mobile nature of Americans -- why we move, how we move and what that says about us. In tours coordinated by state humanities councils, the exhibit will visit up to 30 states and 180 communities through 2015.

Tales of how we and our ancestors came to America are a central element of our personal heritage. From Native Americans to new American citizens and regardless of our ethnic or racial background, everyone has a story to tell. Our history is filled with stories of people leaving behind everything – families and possessions – to reach a new life in another state, across the continent or even across an ocean.

Our transportation history is more than trains, boats, buses, cars, wagons and trucks. The development of transportation technology was largely inspired by the human drive for freedom. Journey Stories examines the intersection between modes of travel and Americans’ desire to feel free to move. The story is diverse and focused on immigration, migration, innovation and freedom. It includes accounts of immigrants coming in search of promise in a new country and stories of individuals and families relocating in search of fortune, their own homestead or employment.

Museum on Main Street is a partnership between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, the Federation of State Humanities Councils,and state humanities councils nationwide. Museum on Main Street combines the prestige of Smithsonian exhibitions, the program expertise of state humanities councils and the remarkable volunteerism and unique histories of small rural towns.

The North Dakota Humanities Council is an independent state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The NDHC and the other 55 state and territorial councils were founded by the federal government. The NDHC uses the tools of history, literature, philosophy, ethics and archeology to illuminate what we as a nation and as individuals stand for and why. The NDHC supports public initiatives that create opportunities to think critically about fundamental issues of the human experience in order to understand and enhance American culture.

'It's a Wonderful Life' radio stage show performed

The radio-on-stage production of 'It's A Wonderful Life' was performed at the Ellendale Opera House Dec. 13 and 20 to full houses.

The production, based on the American film classic directed by Frank Capra, used actors reading scripts in front of a microphone similar to how studio audiences listened and watched radio productions back in the 1930's.

Click to view a slideshow of the performance of 'It's A Wonderful Life' held Dec. 13 and 20 in the Opera House.