Applause Community Theatre

Applause Community Theatre

Applause Community Theatre, a 100% volunteer organization, is bringing an exciting season celebrating the one act play and an interesting Christmas offering for its Twin Cities premier.   We hope you will help us achieve these visions with a generous one-time or recurring donation.  If we meet our goal, we will be able to offer stipends to our actors and technicians.  Take a look at our season here or at act-mn.org.

Applause Community Theatre’s Fall One Act Festival

Twin Cities Premiere

September 11–14 and 18–20, 2025

Three compelling one-act plays all receiving their Twin Cities premieres— Precious Scars by award-winning local author Brian Farrey-Latz, inspired by the true story of a gay Marine’s bravery and the cost of his unwanted outing; Mr. Charles, Currently of Palm Beach by Paul Rudnick, a sharp, hilarious celebration of unapologetic identity; and The New Century by Paul Rudnick, a heartfelt comedy about connection and community. Together, they reflect our commitment to amplifying LGBTQ+ voices with humor, heart, and honesty.

A Goblins’ Christmas Carol by Kenny Chumbley, Music by Benjamin Payne

Twin Cities Premiere

December 4–6 and 11–13 at 7:00 pm,  December 7 at 2:00 pm

This story, based on "The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton" by Charles Dickens is a precursor to the widely-staged Christmas Carol he wrote a few years later. Many of the themes you know from the story of Scrooge and Tiny Tim may be found in this tale. And... there are goblins!

 At a snowy Christmas Eve party at the Wardle manor in Dingley Dell, the party-goers learn of a local legend wherein goblins allegedly snatched Gabriel Grub — the local church sexton — on a Christmas Eve many years before. To entertain themselves, the group decides to improvise the story as Mr. Wardle recalls the tale. Their improvisation of Gabriel Grub and the goblins brings hope, mercy, and love to life in a humorous, musical, and dramatic fashion.

Playing Provincetown

Twin Cities Premiere

February 19-21 and February 26-28 at 7:00 PM.  February 22 and March 1 at 2:00 PM

The Provincetown Players (PP) emerged in the summer of 1915 in Provincetown, Massachusetts, a popular summer location for Greenwich Village (NYC) artists. Disillusioned by the commercialism of Broadway theater, the artists who joined to create the PP envisioned a highly creative working group that could be free from pressure to make money—a place where “American playwrights could work out their ideas in freedom”.

Our production plays homage to these early pioneers who have been credited with reviving the short play format, if nt inventing it.  You will meet these writers on stage and then see them act in three of the works they created in 1915-1916.

Additional dialogue and structure to the evening by local playwright Jim Lundy.

The Road to FastFest

Twin Cities Premiere

April 30 to May 2 and May 7 to May 9 at 7:00 PM.  May 3 and May 10 at 2:00 PM

The Minnesota Association of Community Theaters (MACT) holds a festival of short plays in even numbered years, usually the weekend after the Fringe Festival ends.  To prepare for and select a play for FastFest, Applause is seeking new short play scripts.  We will choose 5 of them to present in our production The Road to FastFest.  We wlll then select one of them to produce at FastFest.

This will be a fun and eclectic night of theater with many plays having their first live production.

How Can You Help?

Funds will be used for the 2025-2026 season. You can help make this happen with a one-time or recurring donation.  Or reach out to us for information on sponsorships and advertising in our programs at applausemn@gmail.com

Production costs include:

• Rehearsal/performance space:  $2000-3000/show
• Royalties and music rentals:  $1000-2000/show
• Scripts/Sets/Props/Marketing:  $1000-1500/show

By being frugal on other costs, we can keep production costs under $5,000 per production.  Add in the cost of our annual participation in MACT Festivals and we have an operating budget of $25,000, small by local community theater standards.

We would also like to formalize funding workshops of new plays by local playwrights on a quarterly basis with the following costs per play:

• Space rental:  $300-500
• Playwright stipends:  $250

Ticket sales account for 47-53% of the budget, as we are committed to providing excellent theater at an affordable price.

That's where you come in, we hope.  Would you please consider a one-time or recurring donation to Applause to keep the doors open?  100% of what we receive is applied to the costs of production.

We are thankful for any donation, from $5 to $5,000.  GiveMN does offer you the option of making a recurring donation at any level.  You could, for instance,  donate $25/month, which annually pays royalties for 2 performances.

Or even $10/month buys a script for one production every month  You get the idea.

Your donations will help fund these activities and we thank you.

Check us out on Facebook or at www.act-mn.org