VIDEO: The South Bend Civic Theatre Brings THE CHRISTMAS SCHOONER to South Bend
By: Rachel Katz Dec. 13, 2018
The Christmas Schooner, by John Reeger, is currently playing at the South Bend Civic Theatre! The show, directed by Gary Oesch, is set to close December 23, 2018.
Check out the production photos below!
The whole family will enjoy this heartwarming musical story of the first Christmas tree ship and the family who risked their lives to fill Chicago with the Christmas spirit. Hailed as "A sacred part of a Chicago Christmas!" by the Chicago Tribune, this production has become one of Chicago's great holiday traditions. The production features a powerful, moving story, an exquisite score of original music and traditional holiday favorites.
The shipwreck of the Rouse Simmons, known as 'The Christmas Tree Ship,' served as inspiration for The Christmas Schooner. Her captain and crew risked the notoriously violent winter lake to bring Christmas trees from Michigan's Upper Peninsula to Chicago's German immigrants. Each year, Captain Herman Schuenemann would sell trees right off of the ship at the Clark Street Docks, and was known to give free trees to the needy. On November 23, 1912, the ship was swept up in a terrible storm. It was not until 59 years later that she was discovered, lying in 170 feet of water. Today the Rouse Simmons and her cargo of 5,500 well stacked trees remain preserved in the cold, fresh waters of Lake Michigan and her legend has grown to mythical proportions. The Blaine Nickelodeon - the silent film theater that now houses the Mercury - opened that very same year.
Starring Steve Chung, Dawn Hagerty, Mark Torma, Blake Allison, Braden Allison, Derek Bacon, John Berecz, Alan Holody, Daniel Grey, Joe Roman, Tony Hutti, Dani Mazick, Libby Klesmith, Lisa Blodgett, Isabella Maxwell, and Julia Nurenberg.
The Christmas Schooner at the South Bend Civic Theatre is sponsored by 1st Source Bank
For more information and to purchase tickets check out: http://sbct.org/shows/2018/the-christmas-schooner/
South Bend Awards - Live Stats
Best Musical - Top 3
1.
WAITRESS (South Bend Civic Theatre)
22.7% of votes
2.
JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT (Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts)
12.5% of votes
3.
GREASE (Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts)
11.1% of votes
Love Theater in South Bend? Join The Community!
Whether you've got past experience writing about theater or just starting, the BroadwayWorld Community offers a unique opportunity to become a champion for your local arts community, helping raise awareness of local offerings and adding another local voice to the conversation at a time arts coverage is shrinking in the press across the continent. Join us and become a pivotal part of the movement that celebrates and promotes the arts in the digital age.
Learn MoreVideos