Lake City Playhouse makes its comeback
Photo by EMILY JONES Melody Deatherage, left, and Kathie Doyle-Lipe pose in the roles they play in “Parallel Lives” which opens Thursday and runs through March 12 at Lake City Playhouse. For showtimes and tickets, visit lakecityplayhouse.org.
By BETHANY BLITZ
Staff Writer
Community theater returns to Coeur d’Alene this week with the opening of “Parallel Lives” at Lake City Playhouse.
The show is the first play to be performed since the Modern Theater, which operated in two locations — one in Spokane and one that had replaced the Lake City Playhouse in Coeur d’Alene — was dissolved at the end of 2016.
Written by Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney, “Parallel Lives” is a two-woman comedy that explores the common rituals of modern life.
“With boundless humor, ‘Parallel Lives’ re-examines the ongoing quest to find parity and love in a contest handicapped by capricious gods, or in this case, goddesses,” said a summary of the show provided by the theater.
The play opens Thursday, March 2, and runs through March 12. Showtimes are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets are $21 to $27 and can be purchased by visiting lakecityplayhouse.org.
The rest of Lake City Playhouse’s new season lineup includes “Jesus Christ Superstar” March 31 to April 23, “The Miracle Worker” May 26 to June 11, “Carousel” July 24 to Aug. 6.
Season ticket-holders were surprised earlier this year when they found the theater dark on the days they expected to see shows, having bought tickets for them when the theater company was operating at the Modern Theater. The theater said there was a problem with email notifications to some season patrons.
Playhouse representatives said for the new play lineup, season ticket-holders have been placed in their usual seats on their scheduled show nights; only the shows and show dates will change.
“Everything is going very well,” said Sarah Mcneice, a board member of the Lake City Playhouse. “We are very excited to put in this new lineup. We’ve had great responses from our Coeur d’Alene patrons saying this is the kind of theater they want.”
Barb Neal, a Coeur d’Alene patron, had her doubts about the theater company before the new lineup was announced. She said her worries are gone.
“I was so encouraged after chatting with Sarah, one of the LCP board members, and am now hopeful that the LCP board can right this sinking ship,” she told The Press in an email. “As community theater goers we want to see LCP succeed. We are excited for what lies ahead.”
Mcneice said Lake City Playhouse wants all aspects of theater to be open to the community, including acting roles, costume design and even directing the plays.
Troy Nickerson, a local actor and director, will be directing the first two plays, but the last two are open for applications.
“We definitely want to be able to expand that community feeling and get more Coeur d’Alene community members involved,” she said. “Even if it’s volunteering, we want people to be part of the shows.”