Green Bay Press-Gazette (WI)
June 5, 2005
Warren Gerds
Venture Theatre is yet to open under the same roof as ComedyCity in De Pere, but Peggy Eserkaln is imagining the future: “I’m looking forward to the day when someone walks in and goes, ‘What are my choices? It’s kind of like grocery shopping for theater. Do I want to go see a comedy show with high energy and bright lights, or do I want to step down the hall and see something a little more artistic?’ I’m looking forward to that person who comes in and doesn’t know which one they want to see.”
That day could come soon.
Peggy and Mike Eserkaln own the tandem ComedyCity/ Venture Theatre in the former De Pere library building, 380 Main Ave.
Get ready for something fresh and different in theatergoing.
ComedyCity, which moved from downtown Green Bay, has started its ongoing Thursday through Saturday night improvisational comedy shows. Created spontaneously, every performance is different.
This week, Venture Theatre gets going with an invitation-only performance of “Project Paul,” a religious drama, that will lead to the June 17 opening of the 60-seat theater.
The theater is in what was the children’s area of the library, which has been remodeled.
“We’re hoping for the feel of a Chicago or New York black box theater,” Peggy Eserkaln says.
Six varied productions are scheduled for Venture Theatre’s first season.
All are original, scripted productions.
“Right now, we’re easily going to keep busy because we have a backlog of scripts,” Peggy Eserkaln says. “Mike has established a group called the Write Club. They get together on Monday nights and bounce ideas off each other and critique each other’s writings and stage read.”
The Write Club encourages ComedyCity performers to write.
“The biggest worry I have (about Venture Theatre) is that people will think, ‘Oh, ComedyCity performers, it’s always going to be a comedy show,’” Peggy Eserkaln says. “It’s really not. ‘Project Paul’ is a prime example.”
The one-man show about the Paul of the Bible, is performed by Jon Roberts. He was a member of ComedyCity while attending Lawrence University.
“It just so happened that him finishing this piece for his final theater degree coincided with us opening Venture Theatre,” Peggy Eserkaln says.
“Jon Roberts is a funny comedian but also happens to be this extraordinarily talented artist and musician with a passion for his religion. He wrote a show that has very little to no comedy in and is a very artistic piece. We want people to know that there will be a variety of genres for a variety of audiences in Venture Theatre.”
Performances are June 17, 18, 24 and 25. Tickets are $12.
Tickets are $5 for the next production, a children’s musical comedy adaptation of “Hansel and Gretel,” opening Aug. 4.
Ahead are five-week runs of “Get Down(sized)!,” opening Sept. 16; “Black Peter,” opening Nov. 25; “One Act Scrap-Heap Festival” opening Feb. 10; and “Lustful Youth,” opening April 14.
Open auditions will be held.
Performances will have staggered starts — 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. for ComedyCity and 8 p.m. for Venture Theatre.
“We don’t want to fry our ticket office and concessions people,” Peggy Eserkaln says.
* By fives: These Door County institutions are celebrating anniversaries this year that are multiples of five:
Third Avenue Playhouse, fifth; American Folklore Theatre and Midsummer’s Music Festival, 15th; Miller Art Museum, 30th; Peninsula Art School, 40th; and Peninsula Players, 70th.
Warren Gerds writes about arts and entertainment for the Press-Gazette. Write to him at P.O. Box 23430, Green Bay, WI 54305-3430 or e-mail wgerds@greenbaypressgazette.com.
