Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
This week we reintroduce four familiar faces on the DPRCA stage: Nikki Braaten, Hunter Carpenter, Jacee Engels and Pieter Louters.
This is Nikki Braaten’s seventh show with the DPRCA. Nikki grew up in Carrington, attended UND, and will now be in her third year teaching 4th grade and coaching 5th-8th grade girls’ basketball back in her hometown. Her love of music and theatre stemmed from watching Disney movies and playing Mrs. Potts in her high school’s production of Beauty and the Beast. Other DPRCA shows that she has been a part of include Godspell, The Wizard of Oz, and Junior Claus. Most recently, she played Ginger Grant in Gilligan’s Island: The Musical. In her free time, Nikki loves to read, be with friends, and tell subpar jokes.
Hunter Carpenter is thrilled to return to the Old Church Theatre for his second show with the DPRCA, after playing the Tinman in The Wizard of Oz. Hunter plays Andrew Carnes in Oklahoma! He graduated in May from the University of Jamestown with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in theatre and music. Hunter is a native of Jamestown who plans to live in the Minneapolis area. He has most recently performed as IQ in Hairspray! at the Paul Bunyan Playhouse and as Will in Big Fish at Fort Totten Little Theatre. Hunter would like to acknowledge all his friends and family who support him and his love for the stage!
As a veteran actress here at the DPRCA (Life Could be a Dream, Rat Pack Lounge, The Andrews Brothers), Jacee Engels is delighted to take the stage where her love of performance began, now as the fanciful-yet-fierce Laurey Williams!
New Rockford native Jacee Engels has returned from North Dakota State University with a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance and a minor in English Literature. Her desire to pursue music academically was solidified her freshman year, when she sang in the NDSU Concert Choir’s performance of Handel’s Messiah. She has performed in several ensembles and operas, most notably Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro and Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges. In the fall, Jacee will return to Fargo to continue teaching voice lessons and prepare for the next adventure in her career.
After being rescued from Gilligan’s Island this past spring, Pieter Louters is quite excited to take on his next role as Will Parker. Pieter is a recent graduate of New Rockford-Sheyenne High School. This fall, he plans to pursue a degree in music business at Concordia College in Moorhead. Pieter has had the fortunate opportunity to be a part of many different DPRCA productions during his time in high school including Country Is and Forever Plaid. He is glad to be making so many great memories with his castmates this summer.
Oklahoma! runs each Wednesday through Sunday until Aug. 11. Tickets are available by phone at (701) 947-2174 or online at http://www.dprca.com.
Editor's Note: This article was updated to reflect the print edition published on July 29, 2019.
