Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
I’m writing this from the Rock Inn, a beautiful family owned small hotel in New Rockford, North Dakota. I’m here as a board member for the North Dakota Newspaper Association and our president invited us to her community of 1,428 people for today’s quarterly meeting.
To say I’m impressed with New Rockford is an understatement. It’s green, clean and full of community pride just like so many smaller communities in our region. But what really blew me away about this east-central North Dakota city is a gem I had not expected.
On Thursday night, our board attended a play at the Dakota Prairie Regional Center for the Arts. The theater troupe was staging “Little Shop of Horrors” inside the Old Church Theatre, a playhouse seating about 100 people inside a converted old church with stained-glass windows.
I was astounded by the high level of talent on display in that little theater. Seven college-aged actors, their artistic director and a handful of other crew members who make a show happen put on one of the better theater performances I’ve seen, and my wife and I have seen more than 30 productions on Broadway. All of it was top rate, from the acting and directing, to the set, sound and lighting.
Interestingly, five of the seven college-aged actors came to New Rockford from Western Illinois University, while the other two are North Dakotans who attend NDSU. The students from Western Illinois all said they came to New Rockford’s playhouse because of strong word of mouth from alumni. They put on five weeks of shows that mostly sell out, and I can see why.
Looking through the show’s program, I was happy to see so many businesses supporting the theater, from seed companies to lumber yards and everything in between. The community knows what it has in this little theater and, judging from the talent there, word is getting out.
