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Coming Home to the Lillian Theater

Reprinted from Traditions, Winter 2018-19
April 24, 2019

Before the Lillian Theater was built, CDH theater utilized a humble school gym for theatrical performances. With the generous support of John and Sue Schmid Morrison ’57, the space was renovated into a state-of-the-art, 320 seat auditorium and stage. Several years later, the final phase of the project was completed, which included the Black Box theater, a catwalk, costume room, prop room, and a scene shop.

The Morrisons chose to name the theater in honor of Sue’s mother, Lillian. “She was a perfect mom in my mind,” reflected Sue when describing her mother. “She was always very nurturing...a very gracious woman.”

Thus, with her resourceful spirit in mind, the Lillian Theater was born, becoming a second home to so many students who became a part of the cast or crew for so many awe-inspiring performances.

The Lillian Theater was a visible sign that theater and fine arts were important to the Cretin-Derham Hall community.

“Twenty-five years ago, the commitment was made to create the CDH theater space. This was a monumental event for our community, especially those who call the Lillian their second ‘home.’” explained Katie Kreitzer, Theater Director at CDH.

“The legacy of the Lillian Theater connects all of us, including audience members. I think it’s important to understand that we are part of something bigger than us — we are a community.”

CELEBRATION WEEKEND

The 25th Anniversary Celebration weekend included several big events.

Choir Director Isaac Locdahl performed as Gaston. The weekend kicked off on Friday night with Comedy Night in the Lillian Theater. Hosted by Tony Rivera ’06, dozens of alumni and the current CDH Improv team performed improv, impressions, and stand-up comedy to the delight of the audience.

On Saturday afternoon, a Panel of Professionals featured several alumni who work in the entertainment industry. The panel took questions from the audience.

“I had the pleasure of speaking about my career in the arts on the alumni panel and was once again reminded of the power of the Lillian to bring together such bright, hard-working, and thoughtful minds,” remarked Anne Romens ’02. “My fellow panelists not only exemplified the multiple pathways that a career in the arts can take, but also spoke to the ways in which our experiences in the Lillian nurtured a commitment to community, empathy, and social justice. I was reminded of how fortunate I was to have those opportunities at CDH.”

To start the evening festivities, guests enjoyed a cocktail party in the theater prior to The Big Show. John and Sue Schmid Morrison ’57 were presented with the Lillian Legacy Award for their generous support of the theater program at CDH.

Current Choir Director Isaac Lovdahl joined Jake Cunningham ’13 as Gaston and LaFou from the 2013 musical Beauty and the Beast.

For the main attraction, The Big Show was held in the Joe Mauer Field House, showcasing Lillian Theater’s greatest hits from the past 25 years. It featured the talents of alumni supported by a cast of current CDH students. Several theater alumni who could not attend also shared their personal theater stories and career paths by video.

The CDH student cast worked extremely hard to learn the songs that would be performed with an alum, even though the alum was not always available for rehearsal. Every alum had a student understudy who rehearsed the role and was filmed on video that was shared with the alum for ‘training’ before the alum arrived. The student understudy also worked directly with the alum once he or she arrived to tackle the routine for a flawless performance. Alumni who live in the Twin Cities were able to pop over to rehearsals and learn their number alongside the current CDH cast.

Kreitzer directed the show and specially designed the format of the show to reflect the CDH values. From the song selection to the monologues, the show paid homage to social justice, diversity, equity, and spirituality.

Katie O'Leary '99 and Benjamin Tierney '98 reprised their roles from the 1998 musical Current Broadway pianist and former CDH Choir Director Andrew Bourgoin arranged and edited the music, sent rehearsal tracks, arranged the music for the band, worked with soloists and ran our final music rehearsals. Vocal direction was provided by Maddie Giordana. The choreography was led by Lisa B. Given and three alumni volunteers, Jake Hermann ’09, James Kennedy Kunz ’08, and Ali Wroble ’11.

The jaw-dropping opening act featured Nick Pitera ’04 rising from the trap door amidst the current CDH students. And that was just the beginning of the magical night. Other highlights included a somber yet hilarious tribute to stage crew, Katie Tinucci recounting the Br. James Miller production, Anna Maxam honoring Carl Schoenborn for 20 years of service and technical leadership to CDH Theater, Chris Hill emceeing the show with heartfelt style, and siblings singing together. Matt Riehle brought the house to a standing ovation with ‘Gethsemane’ from Jesus Christ Superstar. People laughed and cried and the show definitely reflected the high standard of excellence of CDH Theater.

Alumni and friends of the Lillian Theater came together one last time on Sunday at a special Mass held in the Lillian Theater on Sunday morning. As part of a tribute to Lauren Wiley ’07, a theater alum who passed away suddenly three years ago, a video of her singing “Oh, Bless the Lord My Soul” from the production Godspell was particularly moving.

After Mass, the children of alumni were invited to perform in the Offspring Showcase, which included singing, dancing, and more. As a finale, the children, parents, and current CDH students all danced to the song, “This Is Me.” The energy and emotions were a perfect exclamation point to the weekend of community building!

COMING HOME

The theme of ‘coming home’ resonated for so many who participated in the anniversary celebration.

Joe Summers ’11, currently living in Escondido, CA, traveled back to CDH for the weekend. He summed it up by sharing, “I realize that we are all part of an incredibly small and unfathomably lucky group of the population that gets the chance to develop such an intimate bond with our peers, and have the chance to work with such brilliant-minded mentors...this reminded me that no matter where I go, I stand on strong roots. Because of you all this weekend, for the first time in a long time, I was home.”

“It is both humbling and exciting to realize how much theater mattered — and still matters — to our graduates,” commented Kreitzer. “We know theater is useful to whatever career our alumni pursue and to the relationships they encounter — whether they become entertainers or people who simply found their confidence and sense of empathy through these high school experiences.”

The 25th Anniversary of the Lillian celebrated the paths our alumni took after leaving CDH and the Lillian Theater. Kreitzer was clearly emotional as she considered the power and impact of welcoming all back ‘home’ to the Lillian.

Check out the videos on our Theater Alumni page to see what more alumni are doing now!

This article and more are featured in the Winter 2018-19 issue of Traditions.

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