Donna Reed Scholarship alumna nominated for Tony Award

Saycon Sengbloh

College Park, GA native has starring role in Eclipsed

Saycon Sengbloh has been nominated for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play. She was a 1996 Donna Reed Foundation national scholarship winner in acting and musical theater.

Eclipsed has been making history ever since it debuted on Broadway this year. Now, the cast and crew are up for six Tony Award nominations.

Penned by Zimbabwean-American actress, playwright and star of The Walking Dead, Danai Gurira, it tells the story of five women during the Liberian civil war.

Other nominations include Best Play, Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play (Lupita Nyong’o), Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play (Pascale Armand), Best Costume Design of a Play (Clint Ramos) and Best Direction of a Play (Liesl Tommy).

The 70th Annual Tony Awards are set to take place Sunday, June 12th, at the Beacon Theater in New York City. They’ll be televised on CBS.

"Disney's The Lion King KIDS" Is Coming To Denison, IA

This summer's production.

The award-winning musical that has captivated audiences around the world comes to life during June workshop.

This summer's Children's Musical Theater workshop production is the popular “Disney's Lion King KIDS.” It's a fun-filled week designed to teach the basics of musical theater to kids in grades K-8 who love singing, dancing and challenges. The workshop runs from June 13 – 17 and concludes with a performance for the public on Saturday, June 18. All events will take place at the high school, 819 North 16th St in Denison.

Since its meager beginning in 2004, this popular workshop has blossomed under the direction of Allison Rasmussen, a Manilla native and an instructional coach at Waverly-Shell Rock Community Schools. This is the tenth year she has volunteered to head this workshop production. She is assisted by a dedicated team, including former students who have aged out of the program. All give a week of their time to help stage the production.

Even local grandparents have discovered a benefit. By enrolling their grandchildren in the program, they get to spend quality time with them during the week of the workshop.

Workshop information and tuition rates can be found by downloading our registration form, by calling 712.263.3334 or by stopping at the Donna Reed Foundation office, 1305 Broadway, Denison, IA.

Little Boyer Blues Society teams with The Donna Reed Foundation

Unique concert to rock Donna Reed Theater

 

The Donna Reed Foundation and the Little Boyer Blues Society are bringing Billy McGuigan, a tribute band from Omaha, Nebraska, to the Donna Reed Theater in Denison, to perform the Rock Legends show at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 30.

Rock Legends is a customized show – part rock concert and part rock tribute. Audience members are given the opportunity to pick the songs and music they want to hear through music personality tests prior to the show.

The show features rock and roll of the 1950s, the psychedelic sounds of the 1960s, as well as music from the 1970s and 1980s.

Tickets cost $30 for seating on the main floor, $25 for seating in the lower balcony section and $15 for seating in the upper balcony section. Tickets may be purchased at the Donna Reed Foundation office, by calling 712-263-3334 or by e-mail at info@donnareed.org. The Donna Reed Theater is located at 1305 Broadway in uptown Denison, Iowa. 

Money raised by the concert will go toward the maintenance and operation of the Donna Reed Theater building.

View official Rock Legends promo

Jared Grimes Appears on Stephen Colbert's “Late Show”

Jared Grimes

Donna Reed Foundation national scholar performs with Wynton Marsalis

Jared Grimes teamed up with Wynton Marsalis and Lil Buck for a recent appearance on the late night show, performing “Petite Site (for Savion) Movement II.” It was part of their promotion of Marsalis' “Spaces” performance at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, where he is artistic director.

Grimes, who was a 2001 Donna Reed Foundation scholarship recipient in dance, performed in last year's Radio City Music Hall production of "The New York Spring Spectacular," a show that featured the famed Rockettes.

Grimes was named outstanding male dancer in a Broadway show at the Fred and Adele Astaire Awards in New York in 2014. He won for his tap dancing in the Cotton Club-era musical revue, “After Midnight.” He then performed in the Tony Awards broadcast.

Read the New York Times review
Read Dance Magazine blog comments
Watch the “Late Show” performance

http://www.jaredmgrimes.com/

2003 Donna Reed Scholarship Alumnus to appear on NCIS (CBS)

Michael Weatherly and Ben Giroux (Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS)

Ben Giroux to appear as “Tiny Tony.”

Ben Giroux will appear in an episode of “NCIS” (CBS) on Tuesday, April 5. Look for him in "Charades," episode 20 of season 13.

Multiple perpetrators steal Tony's (Michael Weatherly) identity and begin blackmailing senators as fake Special Agent DiNozzos. The real DiNozzo tracks the identity hackers down and finds quite the odd couple - a "Tall Tony" and a "Tiny Tony."

Ben Giroux will guest star as the shorter Tony and Adam Mayfield will play the taller Tony. 

Giroux, originally from Phoenix, AZ, was the 2003 Donna Reed Foundation National Scholarship recipient in Acting.

"An Evening With Mark Twain" Comes to Denison, IA

Jim Waddell as Mark Twain

Performance part of Donna Reed Foundation's "American Icon Series"

One of America’s most beloved storytellers, Mark Twain, comes to the Donna Reed Theater in Denison, Iowa at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 12th, in the person of JimWaddell from Hannibal, Missouri.

Waddell has portrayed Twain for over 30 years in the author’s boyhood hometown, weaving yarns first spun by the creator of some of our most treasured literature.

“We are truly fortunate to have Mr. Waddell in Denison to portray Mark Twain,” said Tim Tracy, coordinator of the Donna Reed Foundation’s “American Icon Series. “To see his show you would have to travel to the Mark Twain Cave's, Cave Hollow Complex in Hannibal, Missouri where he performs daily. This will be a rare performance for Jim outside of Hannibal.”

Tickets for “An Evening With Mark Twain” are $20.00 and can be obtained by calling the Donna Reed Theater in Denison, Iowa at 712-263-3334 or by e-mail at info@donnareed.org. Student tickets are available for $5.00 each. The Donna Reed Theater is located at 1305 Broadway in uptown Denison, Iowa.  

Tonic Sol Fa returns to Denison IA

Talented a cappella group will appear at Donna Reed Theatre

TonicSol Fa, a popular Minnesota-based a cappella group, will appear at the Donna Reed Theatre in Denison, Ia on Friday, April 8 for a 7:30 performance. Postponed from Friday, March 4.

The trio has established itself as the most in-demand vocal group in the Midwest and one of the most successful independent acts in America. The group has toured extensively throughout the US and abroad. In addition, CD sales of its own independent releases has passed the two million mark.

The group reached national prominence with appearances on NBC’s Today Show and in Newsweek magazine. Along the way, they shared the stage with a number of recognizable performers including Jay Leno, Jeff Foxworthy and Lonestar, and were recently part of Garrison Keillor’s 30th Anniversary celebration of A Prairie Home Companion. 

General admission tickets for the 7:30 pm performance are $20 for adults and $15 for under 18 years of age. They can be obtained by calling the Donna Reed Theater in Denison, Iowa at 712-263-3334 or by e-mail at info@donnareed.org. The Donna Reed Theater is located at 1305 Broadway in uptown Denison, Iowa.