
This is the sequel to the popular Faith County by Mark
Landon Smith. The scene is set in Mineola County again, where the Mineola
Society for Cultural Recognition is producing Romeo and Juliet. Even though the
cast members don’t have their lines memorized, the set isn’t finished, and a
dog keeps barking offstage, they’re gonna give it a go!
Photo by Patty McCabe, Cedar County News

The Mineola Society for Culture Recognition
Cast of Characters
Violet Farkle – Naomi’s pretty, sweet sister-in-law
who is everyone’s favorite and the only person in Mineola with any sense. She’s
the director of this evening’s production.
Mildred Carson – A busy body who makes it her
business to know everyone else’s business and who won’t hesitate for a
moment to tell you what you should do, when you should do it and who it’s to
be done with. She has the female lead in this evening’s presentation, a role
she takes very seriously.
Delbert Fink – Local pig farmer and Romeo and Juliet
set builder, neither of which he does very well. He also plays the role of the
Prince in the second act.
Faye McFaye – Flirty, young checker at the local A
& P who has the hots for Delbert, who fails to return the sentiment. She
plays the role of the Nurse.
Ruthann Barns – Wife of the Reverend Ezekiel Barns,
local Moral Majority leader, and President of the Mineola Council for Cultural
Recognition. She plays the role of a Servant and the Friar.
Naomi Farkle-Carson – Wife of Luther Carson, owner of
The Bee-Luv-Lee Beauty Salon, and Mildred’s best friend. She grudgingly plays
the role of Juliet’s mother.
Luther Carson – Husband to Naomi, owner of "Luther’s
Lub ‘n Tune," and Delbert’s best friend who plays the role of Benvolio.
Bubba Bedford – Owner of "Bubba’s Gas ‘n
Go" who’s a bit simple minded and much to Mildred’s consternation,
plays the role of Romeo.
Setting
The gymnasium of the Mineola Magnet Middle School on the
opening night of the Mineola Society for Cultural Recognition’s production of
Romeo and Juliet.

PHOTOS (Courtesy
Colin Kathol)


Cast Bios
Shelley Lammers – (Violet Farkle) A Cedar County resident,
Shelley works in the Admissions Office at Northeast Community College. She’s
married to Glen Lammers and has two children, Hannah and Caleb. She has little
time for hobbies but does enjoy watching her children participate in their
activities, teaching CCD, and learning to play the guitar. Shelley was active in
the Bloomfield Performing Arts Council and had roles in The Curious Savage,
Ten Little Indians, Let’s Murder Marsha and Harvey. Among
her many life roles, Shelley is also the President of the Cedar County Theatre.
Lynn Kathol – (Mildred Carson) Lynn has loved to be in
theatrical productions since she was in high school. She had the lead in The
Mouse That Roared when she was a senior at Cedar Catholic High School. Since
that time, there have been many Cedar Catholic fund-raiser plays and general
goofing around in which she has taken part. "Give me a costume and I really
cut loose," says Lynn. One of her biggest theatrical highlights was when
she had a lead role in Greater Tuna and shared the stage with two of her
sons and her daughter. She has five children and four of them have been very
active in theater, so she has been following their performances for the last
number of years. She is currently employed as Secretary at West Catholic in
Fordyce, and she and her husband Allen own and operate Kathol Turf sod farm.
Dr. Roger Filips – (Delbert Fink) Dr. Roger Filips is
an optometrist, but was a pig farmer in his younger days. He is the father of
Mark and Jackie (who also helps in this production). He is very active in the
Hartington community and is President of the Nebraska Optometric Association. He
also recently published a book on eye care. He loves to ride his Harley Davidson
motorcycle for relaxation. Dr. Filips worked on sound and in the pit orchestra
in many musicals by the Spencer Community Theater. He also acted in productions
at Mount Marty College.
Leslie Christensen-Eickhoff – (Faye McFaye) Long-time Hartington
resident, Leslie (Christensen) Eickhoff was active in Speech, One-Act plays and
the All-School Plays throughout high school. She received the Outstanding Female
Actress Award at District One-Act competition in 1996. Leslie spent most of her
high school years attending Hartington Public School, and graduated from Wynot
High School in 1998. Leslie is married to Brandon Eickhoff and they have two
daughters, Ryley (4) and Sydnee (2). When she’s not acting, running to
swimming lessons, etc., she works at First Dakota National Bank in Yankton.
Teresa Arens – (Ruthann Barns) Teresa is married to Tom
Arens and they have one child, Reid. Teresa is a Special Education teacher at
Hartington Public School. Her hobbies include scrapbooking, performing music and
reading or singing with her son. Teresa has an extensive theatrical background.
When she was in high school she had roles in Annie, You’re a Good
Man Charlie Brown, Voices From High School, and more. In College she
was in Taming of the Shrew. And she has also been involved in the
Plainview Community Theatre’s productions of Pure As The Driven Snow, Let’s
Murder Marsha, The Mice Have Been Drinking Again and Tumbleweed.
Teresa has also directed A New Sunrise during her time with the Plainview
Community Theatre.
Sheila Olsen – (Naomi Farkle-Carson) Sheila’s first
taste of the stage was in 2nd grade when she played a mouse in the
all-school play of Cinderella. She had the lead her Senior year as
Penelope in Great Caesar’s Ghost, and was in Annie Get Your Gun
at the Lewis & Clark Riverside Theater a few years later. She has been
married to Jeff Olsen since 1992 and has five children: Sofi, Aspen, Parker,
Greer and Sadi. She also has one dog named Vinegar. Seeing as how there was not
enough drama in her own life, she decided to create a little more by helping
Shelley Lammers establish the Cedar County Theatre. She is the Secretary on the
Board of Directors.
Tom Grube – (Luther Carson) Tom has been a resident of
Hartington since August of 2001, and married his wife Deb in November of 2001.
Tom has one son, Nathan, one daughter, Nikki, two grandsons, Broc and Bailey,
and two granddaughters, Megan and Emma. He is employed by Don Miller Land
Company as a real estate salesperson and appraiser. His hobbies include hunting
and gardening. Tom is originally from Johnson, located in Southeast Nebraska,
but has now made Cedar County his home.
Bill Heimes – (Bubba Bedford) Bill, who is 29 and may
be 29 for years to come, is a life-time Cedar County resident. He farms by day
(and by night) but has made time out of his busy schedule to entertain us all in
this production. You may remember seeing Bill in the newspapers lately
announcing his marriage to Darla Janish in August, 2002. Bill has an extensive
background in theater, being involved in Hartington Public School’s one-act
plays and all-school plays: Great Caesar’s Ghost, Li’l Abner, In
This Hotel, Laughing Room Only, Incident at San Bajo, and Opal’s
Husband. He also went on to perform in Norfolk Community Theater’s
production of Our Town. Cedar County residents may also remember Bill
Heimes from the Cedar County Raceway years ago when he drove the "Haywagon."
Nascar’s Jeff Gordon has rested easy ever since Bill decided to stick around
Cedar County and farm.

Production Crew
Producer: Sally Opfer
Casting: A. J. Johnson, Loxi Wolf and Beulah
Sound Technician: Jackie Filips with sounds provided by
Norfolk Commuity College
Light Technicians: Tom Becker and Allen Kathol
Set Design: Beulah
Set Construction: Glen Lammers, Stephen Hillis, Tom Grube,
Bill Heimes, Shelley Lammers, Sheila Olsen, Jackie Filips, Leslie
Christensen-Eickhoff,
Maddie Bromwich and Beulah
Poster Art: Francis Heimann
Bee-Hives: Constructed by Sue Lange and Denise Dowling
Costumes: Shirley Anderson, Tami Christensen, Marilyn
Hansen and the Cast
Props: Members of the Cast and Beulah
Stage Hands: Marilyn Hansen, Gail Becker and Karma Schulte
Promotions: Marla Wortmann, Lee Carl, Joel Hochstein,
Hannah Lammers, Shelley Lammers, Glen Lammers, Beulah, Kathy Knutson, Stacie
Dooley, Megan Kuchta, Jackie Filips, Sheila Olsen, Bob Thioulon, Tom Grube, and
Lynn Kathol
Photography: Bob Thioulon and Patty McCabe
Videography: Kevin Christensen
Special Thanks: Trinity Lutheran Church Council for the use
of the Fellowship Hall, the Hartington Shopper for doing such a great job on our
programs, the Broadcaster Press in Vermillion for donating newspaper print for
the set, Thanks to Stop 'n Go, D & J Variety, Scott's Package Liquor and
Kruse True Value for ticket sales, Plumbing & Electric for donating the
balcony, Cedar County Ag Society for the use of the headsets and to the Cedar
County News for the free press

A Letter from the President of the Cedar County Theatre
"No matter what accomplishments you achieve, somebody helped
you."
-Althea Gibson
In May, eleven people sat in the library and decided to
start a community theater. I don't believe any of us knew quite what that
meant, but what an exciting adventure it has been! We are pleased and
proud to bring you our first production, "An Evening of
Culture." We are also grateful for the support we've received.
If you enjoy this play and would like to see more from the Cedar County Theatre,
please take a minute to thank the members of the Hartington Chamber of Commerce,
the Cedar County Ag Society, the Hartland Arts & Music Festival Committee,
the Trinity Lutheran Church Council, our benefactors, and the advertisers in
this program, because this production simply would not have happened without
them.
Enjoy the show and come back and see us next time!
Shelley Lammers, President
Cedar County Theatre

A Letter from the Director
Welcome to our production of "An
Evening of Culture-Faith County II: The Saga Continues." We are very
pleased that you are joining us this date. The cast has worked very hard
and has spent many hours to ensure that you'll be properly entertained. As
a many-times actress, I went through a great deal of anxiety as a first-time
director. Doing any play during harvest time and high school fall
activities takes a great deal of dedication from cast and crew. Many of us
have not seen family and friends for two months, and we'd like to thank them for
their patience and understanding throughout this whole adventure. From the
cast and crew, thank you for attending this first-ever production of the Cedar
County Theatre. And now - prepare to experience Shakespeare as you've
never experienced it before.
Sally Opfer, Director
An Evening of Culture
