Featured volunteer: The Arends Family
A mighty force in our rural multi-community theatre is the family of Trese and Dale Arends. When the group was forming, we cast about to find people with a heart for the good of the community. We had heard that Trese was an inspired advocate for the Belmond Cheer Fund and knew that Dale was active in school related projects. But what a human resources gold mine we hit with this family! It is safe to say that our physical plant could not approach its current level of sophistication without them.
Trese is an experienced grant writer and is largely responsible for our being able to pay for much of our professional quality theatre equipment. She serves as both the recording secretary of the board and corresponding secretary, most creatively in both positions, as you know, if you’ve received one of her gracious “thank you” notes. On stage she’s a comedic delight, (the suffragette in “Lily”, a nightclub dancer in “Guys and Dolls”, and the Vengeance in “A Tale of Two Cities”) and has stretched her abilities to include directing “The Diary of Adam & Eve”.
Dale jumped in to translating our first set design to the stage for “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” back in 2000 and hasn’t come up for air yet. A master of organization, Dale consistently produces a printed priority “to do” list for each Saturday workday and each step of our progress. “I’ve had a vision” is a phrase that we love to hear because it indicates that some brilliant, well-planned improvement is on the way that will make our theatre jobs safer, easier and more effective or more pleasant and thrilling for our audiences. He’s a powerful recruiter of the right skills for the job and often has Cousin Roy at hand for steel fabrication projects that give us better lighting positions. We have learned to have confidence in any plan because it will be “farmer-built” (ten times stronger than it really needs to be.) Dale has been willing to fill in when we need an actor and will accept any responsibility that is desperately pressed upon him. We recall an evening during intermission when Dale was determinedly laboring over a drain disaster in the basement, only pausing long enough to ask, “Do you want me to stay here or get ready for my entrance?” Far from just filling in space, he works hard to bring his best to any assignment, bringing to life such diverse characters as Marcus Lycus, Nathan Detroit, Gregor Stepanovich Smirnov and the Marquis Ste. Evremonde. He’s been the brains behind the new look of the stage, including the trapdoor, stage opening, enlarged floor plan, catwalk for the light bridge, side walls for storage, wardrobe storage loft, and light booth.
The Arends sons (Jason, Casey and Justin) have often availed themselves to our needs. Justin is one of our current stable of handsome leading men, playing Charles Darnay, brother Nels, in “I Remember Mama”, and the Protean in “Forum”, who knew everybody’s lines. Jason has appeared on our stage as the tragically flawed hero in “Lily” and also as a Protean in “Forum”. All three are willing and able to throw their muscle behind any massive challenge we face in remodeling or set construction.
We deeply appreciate the loyal partnership between our audience, our members, and our fellow Iowa River Players in this collaborative effort to bring quality live theatre to our rural area.