Each March brings a new season featuring dinner theatre presented at the Warroad American Legion Club and Arnesen’s Rock Harbor Lodge. During the summer months, a comedy or drama plus a musical are featured. In addition, a children’s theatre/workshop production takes place featuring the WST Popcorn Players. All summer performances for the season take place at the Mini Theatre located at the Warroad High School. WST has brought to you a Christmas Production as well in early December.

HISTORY OF WARROAD SUMMER THEATRE

Warroad Summer Theatre began in 1981, the brainchild of Thom Karlsen and Alfred William Nott calling themselves TANK productions. They hired Jim Provance as designer/Tech Director/Director and LaRoy Borchert as music director. There were 5 plays in 10 weeks. Each show ran 8 performances over 2 weeks in the Del-Rich building. It was a tiny space for full on productions of shows such as I Remember Mama and The Sound of Music. After that first season Alfred left the area and Thom went to Los Angeles. A group of people that had been involved including Susie Willems and Lynda Myers thought it should continue so a board of directors was formed to continue doing summer theatre in Warroad.

The old gymnasium in the Warroad High School was turned into The Old Gym Theatre for four shows each summer with one dinner theatre production in the Warroad American Legion. When the new school was built, WST moved into the Warroad High School Mini Theatre where they are to this day. More of a lecture room than theatre it was still a nice step up with numbered seating and air conditioning.

WST has continued doing shows in the mini-theatre every summer with dinner theatre shows at the Legion and Rock Harbor Lodge at Rocky Point. They are trying to expand beyond the summer months and recently moved one production to the Christmas season. WST has also been doing children’s theatre workshop productions in the mini-theatre under the name of Popcorn Players.