Steeped in History, Mud Creek Players Share Passion for Theatre and Community (Video)

As the Mud Creek Players prepare to wrap up their season with “Father of the Bride,” I sat down with director Larry Aull and several cast members to find out just what goes on inside that barn on the corner of Mud Creek and 86th.

It’s one of the Geist area’s most identifiable landmarks, yet surprisingly, many residents have never ventured inside this unique community theatre. I was lucky enough to have a guided tour from founding member Dottie Pierdos.

A spry 83-year-old, Dottie is the only original member still active at Mud Creek. Dottie proudly showed me around the Barn, which was built in the mid-’60s and modeled after a real barn (owned by Merz and Mary Condit) where the group met before a fire brought it down in 1963. But the show went on, setting the stage for what is now the oldest continuously-operated community theatre in Central Indiana.

In recent years, the Barn has seen several improvements, including upgraded lighting equipment, new dressing rooms and a paved parking lot. Members build all of their own sets on-site in a new studio area behind the stage.

Dottie plays a small role in “Father of the Bride” but serves as wardrobe coordinator, seamstress and resident historian. She also stores dozens of costumes and props at her home—within walking distance from the Barn. She spends hours at the library researching whichever era a production is set in and making sure costumes look authentic.

“If I can’t find it, I make it,” says Dottie, who’s been involved in some way with nearly every show that’s been performed by the Players since the group’s founding in 1950.

Aside from all that, she brings homemade cookies to play practice! They’re quite a hit with the other members, most of whom come to practice after a full day of work or school.

Joey Box and Cory Robison, both sophomores at Lawrence North, are rehearsing for two plays simultaneously. After school, they practice for their school musical “Annie” until 6 p.m., grab a quick bite to eat and head to the Barn for rehearsals until 9 p.m. Homework is either done late at night or during breaks in rehearsals.

All of the actors do it for the love of the theatre. No one is paid, and everyone is expected to pitch in with less glamorous tasks as well – like cleaning the newly expanded bathrooms.

“Among theaters we are atypical,” said Larry, a member since 1979 who has directed and acted in numerous plays (as well as done his share of floor sweeping and chair stacking). “We don’t have any ‘stars’ at Mud Creek.”

The drama group prefers to cast from within its membership, giving everyone a chance to get on stage in some capacity. Dottie tells new members to “start backstage or in the kitchen.”

Admiral’s Sound resident Kris Harper (making her debut as a maid in “Father of the Bride”), started by helping out behind the scenes. She’s thrilled with the new creative outlet she has discovered in mid-life.

“It’s all fun,” Kris said. “You can be in every single production doing something. It’s sort of a social club with a theatre background.”

Perhaps that’s because the Players started out as a group of women gathering to make bandages for wounded soldiers during WWII. When their husbands joined the group, they began reading plays aloud for entertainment. Their first play was performed on Oct. 22, 1950 in a barn on Sergeant Road where “they barely had time to throw the cows out before opening night,” according to Dottie.

The Mud Creek Players were also political activists. Had it not been for the Players, the Mud Creek Valley would look significantly different or even be obsolete today. Players used proceeds from their productions to successfully fight the construction of an interstate in 1956 and an airport in 1962, as well as a proposal from the water company to dam up Mud Creek to create another reservoir.

Through the years, the Barn has housed its share of pitch-ins, book club meetings and costume parties, and it remains a community center where groups gather and voters cast their ballots.

During the summer, the Players host “Barn Rats” theatre classes for kids. That’s where 10-year-old Andres Alejos (who plays Tommy Banks) caught the acting bug.

“Out of nowhere, I was good!” he says with no regard to modesty.

“Father of the Bride” opens May 4 and will be playing each Friday and Saturday night through May 19 at 8 p.m. There is also a special Mother’s Day matinee at 2:30 p.m. May 13. Tickets are $10 for adults, and $8 for students and seniors.

For more information on all of the happenings at Mud Creek, visit www.mudcreekplayers.org.