Missouri Southern State University - Crossroads Yearbook (Joplin, MO)

Page 16 text:

1 Some 1 things I shouldn’t S change Part of the heritage of Missouri Southern is in the historic buildings that are still a part of the campus. The stately wooden barn at the west end of campus, now known as the Barn Theatre, housed prize dairy cattle during the days of the Mission Hills farm. A new theatre building was not among the top priorities when the first buildings needed for the new campus were being built. But the thriving department clearly needed a home for its popular productions. So, in the tradition of the straw-hat circuit of summer stock theatres in the East, the barn was turned into a theatre. Faculty members Milton Brietzke and Duane Hunt, along with a carpenter and three students, spent almost 2 years shoveling manure, wielding jackhammers, and hauling lumber to convert the hay loft into a stage and audience area and the ground floor into lobby, dressing rooms, and costume shop, at a cost of $23,000. The intimate 144 seat Barn Theatre was home for the theatre department from 1967 un¬ til 1976. Nineteen full-length plays were pro¬ duced there, ranging from Greek tragedy to Shakespeare to restoration comedy to modern classics, with casts numbering from 8 to 46. Both the inaugural an d closing productions were premiers of original works written especially for the occasions. Duane Hunt and Trij Brietzke adapted Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina” for the opening production in Oc¬ tober 1967. The great American novel “Giants in the Earth” by E. A. Rolvaag, was adapted by Trij Brietzke for the farewell production in the Barn in May 1976. Many jokes were made about the “postage stamp” stage which was only 20feet wide and 18 feet deep. It taxed the ingenuity of the scene designer because the smallness of the stage meant doing everything in miniature. And the

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A huge tile silo and fancy weather vane recall the architectural heritage of the past. The Barn ' s silo is reported to he one of the largest such silos west of the Mississippi. The cow on the weathervane still symbolizes the activity of the Mission Hills dairy farm. audience and actors were so close that the ac¬ tors could easily sense the audience mood and response to what was was happening on stage. Subtlties of voice and facial expression carried to the back row. Even woodgrain in door fac¬ ings could be seen. By contrast, the entire Barn would fit on the stage of the Taylor Per¬ forming Arts Center with room to spare! The rustic country character of the Barn Theatre contrasts sharply with the modern brick and stone buildings built on campus since 1965. But, the college is fortunate to have such a special building because that kind of theatre is now very rare in the Middle West, with a dwindling number still operating on the East coast. The Barn Theatre is a part of Missouri Southern’s history and the theatrical heritage of America and should be preserved. 14