ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE: A WINONA STORY

Winona, MN is a town filled with beauty, complexity, and humanity. Four years ago, GRSF embarked on a new sort of project, with the goal of getting to know our hometown better and making art in partnership with our neighbors. We asked people to tell us about their lives in Winona.

All the Town’s a Stage: A Winona Story combines the stories of Winona community members and the characters and language of Shakespeare into an original play. We are honored to have been trusted with your stories of triumph, heartbreak, pride, and frustration. Stories that explore the struggle to belong when your race, profession, or abilities are not widely represented. Stories about what people need and deeply hope for to make Winona’s future brighter for everybody.

GRSF is partnering with community members and local artists to co-create this special live event, where we will take a community recreation center and transform it into a pop up theatre venue. It will lift voices and perspectives which haven’t been heard on GRSF’s stages or elsewhere in the community. A Winona story. Many Winona stories. Untold Winona stories.

producing company/venue | Great River Shakespeare Festival at the East End Recreation Center

producer | Lonnie Rafael Alcaraz

playwrights | Andrew Carlson, Valerie Lynn Brett, Hannah Sheridan

direction | Beth Gardiner

scenic | Leah Ramillano

costume | John Merritt

lighting | Wesley Charles Siu Muen Chew

sound | Nathanael Brown

stage management | Hannah Steele

community engagement director | Heather Lee Echeverria

community partners | Sarah Johnson (The Joy Labs), LaShara Morgan (Our Voices), Suzanne Horseman (Home and Community Options), Katrice Sisson (Winona Health), Maurella Cunningham, Joey Rocky, Kathy Peterson

photography | Leah Gabriel