Northern Sky Theater
Northern Sky Theater is a professional theater company that creates, develops, and produces musicals based on the populist culture and heritage of the United States. Located in Door County, Wisconsin, the company began in 1970 as The Heritage Ensemble, performing on the stage of the 700-seat outdoor theater in Peninsula State Park. In 1990, American Folklore Theatre was co-founded by Fred Alley, Frederick Heide, and Gerald Pelrine. In 2015, the company changed its name to Northern Sky Theater.
Northern Sky's productions
This list of past productions includes musicals such as Loose Lips Sink Ships and Belgians in Heaven, concerts, and anthology productions such as Tales of the Midnight Sun which combine story-telling with song.Musicals
- Mule for Breakfast Again
- Tongue 'n Cheek
- Fishing for the Moon book and lyrics by Fred Alley with music by James Kaplan
- Northern Lights tells the story of the farmers who moved to Northern Wisconsin expecting to find rich farmland and instead found land filled with tree stumps and stones. The main characters are William, a farmer; Ginny, his pregnant and unmarried sister; Eloise, a tough farm wife; Clayton, her estranged husband and a land salesman; their daughter Lizzy; and Cody, the local guide who falls in love with Ginny. The book and lyrics are by Fred Alley with music by James Kaplan.
- The Passage created by Fred Alley and James Valcq.
- Belgians in Heaven, described by the company as "The World's Only Metaphysical Cheese Curd Musical", was one of the American Folklore Theatre's first productions. The book is by Frederick Heide and Lee Becker with music by Heide and James Kaplan. It ran at the AFT in 1994, 1995 and 1998 and then had a hiatus following the death of the theatre's co-founder, Fred Alley. However, it had another run at the 2006 Heartland Festival and was again performed at the AFT in 2006 and 2007. A comedy about discovering the meaning of life, Belgians in Heaven proposes a different look at the theory of reincarnation. The plot follows the lives of hardworking Roger Dewarzeger and his lazy brother Leo Dewarzeger. Roger and Leo start the play off hating and not appreciating each other. But with the help of Angelique, a clumsy guardian angel and an invisible chicken named Mildred the brothers are able to work out their issues for the better. It is Angelique’s job to help Leo grow up and to have his soul that has just been hanging out in heaven be reborn into the present Leo. Through this transformation Leo is able to appreciate Roger, and Roger learns that he needs to loosen up and just enjoy the cheese curds.
- Our Night in Frog Station created by Fred Alley, Fred Heide and James Kaplan.
- Lumberjacks in Love is a musical comedy about four lumberjacks living in the Haywire Lumber Camp in Northern Wisconsin. The camp has a "no women allowed" policy, which complicates matters when the men think a mail-order bride is arriving and also find out that a boy already living in the camp is a girl in disguise. The music is by James Kaplan with a book by Fred Alley and James Kaplan.
- Guys on Ice is set in Wisconsin. Conceived and researched by Fred Alley and Frederick Heide, the comedy follows two friends, Marvin and Lyod, through a day in the life of an ice fisherman. The book and lyrics were written by Fred Alley and the music composed by James Kaplan.
- Loose Lips Sink Ships is a musical with book and lyrics by Jacinda Duffin and Laurie Flanigan and music by James Kaplan. Set in Wisconsin's Sturgeon Bay shipyard during World War II, the musical follows a group of young men who enlist in the armed forces following the attack on Pearl Harbor and their friends, sisters and fiancees. Two of the main characters, Roxie and Ann, give up their normal lives to help the war efforts by working in the shipyard. At first, the women are reluctant to leave their homes, but by the end when the men return home from the war, the women do not want to give up their jobs. Loose Lips Sinks Ships is a story about the sacrifices that women made during the war and how much those sacrifices changed them.
- Bob Dumkee's Farm
- The Bachelors is a musical with book and lyrics by Fred Alley and music by James Kaplan.
- Packer Fans from Outer Space is inspired by UFO sightings in Door County, Wisconsin in the spring of 1952 and the 1953 tie game between the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. The book was by Frederick Heide and Lee Becker with music by Frederick Heide and additional music by James Kaplan. Described by the AFT in 2002 as its largest production to date, it had a three-location set, costumes that light up, and a talking football. The plot centers on Harvey Keister, a Door County fruit farmer and huge fan of his local team, the Green Bay Packers. He is sought out by aliens from the planet Galactose who ask his help to save their planet from the evil Space Bears. A twist to this story is that Harvey’s wife, Marge, is a huge Chicago Bears fan. The show was performed again in 2003 at the Meyer Theater in Green Bay, Wisconsin and again in 2005 at the University of Wisconsin's Heartland Festival. The show has had numerous community theatre productions including by the Racine Theatre Guild, Watertown Players, Wausau Community Theatre, and Rice Lake Community Theatre.
- The Spitfire Grill
- Muskie Love created by Dave Hudson and Paul Libman.
- See Jane Vote created by Laurie Flanigan and James Kaplan.
- A Cabin with a View
- Main-Traveled Roads created by Dave Hudson and Paul Libman.
- Guys and Does has book and lyrics by Frederick Heide and Lee Becker, with music by composer Paul Libman. The show centers on two small-town papermill workers, Fritz and Duane, who travel north to Fritz' cabin for a hunting trip. Duane, a local nerd who is dating Fritz's daughter, hopes to persuade Fritz to give his blessing on marriage. They meet a swaggering big-game hunter from Texas, Joe Jimmy Ray Bob Johnson III, and later a magical talking white buck named Staghart of the Goldenhorns, who begs their assistance in helping him create an heir.
- Cheeseheads the Musical created by Dave Hudson and Paul Libman.
- Life on the Mississippi lyrics & book by Douglas M. Parker, music by Denver Casado.
- BING! The Cherry Musical created by Dave Hudson and Paul Libman.
- Victory Farm created by Emilie Coulson, Katie Dahl and James Valcq.
- Windjammers created by Robin Share and Clay Zambo.
- Strings Attached created by Dave Hudson and Colin Welford.
- No Bones About It created by Dave Hudson and Paul Libman.
- When Butter Churns to Gold created by Ron Barnett, Peter Welkin and Randi Wolfe.
Anthologies
- Song of the Island Seas
- The Mountains Call My Name Stories and songs based on the life of John Muir
- Moon of the Long Nights
- Tales of the Midnight Sun
- And If Elected
- Malarkey
- Goodnight Irene
- Bone Dance
- Harvest Moon
- Fool Me Once
- A Kettle of Fish
- Ya, Ya, You Betcha
- When Dogs Could Talk Anthology based on Moon of the Long Nights
- Sunsets and S'mores
Concerts
- Old Friends: The Music of Paul Simon
- A Little Folk Music
- Beneath the Northern Sky: An Evening of Fred Alley's Songs is a tribute to the AFT's founder Fred Alley and features songs from Loose Lips Sink Ships, Guys On Ice, and The Spitfire Grill as well songs from Fred Alley's three CDs. It was assembled by James Kaplan and Jeffery Herbst.
- Sweet Baby James: The Songs of James Taylor
- Moonlight and Marshmallows
- Eric and Andy: Live in Fish Creek
- Home For the Holidays with AFT
- Sometimes a Song: The Music of Dan Fogelberg
- Fish and Whistle: The Songs of John Prine
Notable members
- Fred Alley – lyricist and librettist, co-founder
- Jennifer Korbee – singer, actress
- Suzanne Graff – actress
- James Valcq – composer, lyricist, and librettist