Spotlight: Gnarly Bard Theater Launches Fall Season With Jazz, Theater, And Film

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- A new series of jazz performances is kicking off this Friday in downtown St. Cloud. The four-show series features pianist Ted Godbout and a rotating cast of jazz musicians playing at Gnarly Bard Theater.

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Owner Bubba Hollenhorst says Friday's performance will feature the best of Benny Goodman.

Ted Godbout of the Ted Godbout Trio has played in a number of things.  He's just a tremendous piano player. He and I put together a jazz series for this year.  He's a big jazz player in the cities and so he grabbed a bunch of friends for some interesting shows.

The music will have you submerged in 1920s Decatur Street in New Orleans, 1930s New York penthouse parties, and 1940s Los Angeles jazz clubs. Friday's show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Other performances in the jazz music series include A Charlie Brown Christmas on December 4th, the Best of Mel Torme on January 29th, and the music of West Side Story on April 9th.

Tickets for the first performance are about three-quarters sold so far. If you buy a season ticket for all four performances, you will save $20.

Gnarly Bard Theater Season

Rehearsals are underway for the first show in the new theater season at Gnarly Bard Theater. Anthropology, written by playwright Lauren Gunderson, will be on stage October 9th through the 18th.

It's about a woman grieving the death of her sister.  She's a computer programmer and she builds a really sophisticated AI of her sister.  The AI starts wanting to be more involved and take over her life a little bit.  It's really interesting.

Hollenhorst says The Naughty List 3, a Gnarly Bard original, will be performed December 11th through the 20th. Other plays will be performed February 26th through March 7th, and May 7th through the 16th.

Season tickets are on sale now. A membership gets you tickets to all four shows with a savings of $20. You will also get 10 percent off all other performances at Gnarly Bard Theater.

Trail Running Film Festival

Running enthusiasts will be interested in a special movie event in St. Cloud. The Trail Running Film Festival is on Friday, September 18th at 7:00 p.m. at Gnarly Bard Theater. Hollenhorst says the night will be similar to the popular paddling film festivals they've hosted over the past few years.

There's 90 minutes of short films about these beautiful trail races and the people involved in this great world of distance running, marathons, and trail running.

The night is presented locally by the St. Cloud River Runners. The doors will open at 6:00 p.m. with the films starting at 7:00 p.m.