Our Team
Our History
Our History
Our amazing team of regulars and part-time volunteers are committed to bringing classic theater to audiences at a price they can afford. We take our convictions and turn them into entertainment. Think you'd be a good fit? We know you will. Get in touch for more information!
Our History
Our History
Our History
Seeing a need for great theater in the Corcoran neighborhood, Corcoran Park Players was established and did productions frm 1982-2016. After 35 years, we renamed our organization, Classics Lost 'n' Found Theater Company to continue providing great theater to local audiences. We're sensible solutions. We've still producing while other theaters are long gone. Come and see what we're all about!
Our Mission
Our History
Our Mission
Our mission has always been on producing great productions, be they popular recent works; plays to be rediscovered by classic playwrights or area/world premieres of new works. We've always been open to diverse casting and inventive staging, being flexible with sets, costumes and lighting while being dedicated to the entertainment aspect of the production!
About Us
Current Theater News
The 2021 season continues moving forward. The October production of The Hound of the Baskervilles, our first World Premier this season, will announce its cast shortly. We happily return to our home st Lake Nokomis Presbyterian Church, on 17th Ave and 46th St. in South Minneapolis, two blocks east of Bloomington Avenue. It’s in the south Minneapolis Nokomis neighborhood.
The Hound of the Baskervilles is a new version of Arthur Conan Doyle’s novel. Perhaps Holmes’ most famous case, the great detective and his friend Dr. Watson investigate the legend of a murderous beast on the misty moors of Devonshire. The production will be directed by Dan Dyke from an adaptation by Steven LaVigne, The Hound of the Baskervilles will be performed for four performances, October 15-16 and October 22-23. All performances are at 7pm.
In December, CLFTC will present the area premiere of their annual holiday show, Babes in Toyland. Originally presented in 1903, Babes in Toyland, has a libretto by Glen MacDonough and music by Victor Herbert. It’s a holiday love story about Mary Contrary and Tom Tom Piper, each hoping to marry their beloved. Their arch-rival, Silas Barnaby wants Mary for himself, so he creates all sorts of complications for characters from Mother Goose Land. Herbert’s sublime score includes “Toyland,” “I Can’t Do the Sum,” “Go to Sleep, Slumber Deep,” and of course, “The March of the Toys.” This version features a new script by Steven LaVigne, and fresh, new musical arrangements by David Norini. The production will be performed for six performances from December 3-4 and 10-11 at 7pm, with matinees on December 4 and 11 at 2pm. The matinee on December 3 will be a benefit for the building fund Lake Nokomis Presbyterian Church on 17th Ave and 46th St. in South Minneapolis, two blocks off Bloomington Avenue. It’s in the south Minneapolis Nokomis neighborhood. Join us for these exciting premieres!
Please Join Us!
The Ensemble for The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, following a successful engagement, Christmas 2019
Scenery, costumes, lighting, box office, ushers, volunteers. We'll put you to work, and not only are you welcome, you're also greatly appreciated!
Site Content
Noreen's Corner
Every week, Noreen K. Brandt selects a different topic that features our organization and our history. The current column is at the top, with past columns below. Photos are in the Photo section below.
This Week's Choice is...
THIS WEEK: Upcoming Auditions
https://minnesotaplaylist.com/classified/classified-30-steven-m-lavigne
Past Featured Members
Corey Allerd: I meet Corey last spring when he was cast as Malvolio in Classics Lost N Found Theater's production of "Twelfth Night". Alas! Alack! The plague then struck, and theaters everywhere were shuttered and fell into darkness and despair! Oh, woe is me! But...Hark! Yea, verily, MN FASTFest saved the day when they went "virtual" for the first time in their history!! And Corey, Mister Versatile Actor Extraordinaire, appeared in 3 productions: A short preview scene from "Twelfth Night", opposite Don Larsson as Feste; two different roles in "In a Time of Masks" (produced by Pargeter Players, written and directed by Greg Bastien) and my original production of "Bad Science Fiction Theater" as the Evil Galactic Space Emperor!!! Corey is continuing to work with us on Zoom plays - first as Sherlock Holmes in a short preview scene of "Hound of the Baskervilles,” adapted by Steven LaVigne, directed by Daniel L. Dyke, and as Rodney in "Tobey", another original script by Greg Bastien. Please continue to check our Facebook page and new website - we hope to be posting shows there to view in the future!
Selma Petterson was cast as Olivia, the fickle ingenue in love with love, in Classics Lost N Found Theater's 2020 spring production of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" - which of course was cancelled due to Covid. We WILL be performing it in 2021 - dates to be announced. Meanwhile, Selma reprised the role in a short scene (opposite Helen Collins as Viola) for last summer's virtual FASTFest (which will shortly be available to view on both our Facebook page and website). Selma also appeared in THREE roles in two other original scripts for FASTFest - "In a Time of Masks" by Greg Bastien, and one of my own scripts, "Bad Mystery Suspense Theater". I love working with Selma! She also appeared as Mabel, the flighty ingenue in Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband" which I directed. Below she is appearing as Allyson in "Tobey", a show we are currently filming. I am looking forward to working with Selma in "Twelfth Night" when we finally end up performing it!
12/19: NOREEN K. BRANDT (Ooh, I love it when I get to write about myself!) Seriously, I’m very pleased and proud to be involved with such a talented group of community theater actors! As a director, it’s always wonderful to have actors who are creative and responsive, and as a playwright, it’s immensely gratifying to see my words come to life!! Back when we were Corcoran Park Players, I was lucky enough to have my original scripts performed at MACTFests, FASTFests, and Fringe Festivals. CLFTC has staged two of my full-length scripts "Home Not So Sweet Homeless" in 2018, and "Ghosts of the Emerald Isles" in 2019. We are currently filming "Cats: A Non-Musical" (yes, you read that right) as a Zoom production, which hopefully will be available to view in 2021!
12/12: CONNOR BURRELL. Connor is featured as the lead role in "Tobey", a very snarky cat in British society that knows way too many secrets for his own good! "Tobey", an original short script written and directed by Greg Bastien, is currently being filmed, and we hope to have it available for viewing in 2021. Connor first became involved with us when he was cast as Sebastian in our postponed production of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night." Connor also appeared in "In a Time of Masks" (another original script by Greg Bastien) which was shown this summer at Minnesota FASTFest's "virtual" short play festival.
12/5: KATIE HOLMES. Katie first became involved with us when she appeared in "Ghosts of the Emerald Isle", most notably as Thor the Viking, and Molly, a Victorian era prostitute. We’re immensely grateful to Katie for doing our camera work for last summer's FASTFest productions of "Bad Mystery Suspense/Science Fiction Theater" and two short scenes from "Twelfth Night". Katie also appeared as Zena, Evil Galactic Space Princess, in "Bad Science Fiction Theater." ' She’s currently filming and editing three of our short films - "Tobey"(an original script by Greg Bastien), "Cats: A Non-Musical,” and a review scene from "Hound of the Baskervilles." We hope to have ALL of our short films available for viewing in 2021. Stay tuned!
11/28: STEVEN LAVIGNE. Steve has been involved with our theater company way back when we were Corcoran Park Players, and was one of the founders of CLFTC. He’s directed numerous productions over the years, including "Moon for the Misbegotten" and "Anna Christie" for CPP, "Pygmalion" for Powderhorn Arts Theater, and "Romeo and Juliet" for CLFTC. He also directed our second show, Blithe Spirit, in 1982 and has the distinction of directing our very LAST show for CPP, "The Rivals", and the very FIRST show for CLFTC, "Miss Lulu Bett". But Steve is first and foremost a writer! He’s a regular contributor to articles for Minnesota Playlist, as well as adapting such scripts as "Dick Whittington and His Cat", "Snow White", and "The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus." Steve's latest work is a new adaption of the classic Sherlock Holmes mystery, "The Hound of the Baskervilles". Adapted from the novel by Arthur Conan Doyle, we’re very pleased to be able to perform this piece as our 2021 fall season! "The game's afoot!"
11/22: STEPHEN GREENHALGH. "It's elementary, my dear Watson".
We are pleased to have Stephen as part of our theater family! He has performed on CLFTC stage as the befuddled Dublin Castle Ghost in "Ghosts of the Emerald Isle", and as the not-so-evil King of the Awgwas in "The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus", as well as portraying Pemberton the butler in last summer's FastFest production of "Bad Mystery Suspense Theater". We look forward to working with Stephen again next spring when he appears as Fabian, one of the comic relief characters in Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night"!
11/14: OLLIE BASTIEN. Ollie Bastien (or "Sir Oliver" to everyone beneath him , which is - well, everyone) poses quite reluctantly with Coral, one of his (Oh,dear! The word is SO plebian!) "owners". As if! This is the only way we could get Ollie to pose, although he generally despises sharing the stage, screen, or his catnip toys with anyone. It should be noted that he’s STILL miffed that his quite shy and demure roommate, Izzie, managed to stroll into a filming shoot for a scene in "Twelfth Night" last summer, while His Lordship (you may refer to him as that also) was upstairs napping. Ollie started his career as a stand-in (or more aptly, a stroll-in) at numerous rehearsals before he made the leap to the Director's chair (or really, ANY chair that looked comfy). He is now starring in "Tobey", a short original script written and directed by Greg Bastien, one of his designated lap pillows. Ollie's adoring public should be able to view this in 2021. Please - NO autographs! (Cat treats and fan letters still accepted)
11/8: DANIEL L. DYKE. Although we acknowledge that there were many newsworthy events this week, we also want to take the time to feature Dan as one of our featured directors. Dan just finished directing a short "preview" scene of the Sherlock Holmes mystery, which will shortly be able to be viewed on our Facebook page. Dan has been involved with Classics Lost N Found since its inception, and for many years prior to that when we were Corcoran Park Players. Dan directed "Picnic", "God’s Favorite" and "Done to Death" for CPP., He’s appeared on stage as Lord Capulet in "Romeo and Juliet", Sir Robert Chiltern in "An Ideal Husband", and most recently as the bumbling Inspector Gidget in this summer's FASTfest entry, "Bad Mystery Suspense Theater".
10/31: Helen Collins. It seems fitting that our featured actress on Halloween should be a black cat! Helen appeared this summer in a short scene from "Twelfth Night" (opposite Selma Petterson as Olivia) for Minnesota FASTFest. Helen also performed in this virtual festival as the intrepid Space Inspector Terry in "Bad Science Fiction Theater", battling space monsters and the Evil Galatic Space Emperor (Corey Allred)! Helen will portray Viola in our 2021 spring production of "Twelfth Night"!
10/24: DON LARSSON. We are very pleased to have Don as our Featured Actor. Don appeared in all three of our FASTfest shows this summer - as the Narrator for both "Bad Science Fiction Theater" and "In the Time of Masks.” He appeared as Feste in our scene from "Twelfth Night", a role he will repeat in 2021. After portraying an "English Professor" at Minnesota State University for 34 years, Don returned to his love of acting outside a classroom in 2016. Past productions include "12 Angry Men", "Black Comedy", and “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ".
10/18: CANDY DYKE. Candy recently played Hastings, Percival, AND Mrs. Oodlesbottom in "Bad Mystery Suspense Theater", one of our 2020 Fastfest entries. Favorite past roles include: Flo in "Picnic", Doris in “Same Time Next Year", Soot in “The Marriage of Bette and Boo", and Mrs. Swettingham in "A Murder is Announced." Please watch for Candy in our 2021 spring production of "Twelfth Night" as both Valentine and the Priest!
10/11: TONY GILLEN. Tony has been a mainstay of our theater group, and we always look forward to working with him! Among other roles, he has portrayed Tybalt in "Romeo and Juliet", Benny the cop in "Home-Not So Sweet- Homeless", and the Technician in "Ghosts of the Emerald Isle". Tony will also be seen spring 2021 as Andrew Aguecheek in our upcoming production of "Twelfth Night".
10/3: CORAL BASTIEN. Coral has been involved with CLFTC since its inception, and with Corcoran Park Players prior to that. Coral appeared in all three of our 2019 productions - "A Woman of No Importance", "Ghosts of the Emerald Isles", and "The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus", as well as "In the Time of Masks", a 2020 Fastfest entry. Other previous productions for Coral were: "The Rivals", "Snow White", "Romeo and Juliet", and "An Ideal Husband".