Okoboji Summer Theatre Company
A professional summer stock theatre company in beautiful Spirit Lake, Iowa, OST provides great theatre to loyal patrons and immersive internships to undergraduate theatre students.
Owned and operated by Stephens College, Okoboji Summer Theatre (OST) is the only program of its kind.
At OST, Stephens College performing arts students work alongside professional guest artists from across the country to create nine mainstage productions and four Boji Bantam Children’s Theatre productions in 10 weeks.
2021 Health + Safety Protocols
Our 2021 shortened season includes six mainstage productions. We'll operate a contactless box office (email, phone and Eventbrite online orders only; no walk-ups permitted) starting June 21, open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
As best practices change, so will our safety measures. Our initial protocols include: contactless box office; limited capacity seating for mainstage (masks required); Boji Bantam productions at the Pearson Lakes Art Center outdoor amphitheater. The first theatre rows will be blocked off; all patrons (including subscribers) will shift back two rows.
Tickets
Tickets are $24 for musicals and $20 for comedies. Boji Bantam productions will take place at the Pearson Lakes Art Center outdoor amphitheater; tickets are $7.
Please send pre-season ticket requests to [email protected]. After June 21, you can also reach us at (712) 332-7773 or purchase online at Evenbrite.com. If you are a season ticket subscriber, please contact us to confirm your season needs.
Season 63: July 6-Aug. 15, 2021
Grease | PG-13, Musical — July 6-11
Book, Music and Lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey
Opening the 63rd season with Rydell High's senior class of 1959 with the “Burger Palace Boys” and the “Pink Ladies” in bobby sox and pedal pushers, evoking the look and sound of the 1950s in this rollicking musical. An eight-year run on Broadway and two subsequent revivals, along with innumerable school and community productions place "Grease" among the world’s most popular musicals.
Weekend Comedy | PG-13, Comedy — July 13-18
By Sam and Jeanne Bobrick
“Weekend Comedy” finds a middle-aged couple and a young couple accidentally renting the same cottage for a three-day weekend. After the couples decide to share the cottage, a clash of generations ensues. Jeanne and Sam Bobrick fill their script with laughter and perceptive looks at aging, marriage and happiness.
Clue: On Stage | PG-13, Comedy — July 20-25
Based on the screenplay by Jonathan Lynn, Written by Sandy Rustin
Based on the iconic 1985 Paramount movie, which was inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, “Clue” is a hilarious farce-meets-murder-mystery. The tale begins as six mysterious guests assemble at a remote mansion where murder and blackmail are on the menu. When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. “Clue” is the comedy whodunit that will leave both cult-fans and newcomers in stitches as they try to figure out … WHO did it, WHERE, and with WHAT!
The Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On | PG, Musical — July 27-Aug. 1
Written and Created by Roger Bean, Vocal and Music Arrangements by Michael Borth
It’s 1969 and The Marvelous Wonderettes are back at Springfield High to throw a retirement party for their favorite teacher. The four ladies sing their way through the greatest girl-group hits of the 60s and bid Ms. McPherson a fond farewell. The classic pop and rock hits of the era provide the perfect soundtrack for their 20th high school reunion as these old friends catch up on the places life has led them, all performed with their own marvelous spin!
Ken Ludwig’s The Gods of Comedy | PG-13, Comedy — Aug. 3-8
By Ken Ludwig
What do you do when you’re a Classics professor at one of the greatest universities in America and find a long-lost manuscript by Euripides that will make you famous throughout the world? You lose it, of course. And then you call on the Ancient Greek Gods of Comedy to get you out of the mess. One reviewer describes this piece as “a hilariously divine new play filled with madcap mayhem, a touch of romance, and lots of laughs.”
Urinetown: The Musical | PG-13, Musical — Aug. 10-15
Music and Lyrics by Mark Hollmann, Book and Lyrics by Greg Kotis
A sidesplitting send-up of greed, love, revolution (and musicals!), in a time when water is worth its weight in gold. A three-time Tony Award winner, “Urinetown, The Musical” is about a water shortage and a government ban on private toilets that parodies traditional musical tropes. Hilariously funny and touchingly honest, “Urinetown” provides a fresh perspective on one of America’s greatest art forms.
Boji Bantam Children’s Theatre
At the Pearson Lakes Art Center outdoor amphitheater
Sideways Stories from Wayside School — July 21-24
In this wacky world, life lessons come flying from every angle. Based on a popular series of children’s books by Louis Sachar, “Sideways Stories from Wayside School” brings to life an elementary school thirty stories high where the oddest things can happen. It’s a fun-filled ride, as nationally recognized playwright John Olive brings Sachar’s amazing stories to the stage, along with some wonderful truths about living.
The Velveteen Rabbit — August 4-7
In the world of toys, life begins when humans leave the room. When one group of toys discovers a velveteen rabbit, they learn what it means to be truly loved by their owner. Adapted by Elise Kauzlaric from the classic story by Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit” tells the story of the unconditional love between a boy and his toy bunny, and how that love makes the rabbit real.
For donors and supporters
Each year ticket sales support annual projects. These projects will continue in 2020 even without productions: installation of new sound equipment; sidewalk improvements; roof, road and infrastructure repairs; and continued maintenance of our beautiful gardens and grounds.
If you would like to make a gift to OST, you may give by mail at OST Fund, 1200 E Broadway, Columbia, MO 65215, or by using our secure web form.
For our students
Okoboji Summer Theatre Company is a working professional summer stock theatre company. An essential component of Stephens’ Musical Theatre, Acting, Technical Theatre and Costume Design programs, OST helps students improve all aspects of technique.
Students work side-by-side with nationally recognized guest artists, faculty, alumnae mentors and working professionals. Students also learn what it takes to run a company, how all of the components of theatre must come together cohesively, and how to market not only the company’s productions, but one’s own professional self.
Life at Boji
Inviting student cottages surround the volleyball court and new Weaver Commons, bordering the mainstage theatre and rehearsal spaces.
Stephens College students enjoy being the first to live in the village of tiny homes. The first one, known as Thorn Bird, was made possible by a generous patron, Anne Thorne Weaver.
Stephanie Beatriz ’02, joins the cast of “Bye Bye Birdie” as a guest actor at the Okoboji Summer Theatre in 2003.
The beautiful Weaver Commons, named for generous Okoboji Summer Theatre supporter Anne Thorne Weaver, opened in 2019 — a centerpiece of the OST’s transformation into a charming artists’ village.
Founding artistic director and Stephens College professor Bill West with the cast and crew preparing for a production in 1962.
Dedicated to long-time managing director Addison Myers, the lovely gazebo on the OST grounds, sharing “Joy to All Theatrekind.”
Patrons adore the gorgeous flower beds on the Weaver Patio and often come early before each show to relax under our awning and take a few selfies with the flowers.
Weaver Commons features a rehearsal room and a new kitchen and dining area for students, staff and guest artists.
There's plenty of green space across the OST campus, with the red-roofed Boji Bantam Children’s Theatre peeking through in the background.
Okoboji Summer Theatre
Executive Director