THANK YOU FOR A GREAT 2024 SEASON!

We hope you enjoyed our 2024 season as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you.

We’re already planning our 2025 season, so please check back here in January to see what we have in store for next season.

CELEBRATING OUR FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS

Spotlight On:

Marilyn Townley

PFT: Marilyn has been a generous, long-time supporter of PFT going back to the beginning! She has supported us not only with her donations, but also with her generous spirit and words of encouragement. We asked Marilyn why she’s chosen to support us all these years.

Marilyn: I have LOVED Prairie Fire Theatre all these years…..and can’t remember how far back I have watched your amazing productions. I know there were several Gilbert an Sullivan shows that were Beautiful! I recall watching Annie Get Your Gun twice the summer my husband died. [Mindy] and Bob are an amazing team to have put this all together.

Sonrise Circle…

PFT: The photo may be a small, but their hearts are big. The Sonrise Circle of the First United Methodist Church of Normal has supported PFT, specifically our annual children’s opera performance at Fairview Elementary School, for many years. Every January, without fail, Jana Edge knocks on our door and presents us with their donation. We are so appreciative of their ongoing support and thank them for their generosity.

Sonrise Circle: Sonrise Circle of the First United Methodist Church of Normal is a subset of United Women in Faith. We meet twice a month at 6:30 AM because that is the time we have gathered for 40 years….working women. Our focus is mission; local and global. We began our giving to Prairie Fire Theatre as our Christmas gift to Fairview School which is local mission of our church. We strongly support education for children including the arts as a foundational block for life long learning.

Spotlight On:

Michael Devore

I am an Ohio buckeye by birth. My early career was as a Firefighter/Paramedic and I performed fire protection engineering at State Farm for 23 years, retiring in 2016. I have only lived in Bloomington-Normal the last 31 years, which I am sure is not a long-time resident.

I was active in theater my junior year of high school. PFT reminds me of singing chorus in the summer Arts in the Park. Eva and I have attended live theater since we first courted and we are now married 51 years. That’s a lot of shows. We enjoy drama, comedy; musicals and light opera. Recently I learned to be a stage manager.

Having first been introduced to Gilbert and Sullivan, they are our favorite operetta, but that doesn’t preclude our enjoying, or expanding our experiences, to new (to us) shows.

I support PFT because of its unique repertoire in Bloomington.

OUR PURPOSE

Drawing from an exceptional pool of local talent, Prairie Fire Theatre makes high quality, professional music theatre and light opera accessible to children, adults and seniors in our community, thus enhancing the quality of life of the residents of Bloomington-Normal and the surrounding area.

OUR HISTORY

Prairie Fire Theatre was founded in 1998 by local artist Robert Mangialardi. Our initial focus was solely on bringing high quality, professional music theater and light opera to adult audiences. In 2003, we expanded our mission to include elementary school aged children by producing and taking our children’s opera to local elementary schools.

OUR DONORS

As a patron of the arts, you understand how much music adds to the richness of our community. Since 1998, Prairie Fire Theatre has played a vital role in bringing high quality opera and musical theater to Bloomington-Normal. We couldn’t do it with our donors. Click here to see our 2022 donors. If you would like to donate to Prairie Fire Theatre, you have several ways to do so. Donate here.

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Watch Now: MOZART'S DAY OUT

Click here to watch on YouTube.

It’s 1786 and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is turning out music right and left–sonatas, concertos, enormous symphonies.This guy is prolific times ten. At its heart, this operatic romp looks at the importance of dreaming big dreams, how music makes everything better, and the sheer wonder of everyday life. The music is all Mozart, all the time, and the entire show is packed with zippy fun. Kids get to enter the topsy-turvy operatic worlds of three enduring blockbusters–The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, and Don Giovanni.