Prairie Fire Theatre Presents “The Bakers Wife” at Illinois Wesleyan University

Reposted from The Pantagraph

Story by Kaitlyn Klepec; Photos by Clay Jackson

BLOOMINGTON — The Prairie Fire Theatre is bringing “The Baker’s Wife” to Illinois Wesleyan University for five shows this week.

“The Baker’s Wife” is a musical written by Joseph Stein, the playwright who wrote “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Zorba,” with music by Stephen Schwartz, composer and lyricist for “Wicked.”

Producer Robert Mangialardi organized the Bloomington show, taking a suggestion from Pat Gaik — who plays a lead role as the baker, Aimable Castagnet.

“This is a show I’ve wanted to do for a long, long time, but nobody ever does it, so I never thought it was going to make it to my bucket list,” said Gaik, who has decades of theater experience, including dinner theater, several Prairie Fire shows, Community Players Theatre performances and more.

“The Baker’s Wife” has gone through many iterations since its 1989 premiere in London, and it will be back in New York this fall, but the Prairie Fire show’s organizers said they don’t believe any version of the production has ever been done in Central Illinois.

Performances of “The Baker’s Wife” will begin at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 13-16, with a 3 p.m. show Sunday, Aug. 17, at Westbrook Auditorium in Presser Hall, 1210 N. Park St. in Bloomington.

The Wednesday show will be “pay-what-you-can,” but tickets for the other performances are available online at prairiefiretheatre.org.

With the booking fee online, tickets are $26.50 for adults, $23.32 for seniors and military, $16 for students, and $6 for children. Tickets for groups of 10 or more are also available with a 10% discount.

‘Sympathetic characters’

Gaik said he loved this musical for many reasons, but he specifically noted the “very sympathetic characters” and “phenomenal music.”

Fred Render plays Barnaby, the butcher who Gaik described as the antithesis of his character, the baker.

“I play a man who is mean to his wife and bossy and just grouchy, so it’s completely out of my character,” Render said.

But he appreciates the challenge of playing a wide range of characters, Render said, noting he started his acting career by starred as Captain Von Trapp in “The Sound of Music.”

“It was the beginning of what I love,” Render said.

Beth Warden takes on the titular role of the baker’s wife, Genevieve, and said some of her favorite parts of the show have been working alongside the talented performers and staff at Prairie Fire Theatre, who have shared their skill and expertise to help her play such a complex character.

“I have really enjoyed the challenge of trying to capture and portray the complex emotions and experiences that guide Genevieve throughout this musical,” Warden said.

Rhys Lovell, who directs this show in addition to several previous Prairie Fire productions, noted witty word play as one of his favorite things about the show.

Mangialardi agreed: “The word play is so close, yet so interesting. Every time we rehearse something, I think, ‘Oh my God, that is so clever.’”

In addition to his role as producer, Mangialardi is also performing as the marquis, who is the mayor of the small French village where the musical is set.

“A shady character,” Mangialardi noted.

Denise, who owns the cafe in town, serves as a sort of narrator, said Katherina Cosenza Starr, who plays the role.

She described it as “Shakespearean,” explaining how she sings a special song throughout the show, addressing the audience and guiding them through the story.

‘Phenomenal music’

The score for “The Baker’s Wife” is designed for up to 20 instruments, but Kari Kaps, who serves as music director and pianist, said Prairie Fire’s production will have seven instruments.

The show will feature a bassoon, flute, cello, violin, two keyboards and, what Kaps called “most notably,” an accordion.

“It’s got all these echoes of the Schwartz big shows,” Kaps said, of the composer’s touch on the show. “To see the process through is fascinating. It is good music — it is great music.”

Kaps also noted the musical’s effective use of characters, with the whole cast performing both solos and ensemble.

Lovell described “The Baker’s Wife” as a story the audience will be able to understand and connect with.

“I think the reason this story has endured is because it’s about a theme that resonates with all of us. It’s about marriage, how we navigate a marriage,” he said. “Part of that is forgiveness. … I find the ending very uplifting.”

Warden agreed, noting how relationships shift in the village.

“Even though the characters aren’t real, they represent the very real choices and passion and mistakes that we all experience in our own lives, all through a score that is both hilarious and heartbreaking,” she said.

Illinois Prairie Community Foundation awarded a Mirza/Arts & Culture Grant to Prairie Fire Theatre’s “The Baker’s Wife” to help fund this program. If you would like to support arts and culture programs like this, donate online.