05/18/2026
It's been brought to my attention that because we had such a great turnout, we ran out of programs!! 😲 Thank you all so much for coming out and enjoying the show with us!! We apologize for not having enough programs! 😬 For anyone who missed out on one and wanted to see the information inside it, here you go:
Lawyer Maxwell - Lynne Frank:
Lynne is a Junior who has been doing theater on and off for a few years. She moved into Pine River last year and is excited to be part of the theater department here. She has never been in a comedy before and finds it very entertaining. She hopes the audience will too.
Miranda Oates - Sheri Lillich:
Sheri has been involved with theater at PRB since she was in her early teens. Sheri was actively involved in the Speech & Theater programs at PRB until her graduation in 1999. After an extended hiatus from the area, she has returned to her love of this stage. She has in the last two decades performed on stage as well as served behind the scenes building sets. Have fun and don't judge the vocals too much!
Gert - Lori Scott:
Lori retired last year and moved to Pine River with her husband David, who grew up visiting his grandparents here. She has performed in Sweet Adelines and Barbershop shows for the past 20 years. She enjoys arranging and singing barbershop music, making stained glass art, and hiking nature trails with her dog. She grew up riding horses, but this will be her first attempt to drive a stagecoach!
Electra - Emily Blankenship:
Emily is a freshman at Pine River-Backus High School and is performing for the first time in any show. Outside of theater she does Knowledge Bowl, Robotics, and Band. She’s excited to try this for the first time and see where acting will take her.
Lily de Lilac - Sapphire Trujillo:
Sapphire Trujillo is an eleventh grader who started in theater in 7th grade. So far she’s done 4 GLAPA productions including Shrek, Footloose, W***y Wonka and The Tin Woodman of OZ. She enjoys cooking, singing, laughing and working. She hopes you enjoy this crazy story and laugh at all the parts she did to confirm how funny they are.
Professor Tom Burns - Greg Gentry:
Greg teaches English here at PRB and has been a part of two previous Pine River-Backus Community plays: The Great Ice Cream Scheme and Murder’s in the Heir. He also played the bully, Chuck, in Footloose for GLAPA two years ago, which he enjoyed because he threw a chair across the stage.
Julie Oates - Sophie Lupella:
Sophie is a home-schooled tenth grader and has been involved with theatre since she was nine years old! Her debut appearance was in Prairie Fire’s Alice in Wonderland (2019) as the Dormouse and since then, she has been in twelve others including Wonka (2025), Seussical Jr (2025), and The Tin Woodman of Oz (2026). Have fun and watch out for rolling tumbleweeds!
Mayor Oates - Dana Johnson:
Dana makes his debut on the PRB stage, after a 20+ year hiatus from acting. In high school, he starred in two State One-Act Plays as “Prince Charming” in Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs and Juvie. Dana worked and lived on the TyL Ranch with his wife and three boys, before moving to Pine River. He’s excited to get back into the acting fun with his son, Asher (Gilroy Cavender).
Sheriff Plunkett - Roger Hoplin II:
Roger 47 is a Marine Corps veteran and Pine River/Backus alum. He has been in a total of 7 plays from HS and the last couple of years. He is engaged to a wonderful woman (Sarah) who was in Alice in Wonderland with him when he was 15 and she was a bit younger. They have eight kids between them and some of them have even dabbled in the theater world too.
Almira Sessions - Katie Shetka:
Katie is happy to be back on the PRB stage for the fourth time. Her first play being A Christmas Carol followed by The Princess and the Pea, and The Great Ice Cream Scheme. She has also performed in You Can’t Take It With You and W***y Wonka through GLAPA. She loves to work on puzzles, travel to new places, and just enjoy the great outdoors. But her favorite pastime is to spend time with her family and friends. Thank you for coming to the show. She hopes you enjoy it. Just remember, if you need to mail a letter, rest assured it will be safe with her!
Doc Snipes - Heather Leerssen:
Heather has been involved in theater since the early 2000’s, but this is her first time on stage in the area. She enjoys acting, music, spending time with her husband & two girls and being outdoors. She is excited for this opportunity and wants to thank her family, the director and cast for all their support! She hopes you all enjoy the play as much as she does!
Gilroy Cavender - Asher Johnson:
Asher plays as Gilroy, a skittish undertaker who hasn't been able to bury someone in months. He is spoken easily and acts as if he's seen a ghost. 👻 Asher loves to make people laugh. He's done plenty of comedy in the past and looks forward to goofin’ off a bit. The funny part is that his grandfather was actually an undertaker.
Harry Dobbs - Mike Lupella:
Mike is a teacher at PRB and lives in town with his wife and three kids. He also coaches football, coordinates the driver’s education program, and sits on several boards in the community. While he has acted in numerous shows over the past 12 years, he is both acting in and directing this show…a new and exciting challenge. Enjoy the show!
Victoria Dobbs - Felicia Fehn:
Felicia recently moved to Jenkins in 2024 and took over Caring Hearts Senior Community in Pequot Lakes with her husband. She was recently in The Tin Woodman of Oz with GLAPA after being out of theatre since high school. She enjoyed her time being on stage and wanted to be in another play. This will be her first play at the Pine River/Backus High School.
Opal Crabtree - Maddysen Skjerven:
Maddysen is a home-schooled Senior who was a tech helper in Seussical Jr (2025) and is involved in Speech, which she has been in for three years. This is her first time acting and she's ready to send this through the roof! Or Miss Crabtree's lack of one…
Miss Mary Baywater - LeeAnn Wynn
LeeAnn is a senior at Pine River Backus High School. She has been in a multitude of plays such as Mary Poppins Jr, The Little Mermaid Jr, Robin Hood, Murders in the heir, The Great Ice Cream Scheme, and her first ever play, Peter Pan. Her most recent being Seussical Jr when she played The Cat in the Hat. When outside of the stage she's often figure skating or participating in speech after school.
Miss Margaret Baywater - Eleanor Peterson:
Eleanor is a 10th grader at Pine River-Backus High School. She has been doing plays with her friends for about 5 years now. She also enjoys reading and writing, and as a sports speech and knowledge bowl and book club. She is very excited to be a part of this play with an amazing cast of people.
Luther - Rilian Goble:
Rilian is a senior at Pine River. He has been acting in plays and musicals since he was eight years old. His favorite musical is Mary Poppins, and he got to play Bert in it last year. In his spare time, Rilian writes music and fixes things like old mechanical clocks.
Ottillie Dobbs - Tyeloreen Goble:
Tyeloreen is a ninth grader at Pine River-Backus high school and has been a part of this theater for a few years now, though this is her first time in the spring play! Most recently she has been in the Mary Poppins Jr. musical (Mrs. Corry and Neleus) and also Seussical Jr. (Bird Girl). In her free time she is involved in speech, knowledge bowl, and book club. She is very excited to share this show with her friends and family who will come to support her!
Antoinette Dobbs - Violet Blankenship:
Violet is a 6th grader at Pine River-Backus schools and this is her second performance on stage. She is a member of the Speech team in the category of information. She also does 4-H where she shows her animals: horses, swine, cattle, and dogs. She also plays clarinet in the PRB band.
Marigold Dobbs - Kylara Goble:
Kylara is a six grader at Pine River-Backus schools. This will be her third performance, having previously been in Beauty And The Beast along with Seussical, Jr. She spends her other time in dance, speech, and playing clarinet and piano. She's also in Girl Scouts and enjoys creating art. She is very excited to be a part of this play and to present it to you.
Widder Haskins - Amelia Heinecke:
Amelia has been in theater since she was in second grade and on the speech team in high school. She moved to the Brainerd area a few years back for her career. This is her second theater production in the area and she is very excited to be back on the theater scene; having previously been in The Tin Woodman of Oz (2026), Tangled (2012), The Terezin Promise (2013), and White Christmas (Musical, 2012).
Crew:
Director - Mike Lupella
Stage Manager - Ginger Lupella
Assistant Stage Manager - Molly Lupella
"Wallace" the dancing bear - Oliver Lupella
Sound and Lights - Mike Shetka & Joe Heinecke
We would like to thank the following people and groups for helping make "Trouble in Tumbleweed" a reality:
PRB Schools, Camille Haman with PRB Community Education, Joell Tvedt with Pequot Lakes Community Education, Greater Lakes Area Performing Arts (GLAPA), Tim Leagjeld, Lakes Area Echo Journal, Neil Travis and the PRB shop class, Dave and Tracy Smith, Jennifer and Isaak Anderson, and the PRB custodians
Thank you all for coming to our production and supporting local theater! We hope you enjoy the show!
Trouble in Tumbleweed synopsis:
Get ready for a wild romp suggested by one of the greatest farces ever written. This cockeyed version takes us to the Arizona Territory in the 1880s and the dusty town of Tumbleweed. The pompous Mayor Oates has been hired by a Boston businessman to build a town that one day will be the Territory’s capital. To fill the local positions — sheriff, schoolmarm, doctor — he hires his incompetent relatives (kickbacks included, of course!). The news that a Pinkerton detective is coming from Boston to inspect the town’s development throws the whole family into a panic. Since they’ve been pocketing the businessman’s money, the town hall is nothing but a hole in the ground and the schoolhouse has no roof. A Medicine Show huckster, Professor Burns, is stranded in town because his dancing bear, Wallace, has tangoed away. The relatives assume the professor is the detective incognito and he is only too happy to take advantage of their mistake. Together with the glamorous cardsharp, Lily de Lilac, he has the relatives tripping over one another in hysterical attempts to bribe him. Just when you think the dust is settling, who should show up but the real detective. The hilarious twists and turns in the plot will have you holding onto your hat (and your sides)!
