It was one of Leelanau County’s fondest summertime traditions: Every other year, the Northport Performing Arts Center (NPAC) would mount a full-fledged musical theater production as part of its summer calendar. In 2016, it was Meredith Wilson’s beloved Broadway hit The Music Man. In 2018, it was a contemporary spin on The Wizard of Oz (pictured). But a global pandemic and ensuing financial troubles have kept musical theater off the stage at NPAC, raising questions about whether it would ever return.

Well, as the theater mantra goes, “the show must go on.” This summer, for the first time in seven years, musical theater is back at NPAC. The show, a modernized version of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, is scheduled for a run of six performances, from July 26 to August 3. According to Joe Thatcher, president of NPAC and stage manager for the production, getting to this point has required countless leaps of faith, support from the local community, and good luck.

“Luck” wasn’t exactly in the lexicon for NPAC for a few years there. While it was a private-public partnership with Northport Public School that allowed the organization to build an auditorium in Northport in the first place, the fact that the auditorium is connected directly to the school proved problematic during the pandemic.

“With COVID, the school shut down to the general public for roughly two years, which also meant we went about two years with zero income,” Thatcher says. “When we did come back, all we really could afford to do was put on our three standard local concerts: the Village Voices choir show, as our summer kickoff, our Community Band concert at the end of the summer, and then a holiday concert featuring both Village Voices and the Community Band.”

While those events at least kept a spirit of the performing arts alive in Northport, Thatcher says being unable to do anything else put NPAC in a “vicious cycle” where it wasn’t able to “build up the coffers enough” to get back to more ambitious offerings like the summer musical.

“I eventually had the realization that we had to just do it, because you can’t save your way to prosperity,” Thatcher tells the Leelanau Ticker. “So, in January of last year, we sat down, had a brainstorming session, and decided we were going to put on a summer musical, no matter what.”

The big challenge was money.

“People don’t know this, but musicals generally cost somewhere between $20,000 and $30,000 to put on,” Thatcher shares, citing costs ranging from licensing fees to actual production elements like sets, costumes, props, and lighting. “So, it's a big, big deal to do one for as small of an organization as we are.”

Originally, NPAC planned to break its dry spell last summer. “But it would have been rushed,” Thatcher says. “We would have had to cut corners. So, we decided to delay one more year.”

The extra time gave Thatcher and team enough time to reach out to every person who had auditioned for an NPAC production since 2010 to gauge their interest – either in being involved directly or in contributing to make it happen.

Those donations helped fulfill a match requirement for a $17,500 grant from the Michigan Arts & Culture Council, as did the $1,000 or so the organization generated last year from a newly-launched summer kids' musical theater camp. The camp will continue this summer and for the foreseeable future, both as a way of generating additional revenue and nourishing a love for theater in the community starting at a young age.

Among other things, the money has helped NPAC become the first organization in northern Michigan to secure the rights to the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory musical. That show originated on London’s West End in 2013, directed by famed Oscar-winning film auteur Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Skyfall). It made the leap to Broadway in 2017, and has seen a few touring productions since. A contemporary spin on Roald Dahl’s beloved 1964 children’s book, the show features certain elements of the 1971 film – most notably the songs “The Candy Man” and “Pure Imagination” – but is otherwise a fresh take.

“It’s set in the modern day, so Mike Teavee has upgraded to Nintendo, and Violet Beauregard, the gum-chewing child, the song she sings is called ‘The Queen of Pop,’” Thatcher explains. “There are a lot of fun touches like that, to really bring the show into a modern setting.”

Now, it’s off to the races for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. NPAC held auditions last weekend, callbacks this week, and the cast will soon set to work mounting the production. They’ll have the help of an all-star team of local arts luminaries. Mary Newman, music and theater teacher at Leland Public School, will direct, while Fred Szczepanski, who made national news last fall for his controversial dismissal from St. Francis Church in Traverse City, will serve as music director. A pair of Traverse City Philharmonic players – Laurie Sears and Josh Wagner – will also lend their talents as part of the pit orchestra.

While Thatcher is excited for the moment the curtain goes up – he’ll be in the wings working as stage manager – he says he’s already reaping some rewards from reactivating Northport’s latent musical theater scene.

“For years now, when I’ve been at the grocery story, people have been coming up to me and saying, ‘Are you doing the play this year?’ And I had to keep saying, ‘Not this year. Maybe next year,’” he says. “I can’t tell you how gratifying it’s been to be able to say, ‘Yes! This is the musical, these are the performance dates; we’ll see you there.’”

Photo credit: Al Noftz