Upcoming theater season announced as Farm Bureau and ISU celebrate continued partnership
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POCATELLO – The full schedule for the upcoming theater season was announced at an event celebrating Farm Bureau’s continued sponsorship of the university theater program.
The celebration took place on Friday afternoon with remarks made by Idaho State University President Robert Wagner, Idaho Farm Bureau Insurance Company CEO Todd Argall and other theater members. The insurance company renewed its $150,000 sponsorship of the university’s Summer Community Theatre program for the next five years.
“Farm Bureau of Idaho’s continued support of ISU summer theater not only sustains our production but also enriches our community by making the arts accessible to all,” Wagner said.
The department’s summer show, playing on June 20, 21, 23, 26-28 will be a production of “The School of Rock” in the Bistline Theatre.
The ISU Theatre Season 2025 will feature four shows:
- “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike” – Black Box Theatre, Oct. 3, 4, 9-11
- “A Christmas Carol” – Bistline Theatre, Nov. 14, 15, 20, 21, 22
- “The Marvelous Wonderettes” – Bistline Theatre, Feb. 27, 28, March 5-7
- “Big Love” – Black Box Theatre, April 17, 18, 23-25
This is the second time Farm Bureau has pledged support to the theater program, the first being from 2022 to this year. Argall spoke about the impact theater has had on his and his family’s lives.
Argall’s son, a sophomore at Concordia University, Saint Paul, is in a production of “Anastasia” and hopes to join the ministry.
“It’s part of his journey, his professional development, of leveraging being on stage to help him grow … in his career,” Argall said. “These are the types of things that impact a community and create opportunities for folks to be involved in things that they might not ever be involved in.”
Paul Bodily, an associate professor of computer science, addressed the crowd and spoke about how thankful he has been to participate in the university’s theater program. Before auditioning and getting the role of the scarecrow in “The Wizard of Oz,” Bodily had dreamed of trying theater but hadn’t ever pursued it.
“It was life-changing for me, and honestly, the main reason I did it was for my daughter,” Bodily said.
Bodily’s daughter, a fourth-grader, had tried a variety of extracurricular activities, but “nothing really stuck with her.”
“I always felt like theater could be something that would bring her out, and it has, and she’s now doing her second play at another theater,” Bodily said.
Wagner spoke about when he brought his wife, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter to one of the performances of “The Wizard of Oz.” The theater faculty had seats down in the front for them, but they turned them down because they knew his granddaughter would squeal for the whole show.
“She loved it,” Wagner said. “That’s the type of experience that we are creating here in this facility with these productions. It’s so, so meaningful.”