-Maggie Schlundt, Patron Development Manager

In October 2015, after five years living in the small mountain town of Creede working at Creede Repertory Theatre, I moved to Denver and began working at Curious. This is a poem about that experience, and the theatres’ differences and similarities.

Leaving One Home for Another, a Poem about Theatre Family

In a town of four-hundred that’s miles away,
I grew up, or grew into myself you might say.
It was there where a theatre became my new home,
It was Creede Rep that gave me a voice of my own.
Surrounded by mountains, and valleys, and creeks,
Where shops close their doors during all winter weeks,
I was lonely at times, and shivering cold,
But the mountains were like a friend’s hands I could hold.
It was there I saw fireworks fade into stars,
it was there I heard everyone call the theatre “ours”.
I saw the sparks in their eyes when the lights dimmed low,
The joy at the end of a really good show,
And they’d tell me their stories, all the plays they had seen,
How they’d been visiting from when they were fifteen.
Each story was filled with such passion and love,
CRT was a place I was proud to be a part of.
More than that, I could see, all that the theatre meant,
That if life is a journey, theatre’s the tent.
The phrase “changes lives” can feel so contrite,
But open your heart, and theatre just might.

Like a baby bird ready to fly from the nest,
My comfy Creede life had lead to unrest,
I felt lucky for all of the days I had spent,
And grateful for all of the people I’d met,
But the city was calling, and I had to go,
It’d be strange to walk by people I didn’t know,
To live in in a place with more restaurants than five,
To drink in a new place, to leap, to thrive.
Curious seemed like a perfect new place,
So I left with my memories and a suitcase,
And drove to a theatre doing such good,
Making plays that make a difference, art doing what it should.
The theatre at Curious moves me in new ways,
I leave fired up, thousands of questions to raise.
Plays that invite me to talk and to feel,
Plays unafraid to dive into what’s real,
Are plays that I’m proud to say I helped make,
Plays that I think of first thing when I wake.

Creede and its shows served as an escape,
Great plays in a lovely mountain landscape.
In contrast, Curious’ plays don’t shy away from anxiety,
They lead back to issues in our own society.
Creede Rep hugs you, Curious opens your eyes,
Both have a specialness I can’t overemphasize.

The more that I talk to friends of both theatre houses,
The more I see people light up in their nice “date night” blouses,
Alight with excitement, passion and affection,
For these places with which they’ve developed connections.
“I’ve been coming to Curious since the very first show”,
I’ve heard in line for the bathroom (I’m listening, they just don’t know).

These theatres have something in common to note,
Something that’s worth a big blog post gloat
They both call their patrons, their donors, their staff,
The actors on stage who make everyone laugh,
Those who sweep and build fake toilets (I’ve seen it)
We call them all family, and the cool thing? We mean it.

I left one theatre family and have now found another,
300 miles apart, but run by the same mother. (Theatre!)
When I head into work, after weekends to roam,
I walk through Curious’ doors, and it’s like coming home.