Carly Walker and Blake Rasmussen play the lead roles in “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” which opens June 20 at the Vert Auditorium in Pendleton. (Jennifer Colton/For Go! Eastern Oregon)

Elgin Opera House presents play at Vert Auditorium

PENDLETON — The Elgin Opera House crew is turning Pendleton’s Vert Auditorium to an 1850s homestead this June to present “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.”

The premiere production of the new Pendleton Theater Company, Elgin’s branch in Pendleton, “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” is an energetic, funny musical despite some questionable plot points.

“Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” opens June 20 with a show at 7:30 p.m. in the Vert Auditorium, 480 SW Dorion Ave. There are two performances on June 21: 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Shows continue the next weekend: 7:30 p.m. June 27, and June 28 at 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Tickets are $20 and available at www.elginoperahouse.com.

The story follows the Pontipee brothers in Oregon Territory in 1850. When the eldest — Adam — comes home with a wife, Milly, the younger six brothers decide they want to get married, too. Unfortunately, they decide to kidnap their prospective brides and bring them to their homestead, where they end up all being snowed in for the winter.

Terry Hale is the director, with Pendleton’s Karen Taylor serving as assistant director of the production. Taylor said she understands if the basic plot makes people pause.

“To a modern audience, the super brief synopsis of this play is pretty awful. A bunch of boys go and abduct a bunch of girls and make them marry them. That’s awful. But the show itself is so charming and funny and beautiful,” Taylor said. “It nods to what we consider barbaric ways of the past, but that’s not the focus of this story. It’s funny and the characters are so sweet and, honestly, the lesson the male characters learn is that they have to respect the women. Don’t let that brief synopsis put you off.”

Blake Rasmussen plays Adam.

“He’s a jerk, a chauvinistic jerk, but Milly trains him well by the end,” Rasmussen said with a laugh. “This is going to be a great, high-energy show with a lot of laughs. It’s super fun.”

Carly Walker plays Milly, Adam’s wife and the woman who has to tame the seven Pontipee brothers. She said she has approached playing Milly with an understanding of the material and a healthy dose of humor.

“Milly is independent and tough and has a strong sense of fairness,” she said. “You approach it the same way that you approach any other character, by accepting the time period they’re from and what would be normal to them, even though it’s not normal now.”

An experienced actress, Walker said she joined the production because she likes that it is set in Oregon and she wanted to work with Hale and his crew again.

“I missed working with Terry. I got to work with Terry two and a half years ago in ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ and when he reached out, I was excited to work with him again,” she said. “You’re not going to see dancing and choreography like this anywhere else in Eastern Oregon.”

The choreography is by Abigail Grigg. Grigg said she has wanted to choreograph “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” since the Elgin Opera House presented the show in 2017, when she was a young teenager.

“I have been long waiting to choreograph this show,” she said. “I was able to incorporate some lifts that we did last time, a little bit of Broadway, some inspiration there, and I’ve worked with these kids their whole theatrical careers, so I know what they’re capable of. It’s been fun to use their talents and use them to their max.”

To make the stunts happen in the choreography, the actors have worked with both Grigg and with coaches from Baker Cheer to bring everything together. Taylor said the choreography is something people should not miss.

“Our choreographer, Abby Grigg, has been studying choreography for a long time, and I feel like this is kind of her masterpiece. It’s a dance show, and it’s a classic for a reason,” Taylor said. “Our actors, our dancers are all top notch. These are people who have been doing musical theater their whole lives. It’s going to be spectacular.”

In addition to promoting the show, Taylor encourages people to reach out if they would like to get involved with the Elgin Opera House or the new Pendleton Theater Company.

“I know a lot of people are really interested in theater in Pendleton, and I think the best way to support the theater arts in Pendleton is to buy tickets, come see the show,” she said. “You can also audition for a show or come talk to us about how you can be involved. It’s such a great community to be a part of.”