Melodrama group returns for 20th anniversary

If you're looking for an evening full of fun and entertainment, check out No. 80 on Nebraska's Top 99 Tourist Attractions - The Goehner Melodrama.

This year marks the 20th year for the melodrama, hosted in the small town of Goehner, located near Seward.

Participants thought the first few Goehner Melodramas would likely be the last.

"We actually had planned on only doing two performances," said melodrama actor Ralph Nielsen.

The two planned performances ended up being a hit, Nielsen said, turning into a total of six performances that first year. Melodramas typically feature a villain and a hero and exaggerated characters. Nielsen has played the villain ever since that first production.

Caryl Schulz, the melodrama's villainess, had the idea to perform a melodrama for Goehner's Centennial Celebration in 1987. She had no idea it would turn into such a success.

This summer the Goehner Centennial Players, the company who puts on the show, will be doing 31 performances.

"I just really enjoy this type of thing," Schulz explained.

The melodrama includes comedy, food and fun for all ages. A prime rib dinner, popcorn and pop are all part of the show along with humor appropriate for all ages.

Even though the melodrama is performed for a number of nights, it is rare to find an empty seat in the entire building.

"There is always a full house," said Michael Booton, a UNL junior undeclared student and the hero in this year's melodrama.

While the director, villain, villainess and many of the actors are 20-year melodrama veterans, this year's cast includes members from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln as well.

This is the first year Kate Washington, a UNL junior journalism major, is performing in the melodrama. Washington has no regrets about the time she has devoted this summer to the melodrama.

"I have so much fun with everyone," Washington said, "and I have so much respect for them."

Booton has acted Goehner's melodrama for two years.

"This is completely different than any other company," Booton said about the Goehner Centennial Players. "There is such a mixed age group, but everyone gets along as equals."

While there is a diverse group in the Goehner Melodrama cast, it is students who truly benefit from the Centennial Players.

In the second year of the melodrama, the group started giving $250 college scholarships on behalf of the Centennial Players. Since then, the scholarships have grown to $1,000 per chosen student.

The scholarships are given after a recommended student's first semester at college. The student's grades are observed, and if he or she maintains a 2.0 GPA or above after that semester, the scholarship is awarded.

Both Booton and Washington were awarded the scholarship.

"It really is an incentive for students to keep their grades up," said Lloyd Schulz, a 20-year veteran Centennial Player.

The melodrama will continue through July 1.