TRTC's Resident Company

Revisiting the Lost Ideal of a Permanent Theatre Company

TRTC was founded in 1995 with the desire to create a resident theatre company here in the Roaring Fork Valley. As pointed out by Jean Schiffman in the December, 2001 issue of American Theatre magazine, we were not alone. She mentions that when the well known American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco announced the formation of a core acting company, local audiences responded with a burst of enthusiasm. In fact, many patrons had been longing for the opportunity to watch actors they admire, develop and transform over time. For many years professional actors from around the country have claimed to be “hungry for a company.” An ongoing, committed group of actors-in-residence can nourish an organization, and affect a community in unique ways, and be deeply nourished in return. An acting company is what gives a theatre an identity. Most artistic directors believe that the continuity is crucial to an audience’s long-term feeling of ownership.

Stage-minded actors feel that they have an option of a true artistic home. As company members, they understand from within the challenges of sustaining a theatre, and they become invested in the effort. Actors take on more responsibility for the art form. TRTC is proud that it was founded on this belief system.

Lon Winston
Founding Artistic Director

Lon’s professional and academic theatre career spans four decades. As a director, designer and performer, he has been involved in over one hundred productions in the U.S., England and Europe. A theatre professor for 30 years, he taught at the University of Connecticut, Colorado Women’s College, and was on the Graduate Faculty for 12 years at Villanova University. Many of Lon’s productions have received regional and national attention. During his years at Villanova and working in the Philadelphia area theatre, his productions were regularly selected by the media as some of the "Best of Philadelphia." He has presented many scholarly papers based on his productions, and has been invited to chair panels on a variety of theatre topics at several national theatre conferences. Throughout the U.S., contemporary American professional and university theatre is being shaped by proteges of Lon Winston -- who today, he is proud to call colleagues.

In Colorado, his original production of The Elephant Man was one of two plays selected nationally to be performed at the Bicentennial Work's Festival in Cedar City, Utah. In 1978, in Nevada, he founded The Comstock Theatre Lode, a professional touring company. He was involved with the Nevada Opera Company for many years during the late 60s through the 80s, rendering many of the wonderful non-singing roles in opera.

He has had the opportunity to work closely with the following artists, all of whom have influenced his aesthetic values and vision of theatricality: Zbigniew Cyncutis, Spalding Grey, Heinz-Uwe Haus, Joan MacIntosh, Jerry Rojo, Bari Rolfe, Richard Schechner, Josef Svoboda, Merle "Ted" Puffer, Jiri Ziska and Megan Terry. A consummate experience was his involvement with The Sir Peter Hall / Dustin Hoffman production of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, in London.

In 1995 he founded Thunder River Theatre Company in the Roaring Fork Valley -- a twenty-five year dream. Professional CV

Valerie Haugen
Associate Artistic Director / Founding Member

Valerie has graced many stages in Florida, Missouri, and Colorado. As TRTC's principal actor, she has rendered lead roles in most of TRTC's productions. She sets the bar for other actors when it comes to discipline and willingness to do whatever it takes, i.e., her stunning performance as Vivian Bearing in Margaret Edson's Pulitzer prize-winning play Wit. She has been selected as the Locals' Choice Best Actress in the Roaring Fork Valley for years. Valerie also directs for TRTC

Some other of Valerie's favorite roles for TRTC include: Emily Dickinson in The Belle of Amherst, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, Jessie in 'night, Mother, Matea in TRTC's world premiere of the English translation of The Bishop Has Her Day by Mexico's most honored playwright, Rafael Solana, Mrs. Alving in Ibsen's Ghosts and Arkadina in Chekhov's The Seagull, and Austin in True West. She performed in and was instrumental in the development of TRTC's original Greek Shards series, including Greek Shards - Medea, Greek Shards - Antigone and Greek Shards - Lysistrata. Dramaturgy has clearly come of age in the American theatre during the past three decades. Theatre is richer and far more profound because of it. It is rare when a company is blessed with both an outstanding dramaturg and a gifted actress. TRTC has such a person in Valerie Haugen.
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Richard Lyon (Associate Artist)
Judy Benson (Associate Artist)
Sharon Brady
Jeff Carlson
Kristin Carlson
Charlie DeFord
Holly Freeman
Carlos Herrera
Cindy Hines
Lana Karp
Jennica Lundin
Sue Lavin
Patrick McGarry
Michael Miller
Brad Moore
Patrick Murray
Daniel Pettit
George Soukup
Kerek Swanson
Julia Whitcombe


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