A Prairie Homeless Companion, by Josef Evans, is modeled after the well-known radio show A Prairie Home Companion. With good music, bad jokes, and real stories, in zAmya’s version, a theater company from the city presents a show with a quaint depiction of small-town life in Minnesota. But the actors find a very different reality than the community they’ve been spoofing. Residents of the town take over the show and tell more realistic stories.
The Sunday, Oct. 8 performance of A Prairie Homeless Companion takes place at Gichi-ziibi Center for the Arts in Brainerd, MN. The performance starts at 3pm and lasts approximately 90 minutes, including an intermission. Audiences are invited to stay after for a brief post-show discussion. Ticket prices are on a sliding scale. As a thank-you to audience members bringing the lived experience of homelessness, we offer $10 Walmart gift cards while supplies last.
This show will also be broadcast live on zAmya YouTube channel.
For accessibility concerns, please contact our Operations Manager, Deb Ervin, at deb@zamyatheater.org or 651-214-9354. Assisted listening devices are available!
A Prairie Homeless Companion was originally created for the stage in 2019 by zAmya Theater Project with Placebase Productions, commissioned and supported by the Partnership Art Program of Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership, featuring stories gathered in rural MN communities. In 2023, zAmya produced this Central Minnesota adaptation in partnership with Oasis Central Minnesota and PlaceBase Productions. This adaptation includes an “Open Mic” section with scenes, songs and monologues created over four weeks of community workshops at Great River Arts Center. This event is produced in partnership with PlaceBase Productions, Bridges of Hope (bridgesofhopemn.org) and My Neighbor to Love Coalition (mntlc.org).