TD High Drama Brings Oregon Trail Adventurer to Life on Friday
Young Ben Snipes – The musical
By Stephen Jupe
The Oregon Trail’s history is a romantic one.
Wherever each of us first heard the story, it will have gripped us as the epic adventure, one which merges fantasy with reality in our minds. Whether you were born in Oregon or migrated here from somewhere else in the world, you know how lucky you are, especially since you now live in the environs of the Gorge and Eastern Oregon.
The Dalles High School’s Drama Group this year has produced an original musical, Young Ben Snipes. Written by Mark Steighner, Directed by Lowry Browning, and Video graphed by Corin Parker, this charming production uses drama, song, and photography to realize the larger-than-life character of Ben Snipes, a migrant, cattle-baron, and entrepreneur.
Here is an Historical photo of Ben Snipes that is shown in the musical.
In The Dalles, most of us know Snipes Street, and we may well know Snipes’s house, now Trevitt House. This video illuminates that famous Oregon Trail adventurer and follows his ambitious journey through fortunes, disasters, and eventually to ‘The Cowboy Hall of Fame’.
The musical highlights the challenges those original pioneers encountered due to geography, weather, and distance. It also thematically reminds us that we also confront different challenges today. Where Ben Snipes emphasizes taming mountains and rivers, we cope with and try to solve overcrowding and polluted air.
The cast of Young Ben Snipes - The Musical
The production uses local locations as settings, local historical resources for props, and is beautifully filmed and directed in our home town. Because of COVID all the performers are masked; nevertheless, despite the challenges of singing and acting wearing face coverings, the actors manage gallantly and carry the whole enterprise off successfully.
This production is well worth watching. It is delightful family entertainment that highlights the talents of The Dalles’ youth and the enterprise of our arts community. The show displays high production values in its use of local scenery and resources. After watching it, it was a reaffirmation of how lucky we are to live where we do amongst such rich history and beauty.
The video will be live on Friday, May 21, 2021 at this link:
Or if you have difficulty with this link:
Go to District 21 Media Channel on YouTube and the title of the movie is "Young Ben Snipes 2020/2021 TDHS Spring Musical Full Movie"
There is no fee to watch, but donations can be made and would clearly be gratefully received through PayPal at the link below:
https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=S2CUZF8CMAL8U
Ben’s success, in the end, grew beyond cattle driving. Eventually, among other enterprises, he owned land in Seattle, banks in Ellensburg, and a drug store in The Dalles.
Let the last word be from Ben Snipes himself:
Roll the credits
