Bonnie and Rip Johnson have been married for 49 years, so they often do things together, from creating Beatniks on Conkey in 2008 to working on community theater together.
Now they are not only playing the lead couple in Beatnik Entertainment’s “On Golden Pond” from June 3 to 12, but they also are directing the drama in Hammond.
“This is a love story about Ethel and Norman. They’ve been together 48 years and they’ve been up on Golden Pond ever since they were young,” said Rip Johnson of Dyer.
“Norman is fading. He’s starting to lose his mental capacities. His heart is bad and he just feels a little bit depressed at the beginning of the play because he’s feeling like the end is very near.
“His daughter and he have always been at odds. She comes for his birthday and brings along her boyfriend/fiance and his son. They end up leaving the younger Billy Ray at Golden Pond with Norman and Ethel and he revitalizes them.”
Ernest Thompson wrote “On Golden Pond” and won an Academy Award for best screenplay based on material from another medium for the 1981 film of the same name, which also received Oscars for best actor for the late Henry Fonda and best actress for the late Katharine Hepburn.
“Probably 15 years ago a director had recommended us doing that show. She wanted to direct it and have us in it. At the time we felt like we were too young for those roles, but we loved the movie and the story line,” Bonnie Johnson said.
“It’s got its ups and downs. It’s got laughs but it’s also got its serious side so we’ve always loved the movie and the story. We just decided we’re of the right age now so let’s do it.”
The Johnsons are working with assistant directors Joycie Brantley of Hammond and Linda Slankard of Cedar Lake, who both also are helping backstage, and the couple’s granddaughter Veronica Johnson of Schererville is doing tech for “On Golden Pond.”
In addition to Rip Johnson as Norman Thayer Jr. and Bonnie Johnson as Ethel Thayer, the cast includes Mary DeBoer of Valparaiso as Chelsea Thayer-Wayne; Jonathan Hausier of Lansing, Illinois, as Billy Ray; Jim McGrady of Lansing, Illinois, as Charlie Martin; and Mark Aken of Griffith as Bill Ray.
“We can feel the same things that Ethel and Norman are going through,” Bonnie Johnson said.
“Although we’re not quite at that age yet, we can feel those same things coming on so obviously we can relate to them very well and we’ve had the same love story going for the same amount of time so we do understand them pretty well.
“The cast is just fabulous. Mary DeBoer is Chelsea and she plays the role wonderfully. There’s a nice dynamic between the three of us as far as parents and her as our daughter.”
“On Golden Pond” also features the effect that the character of Billy Ray has on Norman and Ethel, who have been longing for a grandchild.
“At the end of the play, their mortality comes and touches them on the shoulder,” Rip Johnson said.
“It’s just a heartwarming, wonderful comedy and play. It’s a great family story. It’s something that everybody can see in their own lives.”
Also on its way to Beatniks on Conkey is the Hammond Community Theatre production of “The Elves and the Shoemaker,” which is adapted by Karen Boettcher-Tate. Bonnie Johnson and Cindy Wotkun of Highland direct the children’s show from July 15-17.
Auditions for the next Beatnik Entertainment show are slated for Aug. 14 and 15. Husband and wife Aaron and Julie Bredford of Schererville will direct the mystery comedy “Done to Death” by Fred Carmichael from Oct. 14-23 at Beatniks on Conkey.
“Owning Beatniks has been a delight for us. This is going to be our 15th year come January so it’s been a long time of working together doing sets, dressing the sets, painting them and acting and directing,” Bonnie Johnson said.
“We do most of it together. Although we both work daytime jobs, him being in construction and me being a Realtor with Century 21, that gives us a chance in the evening to be together and do something that we truly enjoy in the acting arts field.”
‘On Golden Pond’
When: 7:30 p.m. June 3-4 and 10-11; 2 p.m. June 5 and 12
Where: Beatniks on Conkey, 420 Conkey St., Hammond
Tickets: $18 (cash only at door)
Information: 219-852-0848; showtix4u.com/event-details/64580
Jessi Virtusio is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
