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Touch History
February, 2014
Fun-Raising Follies Update
Seven tutus a wild act make.
Who knew some kazoos, a ukulele, a flute, a fiddle, a cardboard car, some guitars, a piano, a
drum set, a trumpet, seven tutus and a bath towel could be the source of so much enjoyment and
laughter? Who would ever think the same items would help attract the great-great-great-
granddaughter of an important historical figure of the Prairie du Chien area?
On a cold, wintry weekend in January, 2014, this "perfect storm" happened in the high
school's Little Theater here in Prairie du Chien. For a couple of hours, audience members were
treated to the first "Fun-Raising" Follies, created to support the beginning Phase Two of the statue
additions to the Mississippi River Sculpture Park.
As the creator and director of our follies, I had the challenge of searching out and coordinating
our wonderfully eclectic group of talented souls. My philosophy was to involve local talent into a
show that would encourage an evening of fun, laughter and relaxation. I was able to accomplish
this with the steadfast help of Cathie Nelson, (whom I discovered to my delight has the same
"brainstorming patterns and behaviors" as I do, myself!) The process proved to be an exhausting,
yet exhilarating and fulfilling experience for us all in not only meeting new community members and
making new friends, but also in having the warmth and satisfaction of renewing old friendships as
well. The older I get, the more I believe everything happens for a reason, so it was an additional
thrill to discover a member of our Sunday audience was Evelyn Crowley, the great-great-great-
granddaughter of the scalped child Marianne Labuche had been able to save after the attack.
Aunt Marianne was the first woman doctor in the Prairie du Chien area. I felt it was incredible to
think we had this personal link to Praire du Chien history right here in our midst, attending our
fund-raising follies for the future Marianne Labuche statue...I guessed it was all meant to be!
I would love to hear your thoughts, comments and/or suggestions about our first Follies
because I am strongly considering organizing another show for next year. Please email me:
[email protected] with comments or future talent suggestions. Thank you for your
continuing support.
--Cindy Hertrampf, Director
Sculptor's Corner --
When I am modeling a portrait I like to think of the whole person and how all parts worktogether. There is a certain stance or gesture which portrays how the legs and arms and body and
head all work together to express a personality. Then there are the details of the face and hands,eyebrows, nose, mouth fingers and wrists. Each part is important in relationship to the other
parts. All of the parts working together express a whole person. Next time you are looking in themirror notice how your whole expression changes when you move your eyebrows or mouth or
eyes. When I think of the individual historical figures in the Mississippi River Sculpture Park inPrairie du Chien, I think of them as parts of one whole community portrait. Each figure has
integrity as an individual portrait. As other figures are added to the park, each one becomes morethan an individual. Each one is in relationship to the other figures and to the central firecircle. An
unspoken dialog takes place between the figures. Imagine Victorian Lady in relationship to BlackHawk or Julian Coryer, Voyageur., or Emma Big Bear in relationship to Dr. Beaumont. As more
and more figures come to the park, the dialog between them becomes more complex with morepossibilities, just as when more and more people from different places and backgrounds come
into a community. The community of Prairie du Chien and the confluence region is unique in itscomplexity. People with different backgrounds and places of origin have been coming here for
millennia. This community history is emerging as a portrait of a crossroads of where people fromall corners of the world meet and have been meeting forever. Each individual historical figure is important individually as well as being a part of the whole
story. Just as the portrait of Aunt Marianne Labuche and her grandbaby tell about theirpersonalities and relationship to one another, their addition to the Sculpture Park will help to
define the whole story of Prairie du Chien. I look forward to having them in place among the
other characters.
--Florence Bird
Hidden Treasures
Eagle Days in Prairie du Chien
Eagle spotting on the Mississippi River has been somewhat spotty this winter. When extremecold makes open water practically disappear, eagles head elsewhere, sometimes to look for fields
where farmers have dumped tasty animal carcasses or commercial fishermen have discarded fish
garbage.
But there's a place in Prairie du Chien where you'll be sure to see one or more eagles, close-up, alive, and flapping vigorously: Hoffman Hall, 1600 South Wacouta Avenue, and other
locations, on Friday and Saturday, February 21 and 22. Among the events during Eagle Days
are programs about where you're more likely to see those wandering eagles, a puppet show, a
live bald eagle presentation, a live hawk and owl program, a report on the return of Iowa's baldeagles, and a presentation about clamming by a former Mississippi River clammer. There will also
be exhibits and demonstrations in the Hoffman Hall lobby.
Book report
Madame Janeby Marilyn Leys
Rolette? Brisbois? Boilvin? Who were the people behind these street signson St. Feriole Island near the Mississippi River Sculpture Park. Dousman?
Who was he -- or maybe they -- and why is that the name of a street on the
mainland in Prairie du Chien? Probably whoever chose the names was thinking about the men behind
them. But Madame Jane is a historical novel that pays attention to a woman
with a connection to them all. Jane Fisher was born in Prairie at the beginning
of the 19th century, the daughter of a fur trader. At 14, she became the wife ofthe most powerful, and ruthless, fur trader in the region; at 34, she became the first woman in
Wisconsin Territory to file a divorce petition.
Some of the characters in the book are now in the Mississippi River Sculpture Park,, or
will be there some day. Chief Blackhawk's war is filtered through the mind of one of the book's main characters
as he unsuccessfully downplays the severity of the conflict.
Marianne Labuche and her granddaughter, the next statue in the park, were unintentionalparticipants in what the book details and eastern newspapers called the Red Bird Massacre.
Madame Jane ends long before the births of the Dousman daughters who will romp in
the Sculpture Park some day. But their grandparents, Jane and Hercules Dousman, live inthe novel.
Madame Jane is available on the Amazon and Barnes and Noble websites as a
paperback, hardback, or e-book.
Article Headline
Article Subheadingby Article Author
J.C. Penney shows upon stage.
Marianne Labuche and her
granddaughter greet visitors outside
the auditorium.
Photographer Randy Paske taped both the Saturday night and Sundaymatinee of the Fun-Raising Follies, edited the best parts, and put together a two-hour DVD. Thirty people in the cast and audience have already signed up tobuy a copy. Buzz about the show has been on-going and very positive. For instance, acorrespondent from Bagley, some miles from Prairie du Chien, wrote in theCourier Press, "It was a fun-filled program, and would be hard to pick out one ortwo acts; there were so many good ones. It is hoped there will be anotherFollies in the future." If you missed the show, but want to see what people are raving about, or werethere and want to play it again whenever winter is getting you down, here's how
to order a copy: Write a check to MRSP for $15, plus a $10 donation if you'd like to add a little extra support. Add "FolliesDVD" to the memo line. If you're not an area resident, add $5 to your check for shipping and handling. Mail your check to Mississippi River Sculpture Park PO Box 39 Prairie du Chien, WI 53821 If you live in or near Prairie du Chien, call Cindy Hertrampf at 608-326-4326 to arrange to pick it up.
If you'd like to sample before you buy, try one or more of these -Ode to Deer Hunting : http://youtu.be/g5VgGMS4UI0Kazoo Marching Band http://youtu.be/02FMT_RixxkOpening http://youtu.be/oFeiqi1JFj4Closing: http://youtu.be/sGa9fhlysTA
Editor's Corner
For the cost of a ticket, people who came to the
Follies got something in return - a lot of entertainment,
a lot of laughs. And a chance to meet MarianneLabuche and her granddaughter. The Sculpture Park
benefited too -earler contributions plus a $10 donation
per audience member, gave us almost enough to sendthe small clay model of the next statue to the foundry
and receive a bronze maquette.
In the midst of the 1950s recession, my husband
spent six or eight months as a glazier before he was laidoff. He never made enough money to pay for the buildings where he installed windows, or even a
small fraction of a single building. But to this day, when we're driving by one of those structures,
he likes to point out what he contributed, and he's as proud as if he built the entire building.
A bronze statue is not as expensive as the buildings my husband is proud he helped build, butas the "thermometer" indicates, there is still a long way to go before the next lifesize statue arrives
in the Sculpture Park. A bronze statue will be around when your descendants return to Prairie du
Chien to research the life you led, and the lives of others who came before you - sometimes
centuries before you. To feel a part of the building of the Sculpture Park is a reward for adding a
donation to your order for a DVD of the Follies, or simply sending a donation to the address atthe bottom of this newsletter.
It's not as obvious or direct a reward as windows in a building or a ticket to the Follies, but it
lets you join others who are able to say, "The Mississippi River Sculpture Park is what I helped tobuild."
--Marilyn Leys
Mississippi River Sculpture Park
PO Box 395Prairie du Chien, WI 53821
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