Happy Friday, Beacon readers! Lauren Frick here, and whew, it’s been a busy week (couple of weeks? month? all of the above?). Between profiling all the local, state and federal races here in the Flathead Valley and a visit from a sitting president to Kalispell, I’d say our little corner of 69 N. Main St. has quickly become Politics Land — population: the Flathead Beacon staff.
While I’ve personally enjoyed chatting with candidates and getting a front-row seat to democracy in action, I’m here to deliver a slight 3 p.m. breather from all the campaign craziness. What better way to do so than by offering up some weekend plans, of course. So before you hit the polls, may I suggest hitting the theater?
This weekend, the Whitefish Theatre Co. (WTC) is opening their first main stage production of the 2026-2027 season with “Tokens of Affection” by Topher Payne.
Directed by Rebecca Spear, this warm-hearted comedy about marriage, family and meddling adult children has performances Oct. 16-18 and Oct. 22-24 at the O’Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish. All performances are at 7:30 p.m. except for the Sunday, Oct. 18 matinee performance, which will be at 4 p.m.
A modern homage to mid-century romantic comedies (think, The Parent Trap), “Tokens of Affection” is a warm-hearted delight, offering a laugh-out-loud look at family dynamics temporarily turned upside down.
“Frank Garrett is caught completely off-guard when Jackie, his wife of 37 years, announces she’s leaving,” WTC’s synopsis reads. “Her only explanation? ‘You don’t send me flowers.’ Frank seeks solace and answers at the New York apartment of his son Charlie. When Charlie calls his sister Claire in a panic, he discovers Jackie has found refuge at Claire’s Connecticut home. With a series of telephone conspiracies, the siblings join forces on a mission to get their parents back together- and more importantly, back in their own home.”
The cast of “Tokens of Affection” features Ian Wheeler, Amy Galt, Desiree Roberson, Wes Hart, Jim Mohn and Dawn Watland.
Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $10 for students and can be purchased online at www.whitefishtheatreco.org, at the Box Office at 1 Central Avenue in Whitefish, or by calling 862-5371. Box Office Hours are 11:00am to 3:00pm Monday through Friday and one hour before a performance. The show is sponsored by Sue and Hank Ricklefs and Andrew Matulionis.
Looking to really get your theater fix this weekend? Make sure to also check out Alpine Theatre Project’s fall youth musical, “Disney’s Finding Nemo JR.” at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center for four performances spanning Oct. 16 to 18.
The production brings 140 young performers in grades first through eighth from Whitefish, Kalispell, Columbia Falls, Bigfork and across the rest of the Flathead Valley to remind everyone to “just keep swimming.”
For those of you unfamiliar with the 2003 Pixar film, “Finding Nemo JR.” follows Marlin, an anxious clownfish, across the ocean to find his kid, Nemo, with help from the forgetful and optimistic Dory, the sea turtle Crush (a personal favorite character of mine, along with his son Squirt), and the rest of the tank gang.
The score is by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the songwriters of Frozen, and includes “Fish Are Friends Not Food” and “Go With the Flow.”
“These kids have worked incredibly hard,” said Tracy McDowell, ATP’s Artistic Director and the show’s director. “We have 140 performers in two full casts, and they’ve turned the stage into an ocean. They’re funny, fearless, and I can’t wait for the valley to see them.”
The production has two full casts. The Marlin Cast performs Friday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. The Dory Cast performs Saturday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 18 at 3 p.m.
On stage, the cast becomes a whole reef: sharks, moonfish, jellyfish, and a school of reef kids, in costumes by Molly Burns and Jenny Krasteva, on a set by technical director Hunter White with lighting by Rachel Burke. Music direction is by Ross Bridgeman, with assistant direction by Parker Scherer.
Performances are at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center, 127 Spokane Ave. Tickets are $22 for adults and $12 for children, plus a $3 ticketing fee, at atpwhitefish.org/shows.
That’s all I’ve got for ya today — no cross-ocean journey needed to swim through the rest of today’s Daily Roundup.
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