Ronnie Huddleston

Ronnie is making his debut on the Strauss Stage. From West Monroe, he went to Calhoun High School, ULM and LSU majoring in Construction Management.  Ronnie currently works for Voith Paper Fabric & Roll Systems as a Project Engineer. 

Honey Honey, how you thrill me!

It’s opening night for Mamma Mia! at Strauss, and even though it’s sold out, we have a few seats available for our other performances this weekend and next! Make it a date night and have something special to write in your diary, just like Donna Sheridan!

Click here or call the box office at 318.323.6681 to get yours!

Troy Wold Donates for Mamma Mia!

Strauss welcomes Troy Wold back to the stage as Sam Carmichael in Mamma Mia! Troy has been seen on Strauss Theater’s stage since 2006.  The fault clearly lies with his wife of 28 years (Jae Wold) who encouraged him to audition for his first show Misery.  His biggest claim to fame (besides being a husband/father/mailman/actor) is that he is a 61 gallon blood donor and has been saving lives for 33 years. 

Need Tickets? Get them now by clicking here! Or call the box office at 318.323.6681. Don’t miss Mamma Mia! at Strauss.

Taylor Yakowenko

Strauss is excited to welcome back Taylor Yakowenko in the role of Lisa in Mamma Mia! Taylor has been the morning and noon news anchor at KNOE since January 2017.  When she’s not on TV, Taylor teaches dance and directs productions at SYAA.  She is also a board member for both the Louisiana Purchase Gardens and Zoo and the American Red Cross. 

Need Tickets? Get them now by clicking here! Or call the box office at 318.323.6681. Don’t miss Mamma Mia! at Strauss.

Virginia Johnson, Jennifer Johnson, Vickie Krutzer, Crissy Bains, Karen Solomon

“Opa!” at Strauss

Strauss shouts “Opa!” for the opening of Mamma Mia!  The theatre has transformed the lobby of Strauss into a Greek Get-A-Way complete with a wonderful wedding altar, greek icons, historic accounts of greek accomplishments in Monroe and delicious samplings of greek treats.    Patrons attending Opening Night this Thursday, April 25th will be part of the extended Greek wedding reception at the end of the show.  

Greek favorites being served during Patron’s Night intermission include:
Hummus: pureed chickpeas blended with tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, and garlic
Tzatziki: a dip made with yogurt, garlic, olive oil, and fresh dill
Spanakopita: spinach pie made with feta cheese, butter, and olive oil Tyropita: cheese pie from various cheese, usually feta and cut in triangles
Cheese and fruit platter including Kalamata olives and pita bread
Pastitsio : a baked pasta dish with ground beef and béchamel sauce
Keftethes: meatballs in tomato sauce
Chorino filleto:  roasted pork tenderloin

Sweet Greek treats being served at the end of the show include:
Baklava: a combination of nuts, sugar and butter in crispy layers of phyllo
Kataifi: almond, walnut, and syrup pastry resembling shredded wheat 
Kourambiethes:  Greek butter cookies rolled in powdered sugar
Koulourakia: a crunchy braided cookie with a butter base and shiny egg glaze traditionally served at Easter but now enjoyed all year long
A variety of seasonal fruits 

The Strauss Greek Experience is a success because of much work from many volunteers. A big efharisto (greek Thank You) to Karen Solomon, Crissie Terzolas Bains, Angela Brown, Peggy Burns, Lilia Bois, Hannah Clark, D.H. Clark, Bill Knight, Bobbye Legan, Jorenda Stone, Hannah Clark, Kailope Poulous, Pam Kokinos Dyer, Peggy Caskey, Kathy Fluke, Jennifer Johnson, Virginia Johnson and Vickie Krutzer.


Marty French Stepping Out for Strauss

Strauss Theater welcomes Marty French to the stage in the role of Bill in our season closer – Mamma Mia! An Oak Grove native and LA Tech graduate, Marty is an accomplished CPA in Monroe and does a little dancing on the side. He placed runner-up in the 2014 edition of “Dancing with the Louisiana Stars” for the Louisiana Delta Ballet Company.  

Need Tickets? Get them now by clicking here! Or call the box office at 318.323.6681. Don’t miss Mamma Mia! at Strauss.

Greek Descendants in Monroe – Alex George

As Strauss prepares for our debut of Mamma Mia! this week, we focus on the impact of Greek descendants in the Twin Cities.  Many found their way to Northeast Louisiana and have made a dramatic mark on our community.  In our search of Greek Influence in Monroe, we had the privilege of chatting with Alex George.

In 1965, Alex George launched the very first McDonalds in North Louisiana located on 18th street in Monroe.  At that time, there were only 1000 McDonalds restaurants in the US.  Our Monroe location was so successful, the founder of McDonalds, Ray Kroc, met face-to-face with Alex George to find out the “secret to his success.”  Instilling Greek family values and know-how passed on to him from his Greek heritage, Mr George grew one McDonalds store into 12 McDonalds locations and was instrumental in the establishment of the Ronald McDonald house here in Monroe.

Alex George and his son, Dan

Alex George is the son of  John Nick George (Greek name Georgiadis) who immigrated to the states from the Thesalaniki mountain area of Greece.  His father initially worked in Tacoma, WA as a logger but eventually found his way to Monroe after employment in the restaurant business of Greenville and Jackson MS.  It was the beautiful Ouachita river and bayous of our area that drew the elder George to Monroe to plant roots and raise a family.  

(Alex and his son Dan at Strauss Theatre.)

 Today Alex George continues to make a difference in our community through QuesTECH Learning, an educational tutorial school specializing in serving transitional learners seeking to reach their full potential.  Because of Alex George’s “idea” of investing in our community, QuesTECH has enjoyed 20 years of success assisting the learners of our area to achieve their goals. 

Mamma Mia! now adding additional performance

Tickets for Strauss Theatre’s Mamma Mia! are going fast! So much so that we must add an additional performance. With the approval from Music Theatre International, we have added a Saturday matinee performance – May 4th at 2pm. We are grateful for the talents of our cast and crew and their willingness to perform for this added performance.

Grab tickets while they are available! Tickets can be purchased ONLINE or through our box office at 318.323.6681.