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• Hudson's Phipps Center production 'Adrenaline' will run on the same
• Patron objects to a second children's sex education book at Hudson Public Library

By Meg Heaton

With youth comes energy and daring, and there will be plenty of both around when The Phipps Center presents "Adrenaline-24-Hour Play" in the Black Box Theater on Dec. 29.

Collin Gherty, son of Mark and Maeta Gherty of Hudson and a Phipps Children's Theater alumnus, read about the production in the American Theater Journal last fall. Gherty is a theater major at Marquette University in Milwaukee.

"Adrenaline" is a compilation of six original 10-minute plays, written, directed and performed within a 24-hour period. Gherty was immediately intrigued with the idea and almost as immediately pictured doing it at his hometown theater.

"I contacted Amanda Robbins (also an HHS graduate) at St. Olaf via e-mail and talked to her about. She liked the idea. I was up until 4 a.m. thinking about who could be in it, where we could do it, how it would be great in the Black Box and we went from there," said Gherty.

Gherty presented the idea for the play to Phipps artistic director John Potter, who liked the idea. He agreed to take the proposal for the production to the Drama Council. "This is not something we would undertake on our own. I knew they would either love it or hate the idea. It's different from anything we've ever done, and they embraced it immediately."

The production goes like this. On Friday, Dec. 28, at 8 p.m. participants will meet to form six two-person writing teams. Each team will pull a subject from one hat and a location from another, all at random. The writing then begins and goes on through the night. By 8 a.m. on Saturday the 10-minute plays will be written. Gherty assigns the directors, who read their scripts and pick their casts. Rehearsals run all day, with a final technical run-through just shortly before the 8 p.m. curtain. Props and costumes will be minimal.

Most of the 38 young people involved are from Hudson and are also alumni of HHS and The Phipps Children's Theater and programs. "I mass e-mailed everybody I knew, and they talked to their friends, and the response was pretty exciting. Everybody will be doing something different," said Gherty, who will be acting as producer of the show.

It is the hometown feel of the cast that also appealed to Potter and the Drama Council. "This is a great showcase of kids who have come through our theater program here at The Phipps. And this is the kind of thing that fits in very well with our new strategic plan. Productions like this help bring in a new audience by taking a different approach. We're very excited about it," said Potter.

The budget for the show will be minimal, according to Gherty, who says the biggest expense will likely be for food and "lots and lots of coffee." In his role as producer, it will be Gherty's job to keep everybody on task despite any fatigue. Gherty will also order the performances as well as develop the transition between plays.

Adrenaline's participants from Hudson are Robbins, Kathleen Dolan, Jess Nolan, Erica Weekes, Emily Ashwood, Maureen Milbrath, Dan Selon, Josh Mattila, Kyle Dolan, Pete Klein, Tiffany Fier, Steve Kruger, Brain Fodroczi, Aaron Steffen, Katie Moore, Bryana Grzybowski, Gino Burman-Loffredo, Ryan Gunderson, Ben Ashwood, Adam Brunner, Sara Stenstrom, Jake Foust, Matt Best, Jaime Livermore, Paul McIntyre, Amanda Ihle, Tina LaRue, Jess Foust, Jon Thompson, Kari Nelson and Sarah Pitcock, Dana Clausen and Noah Warren, of River Falls, Nate Bliss of Stillwater, Minn., Jose Carrera and Jose Ruiz of Woodbury, Minn., and Faith Laska of Sheboygan.

Robbins will serve as stage manager and Best, a student at St. Thomas University in St. Paul, is the business director.

The production will hold to a PG rating. There will be no vulgar language or vulgar scenes in the plays. Gherty said the writers are free to tackle difficult or sensitive issues, but they will be instructed to handle them tastefully. "We don't dictate what people do, but the emphasis is on comedy more than anything. It will be a very wild ride for the company and for the audience. It's going to be great fun."

Tickets are $8 and and can be purchased now at The Phipps Center box office, 386-8409.

By Randy Hanson

The Hudson Public Library has been asked to remove a second sex education book from its children's section.

"It's So Amazing: A Book About Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies and Families" by Robie H. Harris is being challenged this time.

Harris also is the author of "It's Perfectly Normal: A Book About Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex and Sexual Health," which was removed from the children's section of the library in October.

The Library Board decided that "It's Perfectly Normal" belonged in the young adult and adult areas of the library after a patron complained about its graphic drawings and the topics covered in the text.

The book contains drawings of people engaged in sexual intercourse and covers sensitive topics such as homosexuality, non-nuclear families, masturbation, birth control and abortion.

Harris enthusiasts say "It's So Amazing" is a more appropriate book for young children. The publisher recommends it for readers ages 8 to 10.

Matthew Winkler, interim director of the Hudson library, said the challenge to "It's So Amazing" came in the form of a letter from a library patron.

Former Library Director Shaleen Culbert-Kivlin, who left the position Dec. 1, opened the letter and sent the patron a letter of reply, Winkler reported.

He wouldn't say who complained about the book "because it's not public knowledge yet."

Winkler said he thought the Library Board would address the issue at its Jan. 14 meeting and the complainant might come forward at that time.

When someone requests the removal of a book from the library, the usual procedure is for the library director to reply to the request, Winkler said. If the director's reply doesn't satisfy the complainant, he or she can ask the Library Board for a decision on the book.

According to a review from Booklist posted on the amazon.com Web site, "It's So Amazing" is "for children who have noticed kids who are going through puberty, but are not there themselves, and have questions about sex and where babies come from."

"The simple and straightforward prose focuses on reproduction and birth, including information on eggs, sperm, male and female body parts, the multiple meanings of sex, fetal development and delivery, family composition, and okay touches and not-okay touches," the Booklist review says. "Related issues such as puberty, sexual orientation, birth control and AIDS receive less detailed information."

Kirkus Reviews says, "Harris takes wide-angled views of sexual preferences, birth control and the meaning of family."

"Parents will appreciate this thoughtful, intelligent and exuberant celebration of our bodies and our sexuality," a Horn Book reviewer says.

Parent comments about the book posted on amazon.com were also mostly positive.

"The author explains everything very honestly without being judgmental, although he leaves room for a parent to explain his or her own values to a child," a mother writes.

But one mother doesn't believe all of the material is appropriate for the age group the book is aimed at.

"Children should receive sex education in stages," she writes. "...Many in the age 8-10 age group are not ready to learn about intercourse."

Winkler said five libraries besides Hudson in the 21-library MORE (My On-Line Resource) system have "It's So Amazing" on their shelves. The other libraries are in New Richmond, Ellsworth, Baldwin, Altoona and Eau Claire.