Spend the holidays with “It’s An Honorable Life” – Qapla ’!

When asked how he and his wife Jessica Johnson, also a MAPE member, became managers of the Historic Mounds Theatre, Local 401’s Alex Bajwa joked, “We live in the neighborhood, and we seemed responsible. It was one of those out-of-the-blue things that was life’s way of saying this is what we do now. How do you say no to that? Other than, ‘I guess.’” 

The Mounds Theatre was originally built in 1922 as a venue for silent movies and live entertainment. In 2001, the theatre was donated to the Portage for Youth by George Hardenbergh to address unmet needs of youth and families on St. Paul’s East Side. Right now, the theatre is gearing up for one of its busiest times of the year and for this self-proclaimed “huge Star Trek nerd,” one of its most fun. The theatre is again presenting “It’s An Honorable Life,” a Klingon language Star Trek fan production running Dec. 6-22.  

This show is a Klingon take on “It’s a Wonderful Life” and you don’t have to be familiar with Star Trek to enjoy the performance.   

“All you really need to know about Star Trek and Klingons is that they are the stereotypical ‘warlike/ honor bound’ people from that universe, although there are many references and Easter Eggs for people who are ‘in the know’ to enjoy. We will have titles in English above the players for the entire show, not just translating the Klingon parts, so it's easy for more people to follow along,” Mounds Theatre Executive Director Jessica Johnson said. Johnson is also a member of MAPE Local 401. 

“The concept of someone learning a lesson about living their life to the fullest during the holiday season is solid and there are poignant moments in addition to fighting and the general silliness of an invented alien race learning about life,” she said. 

According to Bajwa, the most famous line Klingons yell is “Today is a good day to die!” He added, “Bailey is the greatest warrior of his generation and has not died in battle. He is such a great warrior no one will challenge him anymore. He is visited by Q, who takes the place of Clarence, to show him portions of his life that would not have happened had he died in battle.”   

The Mounds Theatre is no stranger to Klingon plays because in previous years it produced the Klingon holiday parody of “A Christmas Carol.”      

The theatre building is one of few large non-religious gathering spaces in the East Side, and one of a very low number of buildings with an accessible floor plan in a neighborhood built more than a century ago. “We act as a polling place for a nearby voting precinct and try to accommodate community and city meetings whenever possible in addition to bringing people from all over the metro area to see shows put on in the space,” Johnson said.  

The theater has hosted everything from weddings to operas to film screenings to local wrestling groups, and even a couple of MAPE meetings. “Within the neighborhood, it’s known as being the haunted theatre. We have paranormal groups that come every year and say they see ghosts. My take is if people can run around in it without heat or lights, it is definitely haunted,” Bajwa laughed.  

Tickets, concessions and donations keep the theatre operating. “We keep this space available so people can bring in shows,” Bajwa added. “We are maintaining a community space and as long as we can keep the utilities going, it will be open.”  

“It’s An Honorable Life” runs Dec. 6-22, with showtimes Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. The Historic Mounds Theatre is located at 1029 Hudson Road in St. Paul.   

“I love hearing audience reactions and sometimes even participation in booing or singing along,” Johnson said. Patrons are invited and encouraged to wear their Klingon, Federation or other appropriate uniforms. This original production was written by Bill Stiteler, Brian Watson-Jones, Tim Uren and Tim Wick, and includes references both popular and obscure, right down to the costume details.