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It's a Busby Day!
and how to decorate your fridge this holiday season ❄️
Ben Thietje
November 06, 2025 • Est. Reading Time: 7 minutes
Hello! I’m Ben, executive director at the Phipps.
Welcome to The Flying P, a weekly newsletter covering your Phipps Center for the Arts and anything else I might want to throw your way.
I’ve been a terrible, terrible newsletter writer as of late. TWO MISSED WEEKS IN A ROW. The shame I feel is second only to the joy I feel when you donate to the Phipps during our end-of-year campaign and utilize the $25,000 match we currently have in effect.
That’s right! Any gift you make btwn now and the end of December will be instantly matched. Like, instantly. The moment we open the envelope. So anyway…help us “make it rain” (not literally; our roof needs some work).
This issue has…
🐶 A Buzzy Sighting
woof!⬛ Black Box Happenings
get there if you can💌 Some Postcard Instructions
don’t toss it
PROGRAMMING
Busy black box
a packed house for the Mysterious Radio folks
It’s been a busy fall over in the black box!
We started things off with our fall Cabaret Night at the Phipps. As usual, Jennifer Eckes and the St. Croix Valley Opera knocked it right out of the park. The next one is Jan 31st.
For the next 3 Sundays in October, we hosted the wonderful Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society. Their crowds increased as the month progressed, and we’ll most likely look to have this super fun group back for a third-straight season in ‘26-’27.
And finally, last Sunday was the culmination of “The Art of Storytelling” series, which was a collaboration the Phipps had with First Presbyterian Church and the Hudson Area Public Library. And what a fun event it was! It featured 6 local first-time storytellers sharing the stories they had been crafting in the workshops over the last several weeks. We’ll hopefully do something like this workshop again, so keep your eyes peeled for more info. And, of course, we’ve got the Strike Theater Story Slam coming up in February.
And if it’s been a while, get yer butt over to the black box (sorry I said “butt”)!
a great and supportive house for the storytellers
PHIPPS TOP 10
best-selling upcoming events this season by tickets sold…
1. It’s a Wonderful Life (previously: 2)🔥
2. Deathtrap (previously: 3)
3. Colleen Raye’s New Year’s Eve (previously: 5)🔥
4. Silent Centennials (previously: 6) *this Sunday!
5. A Brass & Organ Holiday (previously: 8)
6. Broadway, Big Bands, Beatles, and Beyond (previously: 7)
7. Sideways Stories from Wayside School (previously: 10)🔥
8. Uptown Brass (previously: 9)
9. Wonderland Jazz Jam (previously: unlisted)
10. Songs by Boys by Girls (previously: unlisted)
BETTER HURRY LIST
best-selling upcoming events this season by percent sold
(i.e., closest to being sold out)…
1. It’s a Wonderful Life (previously: unlisted)🔥
2. Silent Centennials (previously: 2) *this Sunday!
3. Wonderland Jazz Jam (previously: 4)
4. Colleen Raye’s New Year’s Eve (previously: unlisted)🔥
5. A Brass & Organ Holiday (previously: unlisted)
as of 11/6/25
PROGRAMMING
It’s a wonderful postcard
they smiled like this FOR HOURS
The postcard above should be landing in your mailbox in the next few days. Please don’t toss it.
Please.
We spent so much money on these. At least hold it in your hands for a few seconds. Maybe read a few words on the back. Stick it on your fridge if you’re feeling extra generous.
But most important: SEE THIS SHOW.
And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll see it on opening night. Don’t forget what happened at Little Shop’s opening night (see below).
treats.
treats is what happened.
👆
my favorite gallery piece of the week
Galleries are currently closed, but the Members Spotlight exhibition is being installed as I type. Swing by for the opening on Friday!
PEOPLE
See you next Halloween
I’m putting it in your head a year in advance: get next year’s Halloween costume at the Phipps.
We have an absolute crap ton of costumes AND we have a Bridget, who will costume you as part of the deal AND it’s only $50. Need a bright yellow “Harold Hill” costume? Done. Weird big-teeth cyclops person? Got it. Tiny witch hat? I’m sure we can figure it out.
Happy belated Halloween from the PCA’s admin office.
You finally made it to the end. How much did you retain?
Test yourself by completing The Flying C(rossword).
👇
Buzz is a fan of Phipps dancers.
Today was a Busby Day at the PCA and he could not have been happier about it. 😊
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Talk to you next week!
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