Gloria Dippen, Manager and Part Owner of DIPPEN COMPANIES described the event as Appreciation and Recognition day for all their Managers and Staff. Not only were the Managers and Staff to be a part of this fun and recognition day they were allowed to bring friends with them. Our son, who manages the Super 8 in Sparta, invited us (his Mother & Dad) to go with him and his wife.
Prior to the Appreciation and Recognition program we all had lunch at FRIDAYS restaurant adjacent to our Hotel, the waiters and waitresses were colorfully dressed portraying members of a Pirate Ship.
At around five o'clock that evening we headed out to the Hey Theater- 824 Hennepin Ave, Minneapolis. > http://twincities.sidewalk.com/detail/26430 < to see the stage play TONY 'N TINA'S WEDDING. This stage play has performed over 1,000 times in the past four years here in Minneapolis as well as performing at the Minnesota State Fair.
The theater lobby was already pretty well filled when we arrived. As soon as the majority of our group was there we went to the upper story of the Theater where the wedding was to take place. Already about a third of the church pews were filled and a lot of activity from the ushers, cameramen. singer and priest was taking place. We were ushered to the groom's side of the aisle.
Tony "N Tina's Wedding is a Dinner Theater production where all those attending are guests of the wedding couple from the Church service through the reception and dance. Most of us have seen mock weddings, but this was more of a mockery of weddings than a mock wedding.
After 4 years and some 250,000 people in the Twin City area having seen it why do people still continue to go? Could it be that they just want to see if it is as bad as their friends tell them? But every one to his own.
Here is a Review of the play by, Erin Hart writing in "Sidewalk" last November 1998.
"Mama mia! Since "Tony 'N Tina's Wedding" opened in 1995, almost 250,000 people have been "guests" at this raucous send-up of Italian-American nuptials, and more than 75 actors have cycled in and out of the show.
Talk about broad: The humor here is easily a mile wide. Erin Schwab, as the blushing bride, has hair up to here and a voice that could cut steel at 50 paces. Ross Young as Tony is a guy's guy, jostling with his buddies even up at the altar. The whole cast is a bundle of predictable stereotypes, from the gum-snapping bridesmaids to Tina's gay brother (Jim Cunningham), who is so light in the loafers that he practically floats. And you just know that straitlaced Sister Albert Maria (Ann Whiting) is bound to get bombed.
In fact, "Tony 'N Tina's Wedding" holds some of the same lurid fascination of those trashy daytime TV talk shows. The well-dressed audience whoops with satisfaction when a cat fight breaks out between Tony Sr.'s bimbo and the girl singer from the band. Think 'Married to the Mob' meets 'Ricki Lake' and you have a rough idea.
If you just love wedding dances, you'll feel right at home doing "Roll Out the Barrel," "The Chicken Dance" and latching onto the conga line that snakes out onto Hennepin Avenue. But some of the best shtick of the evening comes from the surly, bullhorn-wielding catering staff. With only four people to feed 250, dishing out the salad and pasta literally becomes a two-fisted operation – and elegant it ain't. Tina Van Heel stands out as Tina's mama; her side-splitting rendition of "Santa Lucia" is a show-stopper.
What's the point of paying 50 or 60 bucks for all this when you can enjoy embarrassingly tacky real-life weddings for free? (Except for a gift.) Maybe the over-the-top antics at "Tony 'N Tina's Wedding" are a clever way to make our own unbelievably uncouth kinfolk seem pretty darned tame." end of Erin Hart Review
It was a unique and interesting experience to many of us past middle age but probably not many would go back for a second helping. Some of those from the present generation however did dig it and participated in it with gusto!!
The following morning after a continental breakfast at the Country Inn, a number of us went over to the MALL OF AMERICA
I had been over there a little while the day before. I have never been to Disney Land but I was impressed by the Mall's 7 acre Recreational Park area. Both times that I was there it was filled with young people. Especially was the LEGO exhibit area where kids can come and have fun putting lego's together. There were all kinds of rides, some I have never even seen at a state fair, then there was Snoopys Camp, Water slides you name it and I bet it was there. It is laid out so nice with the live trees, the overhead light from the glass dome and a controlled environment which makes walking through the Recreational Park an exhilarating experience.
But how did this multimillion enterprise come to be: The following information I took off their WEB page. I will print only a part of it if you want the full story click on: > http://www.mallofamerica.com/ <
In 1982, Minnesota's professional baseball and football teams, the Twins and the Vikings, moved from Metro Stadium in Bloomington to the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis. Losing the two teams was a huge blow to the City of Bloomington, but it gave the city 78 acres of land in a highly accessible location. The stadium was located only a mile and a half from the airport... there were four major highways intersecting the property. It was a prime piece of real estate for development.
Three years later, Bloomington Port Authority purchased the stadium site and began entertaining proposals for development. There were four major proposals being given serious consideration;
Office complexes Condominium/Residential uses New convention/visitors center Mixed use retail/entertainment center
The fourth proposal was selected, and it showed incredible foresight because, as it turned out, the condominium market dropped way off; there was a huge glut in office space; and developers chose to build the new convention center downtown.
In 1986, the Ghermezian brothers signed a historic agreement with the Bloomington Port Authority to develop the nation's largest retail and entertainment complex which followed their completion of the world's largest retail and entertainment mall, West Edmonton Mall.
In 1987, Melvin Simon and Associates came on board as the developer and managing partner of Mall of America. Developing such an extraordinary project takes an extraordinary team, and leading the team was Melvin Simon and Associates, one of the largest developers of shopping centers in the United States.
Melvin Simon and Associates owns 22.5% of Mall of America, Triple Five Group of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, owns another 22.5%, and the remaining 55% is owned by Teacher's Insurance and Annuity Association.
On June 14, 1989, Melvin Simon and Associates and the Triple Five Group broke ground and it was a day to remember! With winds gusting up to 35 miles an hour, the headlines read, "Why Minnesota?"
In August of 1992, when Mall of America opened its doors, the face of the Twin Cities had changed forever. The Mall was 71 percent leased with 330 brand new stores for business, including four nationally recognized department stores... Bloomingdale's, Macy's, Nordstrom and Sears, together under one roof, for the first time. It was also the first day of work for over 10,000 employees.
So where is the Mall today?
Since its grand opening, Mall of America has added many more stores for a total of over 400. It employs close to 12 thousand people. Mall of America is over 95% leased. Total traffic has been between 35 to 40 million visits yearly. Visitors spend an average of three hours in the Mall, which is three times the national average for shopping malls. And finally, Mall of America has not proven to be the equivalent of the neutron bomb for local retailers.
There are many reasons for the success of Mall of America. Location, location, location! Mall of America is situated less than two miles from Twin Cities International Airport, a key factor for the Mall's ability to market Mall of America for international air travel. How often does a 78 acre parcel of land become available for development that close to a major airport. Daytime drive market. 28 million people live within a day's drive to Mall of America, another key factor for strong tourism. Twin Cities economy remains strong, even during the recession. Hotel space. There are 7000 hotel rooms in close proximity. Climate. An enclosed shopping center like Mall of America thrives in bad weather... whether too cold or too hot, and Minnesota is not known for 365 days of sunny warm weather... much more famous for its extremes in temperature.
So even if you are not interested in shopping the over 400 stores I think you will find walking through the Recreational Park a delightul experience
and it is free. There are also a variety of ethnic eating places located on the floor above the Park area. Thema and I enjoyed our time spent in the Park.