After more than two decades of performing in productions at the Sauk Theatre, Travis Blatchley received the local theater’s outstanding service award.
“He has worked backstage doing properties design and onstage as an actor for 25 years,” Executive Director Trinity Bird said. “He continues with the same energy, excitement and positivity as he did from day one.”
Blatchley received the Clint Johnson Award at the Sauk’s yearly meeting on Jan. 22. He said he attended the meeting because he knew they would be showing scenes from a show he had done the previous year.
“I had no idea I was chosen for it,” Blatchley said. “It was one of those things where Trinity, the executive director, made a little speech and then he called me up there. I was kind of shocked that I was chosen. It was a very nice surprise.”
Bird said Blatchley’s superior acting skills, caring attitude, and dedication to the productions made him deserving of the award.
“Everybody loves Travis,” Bird said. “He can make an audience weep with laughter and the next moment make them feel deep emotion. He goes out of his way to thank people for their efforts, he goes above and beyond to make others look good at what they do. He does all these things without being asked. He is the true definition of the best parts of community theater.”
Blatchley’s first performance with the Sauk was “Joseph and the Technicolor DreamCoat.” In total, he’s done about 30 shows, some of the most recent ones being “Peter and the Starcatcher,” and “Anne of Green Gables.” His favorite show, he said, was “The Full Monty.”
“It’s a great organization for people that enjoy doing the arts or theater,” Blatchley said. “This community is very fortunate to have the Sauk Theater.”
The Sauk has been giving out the award since 1982 in honor of Clint Johnson, who worked with the Sauk when it was first established.
“The award recognizes outstanding volunteers who have dedicated years of their lives to our community theater,” Bird said. “Clint was a jack-of-all-trades cheerleader for all things community theater. The award was created to keep his energy and enthusiasm alive.”
Bird said he worked with the Sauk’s board of directors to select Blatchley as this year’s award recipient.
“When his name was mentioned in the board meeting, there was an immediate unanimous vote with no discussion,” Bird said. “He works hard, he takes what he does seriously and he is a model volunteer.”
Blatchley said after helping the Sauk for so many years, he feels grateful to have received the award.
“It’s been a large part of my life,” Blatchely said. “I look at the names of the other people that have won the awards through the years. A lot of them I don’t know, but a lot of the people I do, and it’s just a great honor to be amongst the other people on the plaque that hangs in the lobby.”
