Strange Things Done

Strange Things Done in the Midnight Sun

Weird. Wild. Wonderful.
Welcome to Talkeetna.

A live storytelling show built from the true (and true-ish) stories of one small Alaskan town, drawn at random from a bucket of numbered moose droppings. It's never quite the same show twice.

Tell us your story What's this?
ComingSummer2028
A collage of Talkeetna oddities: a salmon, an Anchorage and Fairbanks road sign, a cat drinking from a wine goblet, a moose, a caution sign and the midnight sun
Running time 45–50 minutes
Hometown premiere Fall 2027
Visitors' season Summer 2028
What's this?
A hand-painted wooden sign reading Welcome to Beautiful Downtown Talkeetna

What happens when you turn Talkeetna's tall tales, true stories, colorful characters, and downright strange behavior into a live show?

For most visitors, Talkeetna is a layover town. The buses and trains stop for a couple of hours and folks walk up and down Main Street wondering what to do. This is what there is to do.

Five or six actors, a bucket of numbered moose droppings, and about forty-five minutes of the strangest true things that have happened in one small Alaska town: the festivals, the feuds, the bush pilots, the cat who was mayor, the cardboard boats, the bachelors on the auction block, and whatever the audience draws next.

Some stories happen every night. The rest are up to the bucket.

True stories. Mostly.

Trust the process
Step one

Draw a (moose) dropping

Nearly every story in the show is determined by numbered, shellacked moose droppings. Go ahead. Put your hand in the bucket.

Step two

Story time

You pick the poop. We tell the story: a festival fiasco, a historic disaster, a dubious founding, a local legend. Then it's back to the bucket.

Step three

Your Talkeetna may vary

A few anchor stories happen every night. Everything else is up to the room. No two audiences get the same Talkeetna.

The menu

A cabinet of Talkeetna specimens, each one a story that might come up. The exhibit rotates. So does the show.

A cat drinking from a wine goblet
Specimen N° 01
Stubbs
Honorary mayor, twenty years
A floatplane
Specimen N° 02
The Bush Plane
Fly an hour, walk a week
A mosquito
Specimen N° 03
State Bird
An uninvited regular
A slice of pepperoni pizza
Specimen N° 04
The Pizza
How much does one town need?
A smug walrus
Specimen N° 05
The Oosik
If you know, you know.
An engraving of a vintage snowmachine
Specimen N° 06
The Machine
Never the mobile.
A photocopied engraving of a moose
Specimen N° 07
The Moose
Source of all droppings
A scuffed Magic 8 Ball
Specimen N° 08
The Mystery
Still being collected
Talkeetna, we want your stories

The show is built out of real Talkeetna stories, collected from the people who were there. If you've got one (a bar bet, a climbing story, a prank, or something you saw that no one ever quite believed), tell us.

Your story, your call. If we use it, you choose whether to be credited by name or kept anonymous, and we'll check with you before anything goes on stage.
Were you there, or did you hear it?
If we use it, how should we credit you?

Submitting shares your story with the Denali Arts Council for possible use on stage. Nothing's published here. We'll reach out before anything of yours is performed.

Got it. Thank you.

Your story's in the bucket. Someone from the Denali Arts Council will be in touch, and if it ends up on stage, we'll work out the details with you first.

Why this exists

Do good. Have a weird time.

Every ticket to Strange Things Done supports the Denali Arts Council, bringing arts education, live performance, and creative opportunities to Talkeetna and the Northern Susitna Valley.

So yes, reaching into a bucket of moose poop is technically supporting the arts.

Presented by & benefiting
Denali Arts Council
Venue & the nitty gritty

Where

The Sheldon Community Arts Hangar, 22249 S D Street, one block off Main Street in downtown Talkeetna. A two-story historic airplane hangar seating up to 100, including 48 in the balcony, with good sightlines throughout.

The room

Warm, dry, and comfortable, whatever Alaska is doing outside. The Hangar is heated and air-conditioned, with a full concessions bar serving snacks, beer, wine, and non-alcoholic drinks. Accessible seating and restrooms are available on the main floor.

Run time

45 to 50 minutes. It fits neatly into a layover.

Recommended age

12 and up. Appropriate for a wide range of audiences, with occasional light innuendo and adult themes.

When

A hometown premiere in the fall of 2027, then a full visitors' season beginning summer 2028.

Tickets

Dates and tickets announced closer to opening. Get on the list to hear first.

A weathered moose crossing sign reading Next 5 Miles

Bring your guests.
We'll bring the strange.

Tour operators: tell us what you need