Today we’d like to introduce you to Steve DeBruyne.
Hi Steve, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was born in Ontario, Canada. My family moved to Michigan when I was 14 years old. I went to Howell High School and developed a love for theatre through my drama teacher, Joanne Saoud, who has become a close friend in my adult life. After graduating, I attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City which lead to working as an actor in regional theaters across the United States. I was very lucky to be cast as Malcolm in the National Broadway Tour of The Full Monty, which I stayed with for about 2 years and played 433 performances across the United States and Canada. After a few years of pounding the pavement in New York, I came back to Michigan between contracts and got involved with the opening of The Encore in Dexter. I served as the Assistant Artistic Director there for five years or so before deciding to take the leap myself. Then, with my partner and Dio co-founder Matt Tomich, we opened The Dio – Dining & Entertainment in 2013 where I serve as Artistic Director and Matt serves as Set, Lighting, and Sound Designer. I often direct and perform in our shows as well, and Matt serves as production Stage Manager during performances.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We initially didn’t have our own space. For our first production, we rented The Hartland High School auditorium where I was also working with the students, directing their plays and musicals. Very few people attended our first production there, a show we created ourselves titled Home for the Holidays. I think most people wondered why the high school was suddenly charging more money to see the kids perform. It took us years to pay off that three-week rental.
After that short stint at the high school, we began searching for our own space and after months of disappointment, we were contacted by the president of the village of Pinckney, Linda Lavey. Linda had heard about our search and our struggle to find a space and was hoping we might check out Pinckney as they were hoping to bring something unique to the downtown. So, we ended up in Pinckney in a building with a full kitchen, which was not part of our initial plan. I had worked in dinner theaters regionally before though, so we decided that maybe a dinner theater was in the cards. It’s not something that there’s a lot of in Michigan, and being tucked away in Pinckney, we figured a niche like that might help attract audiences. So, we decided to go for it and see.
Our first few productions were poorly attended, but after a season or two, word of mouth began to spread about the food (our signature fried chicken is an audience favorite) and quality of work we were doing with our shows, and people started showing up. Now we’re happy to have hundreds of regulars who see every show, and we’re meeting new people all the time who say they’ll be back! We are often sold-out weeks in advance, so now the big challenge is getting everyone in that wants to see a show. 2023 will mark our 10th season of producing theatre at The Dio and will include three musicals and two plays, including the return of our Award-Winning production of Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, RENT!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
At The Dio, we offer a full night out consisting of dinner and a show. We produce plays and musicals and hire our performers from all over Michigan. Sometimes we bring in outside talent from New York as well. We are proud to have won multiple Michigan Wilde Awards for excellence in professional theatre across the State, including awards for Best Musical, Best Play, many Best Actor and Best Actress awards, as well as awards for directing and set design. Our tickets include dinner, dessert, non-alcoholic beverages, and an unforgettable live performance. Our servers are also performers in the show, so our guests have the unique experience of having our talented actors with them in the dining room, mingling and serving our signature fried chicken dinner before the show begins and during intermission as we serve dessert.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Covid-19 continues to be a struggle for the theatre industry across the country. Most businesses have moved on from Covid and have begun to get back to business as usual. But many small professional theaters like ours don’t have that luxury. If a cast member becomes ill, we are forced to pause our work, and we’ve even had to cancel some performances. Unfortunately, small theaters like ours don’t have a large budget that would allow us to hire understudies to cover all of the roles in the show, so if someone gets sick and could possibly spread the virus to other actors or guests in our audience, we can’t perform. And as you can probably imagine, refunding cancelled performances is a huge hit after being closed for 18 months already due to the pandemic. It’s an issue that is constantly on our minds.
But, when we have had to cancel, we’ve managed to make lemonade out of lemons. A cancelled show means lots of uneaten food, so we do takeout service. Folks can order a meal online if the show is cancelled and pick up at the theater for a dinner to take home that isn’t always available.
Pricing:
- Adults – $49
- Seniors & Students – $45
- Groups of 20 or more – $43
Contact Info:
- Website: www.diotheatre.com
- Facebook: Facebook.com/DioTheatre
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thedio-diningentertainment862
Image Credits
Michele Anliker Photography
