After spending six years performing at Houston area theaters, Spring resident Bethany Romo wanted to put on productions for people who rarely get to experience theater.
At 25, Romo has started her own production company Iceberg Theatrics, working inside Daypsring Church in Porter.
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“There’s not a lot of theaters outside of Houston,” Romo said, noting that areas outside of Conroe and Houston deserve a space for theater lovers. “We definitely have the talent. I think it was time for it.”
Iceberg Theatrics officially launched in November 2022, holding its grand opening concert in June, with 20 people in attendance, Romo said.
“It wasn’t a bad turnout, especially for an unknown theater,” she said. “And I’m getting more people interested in the next show I’m doing, so that’s super exciting.”
The theater production company is expected to host its second production in January at Dayspring Church in Porter.
The production will be two one-act plays from Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. The plays will star Conroe residents Dixie Cooper, Elisabeth Van Eaton and Klein resident Becky Meredith.
The plays are expected to run Jan. 11-13 and Jan. 18-20, according to the theater production company’s Facebook page. Both plays will have American Sign Language incorporated.
Taking a leap of faith
Romo started doing theater when she was in high school, she said. From then on, she was hooked, performing at Houston community theaters as well as theaters in Spring and Conroe.
When she started performing at Haven Arts Theater in Spring, she was inspired to open her own theater production company.
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“Because they are also a small community theater,” Romo said. “They are a nonprofit and they are doing the same thing I am doing in that they are wanting to bring theater somewhere outside of Houston to give other people a chance to experience it.”
In 2019, she wrote and directed a play at ImagineNation Theater in Conroe, Romo said.
Roughly three years later, she finally decided to open the theater production company.
Romo would have started the company sooner, but lacked the confidence at the time, she said, noting that people usually start their own company later in their lives. With her prior experience, she decided to go for it.
“You just got to take a leap of faith, because you never know what’s going to happen,” she said. “I prayed a lot about it. God really blessed me. And that’s telling me that he wants it to happen.”
Cooper called it wonderful to have something close to the community, where no one has to drive too far.
“It wouldn’t be so far away,” Cooper said. “(People) probably do miss out on a lot of things because of the drive it would take to go to Houston, or even Conroe at times.”
Van Eaton said it was a great way to give people an opportunity to perform on stage.
“I think it’s a really good opportunity, especially for people who have no experience in theater,” Van Eaton said. “You can either have experience or no experience in theater. And if you’re interested, you can just come and jump in.”
The Proposal and The Bear
The Proposal and The Bear are both comedic one-act plays by Chekov, with three main characters, Romo said.
The Proposal is about a man who wants to propose to his neighbor’s daughter, but soon begins to argue with the daughter, which has an ill effect on the man’s health. The Bear is about a man coming to collect money owed to him from a widow.
“Really, what I am trying to do is put on lesser-done plays,” Romo said. “Eventually I do want to do ballets and operas, because I feel like the only places that do those kinds of shows are close to downtown (Houston), or colleges…I think the public deserves exposure to those kinds of shows.”
‘The tip of the iceberg’
Iceberg Theatrics is a play-on-words of Romo’s initials, which are B-R-R, she said. The term brr is often used when someone is cold.
“I just thought it was a little funny,” Romo said. “And then I was thinking about it. I really liked the name because it also fits. Whenever the audience comes to see a show, they don’t know what all weighed into it. They just see the ‘tip of the iceberg.’ They just see the end product. And even as actors, we never know what we’re going to get out of the experience…I feel like God put all those little puzzle pieces together and we only see the ‘tip of the iceberg’ in the end.”
Eventually, Romo wants to own her own theater space, she said, noting she is operating out of the church in Porter for the time being.
“I think God will make it happen when it’s time,” she said.
For more information about the theater production company, follow its Facebook page.
