HILBERRY'S “BIG LOVE” IS A FAST-PACED AND FUN BATTLE OF THE SEXES

Photo by Patrick Pozezinski

Sarah Hawkins Moan (left) as Lydia, Megan Barbour as Olympia and Danielle Cochrane as Thyona portray three reluctant brides fleeing from their prospective grooms in “Big Love” now through Dec. 7 at the Hilberry Theatre on the Wayne State University campus in Detroit. 

HILBERRY'S “BIG LOVE” IS A FAST-PACED AND FUN BATTLE OF THE SEXES

By SUE SUCHYTA

           

            Wherever you are in time and space, as long as there are men and women, the battle of the sexes will continue unabated. Sometimes funny, and sometimes sad, we can all take away lessons from the comedies and dramas that play out on local stages.

           On the Wayne State University campus, the graduate level Hilberry Theatre presents Charles Mee’s, “Big Love,” a dark comedy based on one of the world’s oldest plays, “The Suppliant Women” by Aeschylus. You if you think an adaptation is destined to be dull, think again. 
            Set in the present day, brides in arranged marriages flee their country, pursued by their arranged grooms. Funny and terse in turn, the play explores human rights abuses, gender politics, domestic violence and love. 

            The show is vibrant, fast-paced and well acted, with sophisticated tech, and brings out many sides of a story of reluctant brides running from persistent grooms.

            “Big Love” plays at the Hilberry, Wayne State University’s graduate-level theatre now through Dec. 7, with 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday shows and 2 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday matinees.

            Tickets are $12 to $30, and are available through the box office, at 4743 Cass at Hancock in Detroit, by phone, 313-577-2972, or online at wsushows.com. For more information, go to http://theatre.wayne.edu.

            The show, directed by Blair Anderson, features Sarah Hawkins Moan as Lydia, Megan Barbour as Olympia and Danielle Cochrane as Thyona, three runaway brides.

Annie Keris plays Bella and Eleanor, a mother and a foreign houseguest respectively, while Brandy Joe Plambeck portraying Piero, the homeowner where they seek refuge, and Leo, a flamboyant weekend guest. Topher Payne plays Guiliano, one of Bella’s sons.

 David Sterritt plays Constantine, Brandon Grantz plays Oed and Brent Griffith plays Nikos, the three pursuing grooms.

Each company member captures the unique personality traits of their character, and displays them in myriad entertaining ways.

As Thyona, one of the runaway brides, Cochrane exudes a palpable, edgy anger, while Barbour, as Olympia, is more of a follower. She plays a ditzy blonde who doesn’t want to be bossed around, but who really likes men – a girly-girl who loves to flirt and who enjoys the attention it earns her.

Moan, as Lydia, is on precarious middle ground. Although she also resents being forced into an arranged marriage, she still believes in love, and is swayed when her prospective groom, Nikos, played by Griffith, admits he has been in love with her from a distance for years.

The other two perspective grooms parallel the brides’ personalities – Sterritt plays the angry, determined and driven Constantine against Cochrane’s equally resistant Thyona, while Grantz as Oed (pronounced Ed, perhaps humorously short for Oedipus) is more of a follower like Barbour’s Olympia.

Keris is delightful as Bella, the estate’s Grand Dame, who is a surrogate mother to the reluctant brides. Her descriptions of her many sons, using tomatoes to physically represent her love and frustration for them, is a hilarious yet telling scene. She is equally at home playing a visiting houseguest, acting as big sister and best friend to the troubled trio of women.

Plambeck portrays Piero, the estate’s owner, a savvy, yet conservative businessman, and Leo, a flamboyant house guest.

Payne is fun to follow as the exuberant and likely gay younger son of Bella.

The beautiful set, which incorporates projections upon high upstage white drapes, is the work of Leazah Behrens. The lighting and sound designs, by Thomas Schraeder and Samuel Byers respectively, significantly enhance the production as well. The helicopter sound of the pursuing grooms is a classic touch.

The costumes, designed by Anne Suchyta, further bring out each character’s personality. The ones that end up soaked with stage blood must also be easy to wash between Saturday matinee and evening performances.

The show is fun to watch, quick paced, and brings out each character’s spins on their own battle of the sexes, as well as the forces driving their personalities and desires.

The talented company will run “Big Love” in rotating repertoire with Moliere’s “A Doctor in Spite of Himself,” which opens Nov. 15 and runs select dates through Feb. 8, with Dec. 7 the closing date of “Big Love.”

For more information about the program, go to www.cfpca.wayne.edu/theatreanddance.

DOWNRIVER ACTORS GUILD AUDITIONS FOR “YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN”  THE MUSICAL

            Auditions for the new Mel Brooks’ musical “Young Frankenstein” are at 7 p.m. July 29 and 30, with 7 p.m. Aug. 1 callbacks at Out of the Box Theater, 1165 Ford Ave. in Wyandotte.

            Directed by Lucinda Chavez, the show runs at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8, 9, 15 and 16, with 3 p.m. Nov. 10 and 17 Sunday matinees. Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for students and seniors.

            The stage show’s plot is similar to the movie, with some scenes expanded to include musical numbers. Fans of the movie will enjoy the humor of the musical. 

            For more information, call 313-303-5269 or go to www.downriveractorsguild.net.

Don't miss DHCT's closing of "Twelve Angry Men" at DHS

By SUE SUCHYTA

            Don't miss your one remaining chance to see the Dearborn Heights Civic Theatre's production of "Twelve Angry Men" at 8 p.m. April 20 at Dearborn High School.

Dearborn High School is hosting the DHCT production, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the DHS theater program.

Directed by Cynthia Frabutt, the jury room drama features twelve jurors who must decide the outcome of a felony murder trial. Initially, most believe the defendant is guilty, but a lone dissenter on the jury slowly begins to sow seeds of doubt, which cause the others to re-think their initial assumptions.

The show is also about socio-economic class distinction and prejudice as well.

The cast features Patrick Coon as juror #1, the jury foreman. The other jurors, as numbered, are: #2 – Barret Kaltz, #3 – Chuck Bollman, #4 – Phil Walling, #5 – Chris Rivard, #6 – David Wood, #7 – Jeff Bartos, #8 – Paul Morgan, #9 – Pat Denyer, #10 – Marc Walentowicz, #11 – Tom Morgan and #12 – Cory Chambless.

Jerry Kondraciuk plays the clerk, with Michael Kinnell is the baififf.

Paul Morgan rises to the challenge of playing the initial  lone juror who sows the seeds of doubt, then slowly influences the other jurors to take a closer look at the evidence. 

Pat Denyer does a good job portraying an older gentleman on the jury who offers an interesting perspective to the other jurors about the possible inconsistencies in some of the eyewitness testimony. 

Jeff Bartos is entertaining as a jury member focused on getting a verdict quickly so he can get to a baseball game. He, along with the others, do a good job convincing us that they are in a hot conference room in a pre-air-conditioning era. Bartos almost convinces us it is sweltering in the room!

Each actor on the jury brings to life their character's unique perspective to help interpret the evidence, as well as each character's inherent prejudices. 

The audience sits on stage in an intimate black box setting, so you are right at the center of the action.

One more show remains -- so if you liked the movie, you won't want to miss the stage play! 

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Monstrous Mammals! "Bat Boy: The Musical" at the Bonstelle

Nicholas Yocum plays the Bat Boy. (Photo by Kevin Replinger)

By SUE SUCHYTA

            The rock ‘n’ roll show “Bat Boy: The Musical” flies out of its cave and into the Bonstelle to close out the Wayne State University undergraduate theatre’s 2012 – 2013 season.

The musical, first performed on Halloween in 1997, drew inspiration from a 1992 fictional account of a Bat Boy chronicled in the tabloid “Weekly World News.”

“Bat Boy” opened April 12 and runs for two weekends, with 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday shows and 2 p.m. Sunday matinees. The theatre is on Woodward Avenue at Elliot in Detroit.

Tickets are $20 to $25 and are available by phone or online. For more information, call (313) 577-2960 or go to www.bonstelle.com.

When a local veterinarian and his family adopt a boy with bat-like features found living in a cave, residents of their small town become suspicious.  

The townspeople exhibit hypocrisy, racism and revenge, which for some lead eventually to understanding, forgiveness and acceptance. The show’s serious themes are interspersed slapstick, surrealism and a campy sense of humor.

Nicholas Yocum  (center, kneeling) as the Bat Boy and Bridgette Jordan (standing , center) as the Reverend  attend a revival meeting with the townfolk. (Photo by Kevin Replinger)

There are Biblical allusions, and references to humans exploring their dark side or animalistic urges as they answer the drive to fulfill their needs as a species for food, sex, power and control. The play hints at the need for humans to embrace their basic animal instincts so as a species they will no longer fear their base desires and urges.

The story is many things, and one senses from the beginning that the end will not be happy – this is not a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. Audiences accept early on that death will happen, there will be sadness, and the survivors will not be celebrants.

            It is, however, a different type of show, and well performed. Viewers will either love or hate the storyline; indifference is not an option.

Likewise, the acting and production talent is very much evident.

The Bonstelle cast and production team are top notch. Directed by Michael Barnes, with choreographer Jeffrey Michael Rebudal and music director Daniel Greig, the actors display an energetic devotion to the show, delivering a fast-paced production with strong acting, singing and dancing.

The songs, while well-performed, are not as memorial as musical songs often are; and while rock ‘n’ roll works fine for some musicals, there are not any signature songs that one leaves the theater humming or singing.

Most of the sixteen cast members performed multiple roles and all had rapid, multiple costume changes.

Kelly Robinson (left) as Meredith Parker comforts Nicholas Yocum, the Bat Boy.  (Photo by Kevin Replinger)

Stand-outs in the cast include Nicholas Yocum of Royal Oak as the Bat Boy, Kelly Robinson as Royal Oak as Meredith Parker and Britta Peele of Harrison Township as Shelley Parker.

Bridgette Jordan of Southfield as the revival reverend, Alyssa Lucas of Garden City as the mayor and Matthew Miazgowicz of Dearborn as Lorraine and other cameo roles are notable as well.

Curtis Green's multi-level set and Brian Scruggs' lighting is creative and versatile. (Photo by Kevin  Replinger)

The multi-level set designed by Curtis Green is creative and versatile, segueing from a subterranean cave to a suburban home with a quick flick of the stage magic wrist. Fred Florkowski, technical director, and stage manager Meghan Lynch, contribute to the stage magic as well, with exceptional lighting design by Brian Scruggs.

Kudos to properties master Anthony Karpinski and costume designer Mary Gietzen.

The casting is fascinatingly androgynous, perhaps to remind audiences that humans are merely predatory mammals dressed in pseudo-civilizing sheepskin.

DAG's “Drop Dead” will leave you doubled over with laughter

Tony Primeau (left) as Chaz Looney, Craig Carrico as Dick Shalit, James Taylor Jr. as Phillip, Gary Regal as Victor LePewe, Mike Fay as Alabama Miller and Kayla Aue as Candy Apples. 

By SUE SUCHYTA

            “Drop Dead,” a murder-mystery comedy presented by the Downriver Actors Guild, will leave you double doubled over with laughter. Yes, it is that funny – and it is even more appealing to anyone who has ever participated in a community theater production and knows what can go wrong both onstage and behind the scenes.

            The show, which opened April 12, continues a two-weekend run at Out of the Box Theatre, 1165 Ford Ave. in Wyandotte. Remaining show times are at 3 p.m. April 14 and at 7:30 p.m. April 19 and 20, closing weekend.

Adult tickets are $12, with a $10 rate for students and seniors. Group rates are available. To order, call (313) 303-5269 or go to www.downriveractorsguild.net.

            Directed by Lucinda Chavez of Allen Park, the show is similar to “Noises Off,” in that it is a show-within-a-show. Act I is the show’s final dress rehearsal, while Act II is opening night.

            The humor is in the exaggerated stereotypical characters and both their predictable and unexpected blunders.

Loretta Bullock (right) steals the show as Constance Crawford. Also in the cast are Carol-Ann Black (left) as Mona Monet, Kayla Aue as Candy Apples and John Sartor as Brent Williams.

            Loretta Bullock of Southgate plays an aging actress, Constance Crawford, who steals the show at some points. Her character cannot hear her cues, and her eyesight is not much better, so the stage manager decides to give her an earpiece to feed her lines, cues and blocking. However, we in the house hear the instructions, and Crawford responds to lines and stage directions in an unpredictable fashion, with hysterical results.

Gary Regal (left) as Victor Le Pewe, Craig Carrico as Dick Shalit, Rob Eagel  as Sol Weisenheimer and  Kayla Aue as Candy Apples.

            Gary Regal of Wyandotte is entertaining as flamboyant director Victor LePewe, as is James Taylor Jr. of Lincoln Park as his overly devoted assistant Phillip (a role played by Denny Connors of Allen Park the second weekend).  

Kayla Aue (left) as Candy Apples and Tony Primeau as Chaz Looney.

Rob Eagel earns laughter for crusty character Sol Weisenheimer’s quirks. Kayla Aue of Gibraltar, herself a vivacious redhead, plays his daughter Candy Apples, a stereotypical blonde bimbo who mouths the other actors’ lines and gets to practice both bewildered expressions and provocative poses with amusing results.

Carol-Ann Black (left) as Mona Monet, Loretta Bullock as Constance Crawford and John Sartor as Brent Reynolds.

Carol-Ann Black of Southgate plays Mona Monet, a former sitcom diva, with John Sartor of Canton as Brent Reynolds, a lifelong regional theatre actor who begrudgingly does commercials to keep himself solvent. Both are very funny in their egotistical attempts to save the train-wreck of a play, especially when they try to cover up the bungling of the others. Sartor is hysterically funny in his delivery of symbolic line about snow throughout the show, which is supposed to be a recurring theme throughout, but which ends up becoming an ongoing gag as his character tries valiantly to salvage what is left of the performance.

Michael Fay of Taylor is amusing as playwright Alabama Miller, probably so named in a whimsical reference to playwrights Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller. His character tries to re-inject symbolism and mysticism into his play, to which the cast and crew roll their eyes and do their best to ignore.

            Others earning laughter in the wacky cast are Tony Primeau of Southgate as Chaz Looney and Craig Carrico of Detroit as Dick Shalit. 

"Time Stands Still" a must-see production

By SUE SUCHYTA

            Despite the title, time is running out to see Donald Margulies’ Tony award-nominated “Time Stands Still,” a well-written and acted, thought-provoking production at Wayne State University’s Studio Theatre, 4743 Cass at Hancock in the lower level of the Hilberry Theatre.  One performance, 8 p.m. April 6, remains to see the show.

            Tickets are $10 and $12, and are available through the Studio Theatre Box Office. Mention coupon code 3CP7 and receive $2 off the price of your ticket. For more information, call (313) 577-2972 or go to www.wsustudio.com.        

            Directed by Katherine Skortz, the show focuses on Sarah, a photojournalist injured by a roadside bomb. As she recovers, she and her boyfriend, James, try to explain to their friends, Michael and Mandy, the reality of covering tragedies in war zones. Why photojournalists record the events for the world, while non-journalist people might take an immediate hands-on approach to relieve suffering, is a key discussion point for the play’s characters.

            Sydney Machesky of Shelby Township is stellar in her performance of Sarah, a photojournalist recovering from serious injuries caused by a roadside bomb. Not only does she consistently portray the physical limitations connected to her recovery, she captures the short tempered personality of someone who has undergone so much stress that they are just barely holding on to a veneer of civility. 

     

                                      Sydney Machesky as Sarah. (Photo courtesy of WSU.) 

    Carl Ghigliazza of Southgate is very believable in his portrayal of James, her longtime boyfriend, portraying both guilt at not being overseas with her when she was injured and frustration over Sarah’s insistence on doing a job that constantly puts her in danger, which is as essential to her as oxygen.

            Providing a lighter and entertaining counterpart to the two main characters are Michael Fisher of Livonia as Richard, James’ editor, and Maria Radu of Westland as Mandy, Richard’s girlfriend, a young, perky event planner.

Radu remarkably creates a likeable person out of her role, despite the character being much younger and an intellectual lightweight compared to the other three characters. Her naïve optimism and genuine “niceness” creates much of the comic relief in the show, and she shows us how people not in the news reporting business react to the horrors and violence of war and other human tragedies encountered by field reporters.

 Sydney Machesky (left) as Sarah and Carl Ghigliazza as James. (Photo courtesy of WSU.)

As Richard and Mandy’s relationship grows stronger over time, more cracks appear in Sarah and James’ bond, even though they try to strengthen it.  Sarah’s desire to return to the field becomes stronger than James’ persuasion to stay safe stateside and start a family with him.

Whether she needs adrenaline, or driven by a career more than maternal urges remains open to the viewer’s interpretation.

“Time Stands Still” runs for one more performance at 8 p.m. April 6, at the Studio Theatre. For tickets or more information, call (313) 577-2972 or go to www.wsustudio.com.

Giving thanks: Local volunteers cook and serve Thanksgiving dinner to the inner-city homeless

By SUE SUCHYTA

Sunday Times Newspapers

            DETROIT – For the past four years, Paul Armstrong, 21, of Melvindale, rose early Thanksgiving Day to serve turkey dinner to the homeless from 7 to 11 a.m. at Manna House soup kitchen in Detroit.

            “A lot of people complain about waking up early in the morning, and all that, but… by the time you get here, all the drowsiness goes away,” he said. “Just the joy of seeing a smile on someone’s face, even when you just give them a drink of water – it’s priceless -- it beats sleeping in totally.”

            What started out as a social activity with Dearborn Sacred Heart parish’s youth group when he was a teen has turned into an annual Thanksgiving tradition for him and his 19-year-old brother Mike.

            “I’m helping out people that can’t get a decent meal most of the time,” Paul Armstrong said. “And I’m doing the work that Jesus said. You know, feed the hungry… It really gives me a sense of joy knowing that I’m helping someone to enjoy Thanksgiving as much as I usually would, and to be honest, I actually like this better than having my own Thanksgiving.”

            “There are obviously a lot of people in Detroit that need this,” Mike Armstrong added. 

            He said as much as he dislikes getting out of bed before 7 a.m. on a holiday, when he volunteers at Manna House he leaves feeling thankful for the blessings in his own life.

            “You go away with this really warm feeling,” Mike Armstrong said. “And you know that (this) is what Thanksgiving is about.”  

            Manna House, located at Michigan and Trumbull in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church in Detroit, began in 1976, with Father Tom Lumpkin, co-manager of the soup kitchen, arriving two years later.                                                                                                  

            Lumpkin, part of the Catholic Worker Movement, lives at and also runs a shelter for women, Day House, six blocks away at 2640 Trumbull. He shares soup kitchen and shelter duties with Marianne Arbogast, a laic Catholic Worker.

            The Catholic Worker Movement works with very poor people on the fringes of society, addressing social issues and their causes.

            Lumpkin said volunteers from St. Linus parish in Dearborn Heights have been preparing and serving Thanksgiving dinner for the soup kitchen every year since it began. Volunteers from other parishes, like Sacred Heart in Dearborn, began sending volunteers Thanksgiving morning almost ten years ago when former St. Linus member Julie Wieleba-Milkie, a 20-year attendee, became Sacred Heart’s director of faith formation and youth ministry.

            Lumpkin said the Thanksgiving meal is very special to their recipients, who usually dine on soup, sandwiches and day-old doughnuts served by rotating area volunteers. He said they serve 150 to 200 recipients from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Mon, Tue., Wed., Fri. and Saturdays.

            He said he thinks the volunteers are here because it fits with their idea of what Thanksgiving is, and since most have their meal later in the day.

            “Instead of going down to the parade, they can come and do this in the morning. It gives them a way of celebrating Thanksgiving that is appropriate for them, that they want to do, then they can go back and have their own dinner and stuff with their family and friends, so it kind of – it’s just a good day for them… it’s a good way to celebrate Thanksgiving.”

             The teen and adult volunteers have mixed reactions to the homeless population Manna House serves, Lumpkin said.

            “Some… can get turned off by seeing very poor people,” Lumpkin said. “A big chunk of the homeless population has mental illness; (the volunteers) can sort of be frightened by that… they are definitely venturing out of a comfort zone to come down here.” 

            Arbogast said besides serving meals, Manna House provides a place where people can rest and warm up in a safe place for several hours, use a telephone or bathroom, refill a water bottle or get help with referrals to agencies for shelter or mental health needs.

            “I guess to me it’s really at the core of Christian faith,” Arbogast said. “In the Gospel of Matthew, where the question asked everyone is ‘I was hungry and you fed me; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’ I think that is what we are trying to live out here, to whatever degree we can.”

            Wieleba-Milkie sees the value of bringing teen volunteers from her youth group to help serve the Thanksgiving meal in at Manna House.         

             “To wake up early on a Thanksgiving morning, on a holiday instead of being able to stay in your jamies and watch the parade, I hope they get a sense of what it really means to be thankful this Thanksgiving Day,” Wieleba-Milkie said. “To give thanks for the fact that they have a roof over their heads, that they have a home, that they have a meal that they can go home to, because of a lot of these people – even though they might have jobs – (might not have) enough income to be able to actually maintain a home.”

            Abigail Burke, 13, of Dearborn and an eighth grader at Sacred Heart School, has been coming to Manna House on Thanksgiving morning for five years.

            “I just like coming down here because I like serving the poor and homeless,” Burke said. It makes me feel better – showing that I’ve done something… giving them a better Thanksgiving.”

            Emma Andrus, 13, an eighth grader at Sacred Heart School and a Dearborn Heights resident, has also been coming to Manna House for five Thanksgivings.

            “There are other people besides me that should be fed today,” Andrus said. “I come here over again because other people also need a good meal on Thanksgiving… and every single time I walk out I always feel good about helping others.”                                                                                                                                        

            Les Osenkowski, St. Linus parish member and a 30-year Thanksgiving volunteer, continues even after moving to Northville.

            “I’m rewarded to see all these beautiful people get a satisfying meal out of this,” he said.

             St. Linus Deacon Jerry Schiffer, director of Christian service said this has become a Thanksgiving tradition for many families in the parish.

            “Some people will go down to the football game today; some people go to the parade – those are great things,” Schiffer said. “We’re blessed to be able to see these people as our guests, people who are in need, and to have an opportunity to serve them… it’s an opportunity for us to live our faith by helping others.”

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Photos by Sue Suchyta

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Dearborn Sacred Heart parish volunteer Abigail Burke (front left), 13, of Dearborn, waits for a Thanksgiving dinner plate to serve from plate preparers Andrea Robinson (second from left) and Gregory Robinson of Westland, a Dearborn Heights St. Linus parishioner. Members of both parishes served a Thanksgiving meal to those in need at Manna House soup kitchen, located in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church at Michigan and Trumbull in Detroit on Thanksgiving morning.

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Dearborn Sacred Heart parish volunteers Paul Armstrong (left), 21, of Melvindale, and Danielle Barum, 18, of Dearborn, waits for a Thanksgiving dinner plate to serve from plate preparers Andrea Robinson and Gregory Robinson of Westland, a Dearborn Heights St. Linus parishioner. Members of both parishes served a Thanksgiving meal to those in need at Manna House soup kitchen, located in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church at Michigan and Trumbull in Detroit on Thanksgiving morning.

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Dearborn Heights St. Linus parishioner Ed Robinson said he has been volunteering at Manna House soup kitchen, located in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church at Michigan and Trumbull in Detroit, on Thanksgiving Day for 19 years, and his family now joins him.

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Dearborn Sacred Heart parish volunteer Danielle Barum (left), 18, of Dearborn serves a Thanksgiving dinner plate to a recipient at Manna House soup kitchen, located in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church at Michigan and Trumbull in Detroit on Thanksgiving morning.

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Members of Dearborn Heights St. Linus and Dearborn Sacred Heart parishes prepared and served a Thanksgiving meal to those in need at Manna House soup kitchen, located in the basement of St. Peter Episcopal Church at Michigan and Trumbull in Detroit on Thanksgiving morning.