Chanhassen Dinner Theatre is one of the sights to see in Minnesota's Twin Cities.

Since 1968 there have been over 193 productions on its various stages, with over 8 million guests in attendance. That number is staggering, but not surprising given the quality shows appearing at Chanhassen.

A married couple, Herbert and Carolyn Bloomberg, looked at a corn field and imagined a 90,000 square foot theatre facility. They had designed a new home for the Old Log Theater. They decided to follow that project by building their own theatre complex 30 minutes from downtown. To add to the risk their vision included a restaurant. People laughed at the silly notion of a theatre complex too far from the city built on top of a restaurant, a hard enough endeavor in itself.

Then in October of 1968 the theatre started business. ”How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” was an appropriate choice for the first show . A month later “the Fantasticks” began. It's pun time. America's largest professional dinner theater had finally taken center stage. And as for the restaurant, today it's the largest privately owned one in the whole state of Minnesota. Take that, nay sayers.

“I Do! I Do!” began showing in the cozy Playhouse on Feb. 18 1971 . It ran a staggering 21 years. The same cast performed each and every show. How's that for job security? It became a cornerstone production for the Playhouse and Chanhassen, known all over the country. It ended in November of 1992, but after “I Do Love the Holidays” took over for a few months, “I Do! I Do!” returned for a short run from late January to early December of 1993. “Stevie Ray's Comedy Troupe” took over for the next two years. But “I Do! I Do!” remains the king.

The Courtyard, now the Club, showed both “I Do! I Do!” and “Stevie Ray's Comedy Troupe” in 1995. Now the Club hosts corporate meetings and weddings. Camelot, My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music and many other plays have appeared at Chanhassen . The list goes on and on. Check out the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre web site at http://www.chanhassentheatres.com.