Biography
Ralph's first experience with original compositions was hearing his mother sing
to the family dog. "Mitzy, Mitzy, Mitzy do you love me?" Whether or not she
knew it, this would be the first influence of Ralph as a performer, composer, and
theatre goofball.
At age 3 Ralph's parents introduced him to the violin. At 5 he became a pianist
and at age 7 he wrote his first piece entitled "The Princess and the Dragon".
Consisting of chords running up and down the length of the keys. Ralph's
parents humored him and encouraged friends and family to ask him to perform
his original piece but little did they know this choice would lead him down the
road of death, destruction, and poverty into the world of theatre and music.
During high school he was molded by several amazing teachers featuring the
incredible Marilyn Foree & Diva Diane Heustead. He delved deep into music
theory, Seaman High School show choir (yes that is the name of the school...)
and composition while participating in high school productions of God's
Favorite, The Nerd, and his set destructive role of Kenickie in Grease.
In college he attended classes for Music Education and refused to follow the suggestions of his esteemed professors. Instead he continued to create original "compositions" focusing on his band The Velvet Hammers instead of his very very very expensive college experience. After almost dropping out his sophomore year and running off to Alaska to live with the meeses (that's plural for mooses) the gods intercepted and showed him the path he was destined for.
You find yourself now out in a park, during Kansas 100 degree heat, several dozen children screaming and dying dramatically, and one camp counselor Gilligan (our hero Ralph Krumins) cackling joyously- realizing this was what was meant for his life. Helen Hocker Theatre camp taught him the joy of teaching and creating Theatre for Young Audiences. After teaching several summers, while refusing to grow up and get a real job, he finished his college degree from Washburn University with a Bachelor of Integrated studies degree in Theatre/Music, or as his father put it "A degree that will take even longer to pay off student loans." (Sarcasm is hard to write for online bios)
During his college years Ralph was a highly versatile actor tackling roles ranging from Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde in Jekyll & Hyde "makes the transformation from Jekyll to Hyde through pure art", Jerry Lukowski in The Full Monty "wonderful and touching", Buddy Holly in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story "an eerily spot-on Buddy Holly...and blows the tin roof off the place", Lysander in Midsummer's Night Dream "too good to even have a real quote"*, and Matamore from The Illusion which is still the main image for Washburn University's Theatre department of theatre brochure (Oooo He's a big deal!) He capped off his illustrious education with his senior project The Clumsy Duckling his first original musical.
Choosing to pass on walking across the stage to get his degree he decided to pounce on his first professional acting gig at Great Plains Theatre. While contracted for the summer production of Rumors, Ralph reached out to the artistic director at the time to inquire about summer camp outreach with children. To which the AD replied "Please, by all means. I don't want to have to deal with that sh-" and Ralph was onboard! That summer he began his career as Education Director with the original production of Mall Ratz inspired by the youth. When asked what makes them happy, they puzzledly looked at each other until one girl raised her hand and said "I like to shop." (The future of America folks)
Following that smash hit, he continued to perform in productions of South Pacific, Guys & Dolls, Much Ado About Nothing, and again Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. He also continued to create original musicals including The Adventures of Prince Cess & Lady Struction and a workshopped musical adaptation of The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
After 30 years Ralph decided it was necessary to put a little distance between his home state of Kansas and himself so he packed his bags and ventured off to Gyeonggi-do English Village in Paju, South Korea to join The Edutainers. (cute name right? Education/Entertainer. Dawww) During his limited run he created original material for Ambush: The Capture of Billy the Kid and Rapunzel in the Wild West.
Returning to the states Ralph signed on with Sierra Repertory Theatre as their new education director. He was also seen on stage in Hank Williams: Lost Highway "playing the endearing Hoss character, holding the backbone rhythm with skill and style", The Music Man "giving a suave performance as the fake band teacher" , and, of course, again, Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story "Krumins leads this strong cast with an impeccable knack and nuance for Buddy." As education director Ralph continued to create TYA productions including Jason & The Argonauts, The Littlest Pirate, Dino-RAWR and The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. "[Ralph Krumins] shows children that 'theater and fun go hand in hand.'"
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Ralph is currently, at the University of Central Florida working towards his Master in Fine Arts in Theatre for Young Audiences. Exploring new and creative ways to create connections to theatre for youth and adults, he is constantly looking for the perfect opportunity to create a groundbreaking show with the tune "Mitzy, Mitzy, Mitzy, do you love me?"
*not a real quote.
