The Barn Theatre
42°19′31″N 85°22′22″W / 42.32535°N 85.37275°W The Barn Theatre in Augusta, Michigan, Kalamazoo County, United States is one of the oldest summer stock theatres in the United States[1] and the oldest one in Michigan.[2][3] It also houses The Barn Theatre School.
The barn theatre is just off the State Highway 96 by Augusta.[2]
The theatre originated in 1946 when Jack Ragotzy, Betty Ebert and others formed the Village Players troupe. After playing several seasons in a community hall in a former Methodist church (in Richland[2]), in 1949 Jack and Betty moved a dairy barn, which was converted into a theatre and was purchased by them in 1954.[4] It was incorporated as "The Barn Theatre" in 1949.[2][3] In 1951 it became an Equity theatre.[2]
Its first show was the Finian's Rainbow musical.[5]
Notable performers
[edit]A number of notable performers made appearances at The Barn, including:
- Dana Delany[6]
- Marin Mazzie[6] was an apprentice in The Barn[7]
- Michael Reno began his professional career at The Barn; he premiered his musical Revelation there in 1976[8]
- Tom Wopat[6]
- Wayne Lamb was a performer, choreographer and a producer at The Barn since 1955 for over 23 years.[9][10]
The Barn Theatre School lists the following persons, in addition to the above ones, in their "Wall of Fame": John Newton, Adrienne Barbeau, Becky Ann Baker, Lauren Graham, Jonathan Larson, Robert Newman, and Jennifer Garner.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ Bill Semion, WITH SUMMER COMES THEATER TIME, Chicago Tribune, 15 April 2000
- ^ a b c d e Barn Theatre, The Historical Marker Database
- ^ a b Theatre History: The Barne Theatre
- ^ History of the Barn Theatre School
- ^ Augusta Barn celebrates 65 years of hits, Between the Lines, June 9, 2011
- ^ a b c Edward Hoogterp, West Michigan Almanac, 2006, p. 326
- ^ "2000 Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient: Marin Mazzie". WMU Alumni Association. Archived from the original on October 7, 2008.
- ^ Stockdale, Joe (2002). Man in the Spangled Pants. Allegan Forest, Michigan: The Priscilla Press. pp. 131–140. ISBN 1-886167-17-6.
- ^ "Wayne Lamb", a Purdue University webpage
- ^ Barn Theatre Archives, 1978 Barn Theatre program bio.
- ^ Introducing our Wall of Fame (retrieved January 17, 2023)
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