Penobscot Theatre Company

Penobscot Theatre Company (PTC), is located in Bangor, Maine. It operates year-round in the historic Bangor Opera House, producing original and classic theatre works. Annually, the theater generally produces five mainstage shows, two musicals, various limited engagement concerts and performances, and several productions by their education program, The Dramatic Academy.

History

Penobscot Theatre Company began as the Acadia Repertory Theatre founded in 1973 by George Vafiadis and Lou Collier. Acadia Repertory Theatre presented 97 productions in Bangor before Penobscot Theatre Company was incorporated as a 501(c)3 on March 17, 1983. The School For Wives was the first play officially produced by PTC.

George Vafiadis served as PTC's Producing Director from 1983 through 1990. Kenneth Stack was PTC's Artistic Director from 1983 to 1989.

In 1986, Penobscot Theatre fundraised $160,000 for the purchase and renovation of the historic parish house (built in 1888 at 183 Main Street) that it had been renting from the church next door. The theatre sold the parish house to Merrill Bank in 2004.

Joe Turner Cantu became Artistic Director in 1990 and remained in that position through 1992. Mark Torres was next named Producing Artistic Director[1] and stayed in that position for the next 13 seasons.[2] Under Torres' leadership, the theater reorganized to operate with paid professionals, tripled the budget and increased attendance to more than 15,000 annually. Torres also started the Maine Shakespeare Festival, which performed on the banks of the Penobscot River for seven summers.

Bangor Opera House

In 1997, Penobscot Theatre Company acquired the Bangor Opera House, located at 131 Main Street, which now serves as the company's base of operations. The Opera House was built in 1920 and is an early example of Art Deco/Egyptian Revival architecture.

In 2005, the board hired Scott R.C. Levy as Producing Artistic Director and he served until mid-2011. During this time, Penobscot Theatre Company toured the state, started the Northern Writes New Play Festival, and restored the façade of the Bangor Opera House. After Levy’s departure, the board instituted a new dual leadership structure, and hired Marcie Bramucci as Managing Director and Bari Newport as Artistic Director.

Bramucci left the company in 2013 and Newport's title was subsequently changed to Producing Artistic Director. Former oard president, Mary Budd, assumed the role of Executive Director. She remained with the company for five years. During that time, Penobscot Theatre Company became the largest non-profit arts organization in the region, with an annual budget of $1.75M.

Today Penobscot Theatre Company operates on an AEA SPT-7/9 contract, sells more than 40,000 tickets annually and reaches over 7,000 youth through its Dramatic Academy. Kathryn Ravenscraft was hired in 2019 as executive director.

References
  1. "Arts Beat". Dallas Morning News. October 10, 1992. Retrieved 2009-07-14.
  2. ""Noises Off" is worth the noise". Ellsworth American. April 28, 2005. Retrieved 2009-07-14.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.