Berkshire Theatre Festival facts for kids
|
Berkshire Playhouse, Berkshire Theatre Festival
|
|
The Red Barn at the Berkshire Theatre Festival
|
|
| Address | Stockbridge, Massachusetts United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 42°16′55″N 73°18′04″W / 42.282036°N 73.301226°W |
| Owner | Non-profit Organization |
| Opened | 1928 |
| Website | |
| http://www.berkshiretheatre.org/ | |
The Berkshire Theatre Group is a famous performing arts center. It is located in the beautiful Berkshires region of Massachusetts. This theater group is one of the oldest professional venues around. It will celebrate 100 years of theater in 2028.
Contents
History of the Berkshire Theatre Group
The main building of the Berkshire Theatre Group has a long history. It was first built in 1887. It was known as the Stockbridge Casino. A famous architect named Stanford White designed it. For a while, it was a very popular social spot in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
Saving the Casino Building
By 1927, the casino building was not being used much. A woman named Mabel Choate bought the property. She paid $2,000 for it. However, she was not interested in the casino building itself. She wanted to move another historic building, the Mission House, to the property.
Three important people from Stockbridge decided to save the casino. They were sculptor Daniel Chester French, artist Walter Leighton Clark, and Dr. Austen Fox Riggs. They formed a group called the Three Arts Society. Mabel Choate sold the building to them for just $1. But there was a condition: they had to move the building. The Three Arts Society agreed. They took the building apart and moved it to its current spot.
Opening the Berkshire Playhouse
After a lot of work, the building reopened on June 4, 1928. It was given a new name: the Berkshire Playhouse. The first show was "The Cradle Song." A famous actress named Eva Le Gallienne starred in it.
Many well-known actors have performed here. These include James Cagney, Lillian Gish, and Katharine Hepburn. Even the silent film star Buster Keaton performed on its stage.
Becoming a Non-Profit Theater
In 1967, the Three Arts Society group ended. The Berkshire Playhouse became a non-profit organization. It was renamed the Berkshire Theatre Festival. This meant it would focus on art and education, not just making money.
In 1982, the Berkshire Theatre Festival bought another property. It was the Beaupré Performing Arts Center. They renamed it the Lavan Center. This new space was used for students. It had dorms, classrooms, and performance areas. It helped train young actors and theater workers.
The Unicorn Theatre
In 1993, the festival started offering more plays. These were held in the Unicorn Theatre. This theater had been used for many years for different shows. It hosted small plays and workshops.
The Unicorn Theatre was completely rebuilt in 1996. The first play in the new building was "L-Play" by Beth Henley.
Merging to Form Berkshire Theatre Group
In 2010, the Berkshire Theatre Festival joined with The Colonial Theatre. The Colonial Theatre is in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Together, they formed the Berkshire Theatre Group.
The original Berkshire Playhouse building is very important. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. This means it is a protected historic site.
Amazing Performances Over the Years
For over 80 years, the Berkshire Theatre Festival has put on many shows. They have produced more than 550 full plays. These include old favorites, classic stories, and brand new plays. It truly is a "Festival" of theater.
More than 2,100 actors have worked at the BTF. They have performed in over 6,000 shows. Many of these actors have won big awards. Some have won Emmys for TV, Oscars for movies, and Tonys for Broadway shows. Many playwrights who worked here have also won important awards. These include the Pulitzer Prize and even the Nobel Prize.
Famous Artists Who Performed Here
Many famous people have performed at the Berkshire Theatre Group over the years. Here are some of them:
- Buster Keaton
- Ethel Barrymore
- Thornton Wilder
- Calista Flockhart
- Christopher Walken in The Rain Maker
- Al Pacino in Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie (1967)
- Dustin Hoffman in Fragments (1966)
- Gene Hackman in Fragments (1966)
- Karen Allen
- Linda Hamilton
- Jeffrey Donovan in Toys in the Attic (2000)
- Randy Harrison in Equus, Amadeus, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Mrs. Warren's Profession, Waiting for Godot, Ghosts, The Endgame, and The Who's Tommy
- Kate Baldwin in A Little Night Music (2014), What the Constitution Means to Me (2023)
- Christine Lahti in the world premiere of The Smile of Her (2023)
