Deertrees Theatre facts for kids
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| Address | Deertrees Road Harrison, Maine United States |
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| Coordinates | 44°7′3″N 70°39′54″W / 44.11750°N 70.66500°W |
| Owner | Deertrees Foundation |
| Designation | National Register of Historic Places |
| Type | Summer Theatre |
| Capacity | 299 |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1935 |
| Opened | August 15, 1936 |
| Architect | Harrison G. Wiseman |
| Builder | George Locke |
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Deertrees Theatre
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| Architectural style | Late 19th And Early 20th Century American Movements, Rustic |
| NRHP reference No. | 88003002 |
| Added to NRHP | January 5, 1989 |
The Deertrees Theatre is a special place for performing arts in Harrison, Maine, United States. A famous opera director named Enrica Clay Dillon started it in 1936. Today, a group called the Deertrees Foundation owns and runs it.
Deertrees is known as one of the busiest summer theatres in the Northeast. It hosts the Deertrees Theatre Festival, the Sebago-Long Lake Music Festival, an art gallery, and a cafe. The theatre is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which means it's an important historical building.
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The Theatre's Unique Design
The Deertrees Theatre was designed by Harrison G. Wiseman and built by George Locke. It was made in a style called Adirondack, using wood from trees grown right on the property. The main arch over the stage, called the proscenium arch, was made from whole tree trunks. All the wooden beams, doors, and even the light fixtures were carved by hand.
The building had a clever design. The part where the audience sat could be moved forward. This allowed adding more seats if needed. It also had a large space for a thirty-member orchestra pit. The stage was the same size as the famous Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. This meant it had top-notch equipment for its time. Two big barn doors behind the stage could open up. This created a real forest as a backdrop for performances.
Amazing Acoustics
The theatre also has amazing sound quality, called acoustics. More than sixty years after it opened, a music critic noticed this. He thought the way the rough hemlock wood and strong beams were put together made the theatre act like a giant musical instrument. This helps sounds travel perfectly without echoes.
A Look at Deertrees Theatre's History
The Deertrees Theatre officially opened on August 15, 1936. The first show featured a reading from the play Cyrano de Bergerac. Only two more shows happened that summer. But the next year, Deertrees became a popular spot on the "straw hat circuit" (a term for summer theatres). It put on four different plays and a musical comedy. These shows featured professional actors led by Ms. Dillon.
The Broadway Era
In 1938, the theatre was closed. But it reopened in 1939 under a new leader, Bela Blau, a well-known Broadway producer. Blau advertised "A New Play - A New Broadway A Star Every Week." He brought in famous Broadway actors from New York City every week. Some of these stars included Ethel Barrymore, Tallulah Bankhead, and Rudy Vallée. A young David Merrick, who later became a famous producer, worked there as an apprentice. Local actors helped fill smaller roles. Blau also ran a school for theatre designers at Deertrees.
Opera and War Years
After Bela Blau passed away in 1940, Ms. Dillon returned to her love of opera. She started The Deertrees Opera Company. This company helped train young singers, including future stars like Astrid Varnay. The opera company continued until 1942. After a benefit concert for the Red Cross and U.S.O. on August 31, the theatre closed because of World War II. In 1946, Ms. Dillon announced the theatre would reopen. However, her health declined, and the theatre closed again later that year.
New Management and Changes
In 1949, a New York lawyer named A. L. Sainer took over. His brother-in-law, actor Robert Harris, managed the theatre. Harris brought in actors from Broadway and Hollywood. They mostly performed light comedies. But they also put on serious plays like The Heiress and The Glass Menagerie. In 1951, Harris went back to Hollywood, and the theatre closed once more.
In 1953, The Boothbay Playhouse Corporation bought the theatre. They wanted to help local theatre groups. For two years, they presented great theatre companies from New England. But attendance wasn't strong, and in 1956, the theatre was sold to Mrs. Aya Sholley.
Mrs. Sholley hired Emily Perry Bishop as the director. They had a small group of actors who performed different plays, including shows for children. But by 1959, fewer people were coming, and costs were rising. The theatre did not open in 1960 and 1961.
Television Stars and College Programs
In 1962, Deertrees Theatre became popular again. New managers brought in actors from television. Ann B. Davis (who played Schultzy on The Bob Cummings Show) opened the season. Other performers included Shirley Knight and Fabian. But this excitement didn't last, and the theatre closed at the end of that year. It stayed closed for two years.
In 1965, Mrs. Sholley gave the theatre to Emerson College in Boston. The college used it as a place for students to learn about and perform in summer theatre. Students like Andrea Martin worked there during these years. Emerson College continued this program until 1969. Then, they sold the theatre to a former student, David Maturi.
Maturi's group continued to use Emerson students for actors and crew. They put on comedies and musicals like The Odd Couple and Mame. However, attendance dropped again, and costs increased. The theatre closed in 1971.
Reopening and the Deertrees Foundation
After being closed for three years, a former student of Enrica Clay Dillon, Judith Ritter, bought the theatre in 1975. The season opened with an opera company performing Così fan tutte. For the next three years, the theatre alternated between plays and operas. The Maine Opera Association even made Deertrees its official home in 1977.
In 1979, Frank Best leased the theatre. He formed the Deertrees Performing Arts Festival as a non-profit group. But his plans for opera, theatre, and concerts didn't work out, and the theatre closed again.
By the mid-1980s, the theatre was empty and seemed forgotten. The town of Harrison even thought about burning the building down for fire department practice. Luckily, a group of people, led by Dr. Al Mills and Sally MacAuslan, stepped in to save it. They formed the Deertrees Foundation to fix up the building and its grounds. In 1990, the theatre opened its doors once more.
What Deertrees Theatre Does Today
The Deertrees Theatre aims to offer many different cultural events. It wants to present high-quality shows at prices people can afford. It also works to keep the theatre's long and famous history alive.
Today, Deertrees Theatre is open every year from late June to early September. It presents a wide variety of shows. These include plays, opera, different kinds of music, comedy, and special programs for children.
See also
