Seattle Repertory Theatre facts for kids
Seattle Rep (which stands for Seattle Repertory Theatre) is a big theater in Seattle, Washington. You can find it at the Seattle Center, a fun place with lots to see. Seattle Rep started in 1963. It's a special theater because it won a Tony Award in 1990! Today, Dámaso Rodríguez is the Artistic Director, and Jeffrey Herrmann is the Managing Director.
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History of Seattle Rep
How it Started (1960s)
Seattle Rep's first home was the Seattle Playhouse. This building was made for the 1962 Century 21 Exposition, which was Seattle's World's Fair. An actor named Hal Holbrook thought the Playhouse would be a great spot for a theater company.
A Seattle businessman, Bagley Wright, and others helped raise money. They found leaders to start what became Seattle Repertory Theatre. Stuart Vaughan was the first artistic director. The very first play, King Lear, opened on November 14, 1963.
Some early actors included Marjorie Nelson and John Gilbert. They became very important in theater in the Pacific Northwest. In 1966, Allen Fletcher became the second artistic director. Seattle Rep even performed at the Bergen International Festival in Norway in 1968!
Growing Bigger (1970s)
In 1970, Peter Donnelly became the producing director. W. Duncan Ross became the artistic director. In 1972, Seattle Rep won the Washington State Governor's Arts Award. This showed how important they were to the arts in the state.
They started a summer tour program called "Rep ‘n' Rap." A new series called "The 2nd Stage" also began. People in Seattle raised money for a brand new theater. They gathered $5.8 million, and building started in 1977.
In 1979, Seattle Rep began its education programs. They sent a "Mobile Outreach Bunch" (MOB) to schools. This group toured Washington and Idaho with a show called The Energy Show.
New Home and Awards (1980s)
In 1981, Daniel Sullivan became the artistic director. On December 29, 1981, they broke ground for the new Bagley Wright Theater. This new theater opened in 1983. The first play there was The Ballad of Soapy Smith.
In 1984, a play called I'm Not Rappaport opened here. It later moved to Broadway in New York City. Seattle Rep also started "Dollar Theatre" where tickets were very cheap. In 1988, two new plays, Largely/New York and Eastern Standard, premiered here. The next year, The Heidi Chronicles, which won a Pulitzer Prize, also started at Seattle Rep.
Winning a Tony (1990s)
In 1990, Seattle Rep won a huge award: a Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre! This was a big honor. A play called Inspecting Carol was created by Daniel Sullivan and the theater company. It later went on a national tour.
Other new plays premiered here, like Conversations With My Father by Herb Gardner and London Suite by Neil Simon. In 1995, Seattle Rep helped create The Cider House Rules. This play was based on a famous book by John Irving.
In 1996, another new theater, the Leo Kreielsheimer Theater (called the "Leo K."), opened. Sharon Ott became the artistic director in 1997. A play about Leonardo da Vinci was staged in the new Leo K. Theater.
Into the New Century (2000s)
The famous comedian Lily Tomlin performed her one-woman show, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, at Seattle Rep. It then went to Broadway. In 2001, Seattle Rep helped bring Peter Brook's Hamlet to Seattle.
That same year, Daniel Sullivan came back to direct Proof. He won a Tony Award for directing this play on Broadway. Seattle Rep also started a big fundraising effort called an "Endowment Campaign." In 2003, Seattle Rep celebrated its 40th Anniversary Season!
David Esbjornson became artistic director in 2005. Many new plays premiered during this time. In 2006, they honored August Wilson, a famous playwright, by performing parts of all ten of his plays. Jerry Manning took over as artistic director in 2009.
Recent Years (2010s)
In 2012, Seattle Rep celebrated its 50th anniversary season! That's half a century of theater! In 2014, Braden Abraham became the 10th Artistic Director. Jeffrey Herrmann became the managing director.
In 2017, a special show called Here Lies Love by David Byrne was performed. For this play, they had to remove all the seats from the main floor of the Bagley Wright Theatre! This was to fit the unique style of the show.
Education Programs
Seattle Rep has cool programs to help kids learn about theater. In 2007, they started "Bringing Theatre into the Classroom" (BTiC). This program works with other local theaters. It helps teachers in kindergarten through 12th grade use theater in their lessons. The program got a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The theater also has an internship program. This is for college students who want to learn about working in theater.
Stages at Seattle Rep
Seattle Rep has three main performance spaces. Each one is designed for different types of shows.
Bagley Wright Theater
The Bagley Wright Theater is the main stage. It opened in 1983. It's named after Bagley Wright, who was very important in starting Seattle Rep. This theater has a traditional proscenium stage. This means the audience sits in front of the stage, like looking through a picture frame.
The Bagley Wright Theater can hold 678 people. The stage is about 65 feet (20 meters) from the very last row of seats.
Leo K. Theater
The Leo Kreielsheimer Theater, or "Leo K.", opened in 1996. It's Seattle Rep's "second stage." This theater was made possible by a big gift from The Kreielsheimer Foundation.
The Leo K. Theater has 282 seats. There are 192 seats on the main floor. Another 90 seats are on the balcony level. The stage is about 25 feet (7.6 meters) from the back wall. This makes for a more up-close and personal theater experience.
PONCHO Forum
The PONCHO Forum is a smaller space. It has 133 seats. The seating is set up like stadium seating, where each row is a bit higher than the one in front. This helps everyone see the stage well.
