Pioneer Playhouse
Encyclopedia
The Pioneer Playhouse, located in Danville, Kentucky
, is the oldest outdoor theater in the state of Kentucky
.
, Lee Majors
, then known as Harvey Yeary, and Jim Varney
. In 1962, Pioneer Playhouse became the first theater in the nation to be accorded the legal status of State Theater by act of Legislation.
Since Henson's death in 2004 the theater has been run by Henson's widow, Charlotte. Her daughter Holly serves as artistic director
. Robby Henson, her son, directs at least one play at the theater every summer.
Danville, Kentucky
Danville is a city in and the county seat of Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 16,218 at the 2010 census.Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Boyle and Lincoln counties....
, is the oldest outdoor theater in the state of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
History
The Pioneer Playhouse was built by Col. Eben C. Henson who established the outdoor theater in 1950. Notable alumni actors include John TravoltaJohn Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
, Lee Majors
Lee Majors
Lee Majors is an American television, film and voice actor, best known for his starring role as Colonel Steve Austin in The Six Million Dollar Man and as Colt Seavers in The Fall Guy ....
, then known as Harvey Yeary, and Jim Varney
Jim Varney
James Albert "Jim" Varney, Jr. was an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, writer, voice artist, and comedian, best known for his role as Ernest P...
. In 1962, Pioneer Playhouse became the first theater in the nation to be accorded the legal status of State Theater by act of Legislation.
Since Henson's death in 2004 the theater has been run by Henson's widow, Charlotte. Her daughter Holly serves as artistic director
Artistic director
An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
. Robby Henson, her son, directs at least one play at the theater every summer.
Productions
- 2010
- A Nice Family Gathering by Phil Olson
- Miranda: The Catch of the Day (Adapted from Miranda, by Peter Blackmore)
- The Dillinger Dilemma (World Premiere by Elizabeth Orndorff)
- For Better by Eric CobleEric CobleEric Coble is a playwright and screenwriter. He is a member of the Playwrights' Unit of the Cleveland Play House.Eric Coble was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and raised on the Navajo and Ute reservations in New Mexico and Colorado...
The production was directed by Katherine M. Carter - Run for Your Wife by Ray CooneyRay CooneyRaymond George Alfred Cooney, OBE is an English playwright and actor. His biggest success, Run for Your Wife, lasted nine years in London's West End and is its longest-running comedy. He has had 17 of his plays performed there....
The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher
- 2009
- M is for Million by Jack Sharkey
- The Infamous Ephraim by Holly Henson
- Lend Me a TenorLend Me a TenorLend Me a Tenor is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End and Broadway . Although it received seven Tony Award nominations, it won only one, for Best Actor. A Broadway revival opened in 2010. Lend Me a Tenor has been translated into sixteen languages and produced in...
by Ken LudwigKen LudwigKen Ludwig is an American playwright and theatre director.Born in York, Pennsylvania, Ludwig was educated at the York Suburban Senior High School, York PA Haverford College , Harvard Law School, and Trinity College at Cambridge University... - Girl CrazyGirl CrazyGirl Crazy is a 1930 musical with music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin and book by Guy Bolton and John McGowan. Ethel Merman made her stage debut in this musical production....
by Guy BoltonGuy BoltonGuy Reginald Bolton was a British-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the U.S., he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred working in collaboration with others, principally the English writers P. G...
& John McGowanJohn McGowanJohn McGowan may refer to:*John McGowan , former Ontario MPP and member of the Canadian House of Commons*Jack McGowan , Broadway writer, performer and producer... - Be My BabyBe My Baby"Be My Baby" is a 1963 single written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, performed by The Ronettes and produced by Spector. When released as a single, the song reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the UK's Record Retailer...
by Ken LudwigKen LudwigKen Ludwig is an American playwright and theatre director.Born in York, Pennsylvania, Ludwig was educated at the York Suburban Senior High School, York PA Haverford College , Harvard Law School, and Trinity College at Cambridge University...
- 2008
- Leading LadiesLeading LadiesLeading Ladies is a theatrical comedy play by Ken Ludwig.-Synopsis:Set in York, Pennsylvania in 1958, this farce centers on two down-on-their-luck Shakespearean actors, Leo Clark and Jack Gable...
by Ken LudwigKen LudwigKen Ludwig is an American playwright and theatre director.Born in York, Pennsylvania, Ludwig was educated at the York Suburban Senior High School, York PA Haverford College , Harvard Law School, and Trinity College at Cambridge University... - Mornings at Seven by Paul OsbornPaul OsbornPaul Osborn was an American playwright and screenwriter best known for writing the screen adaptation of East of Eden as well as South Pacific, The Yearling, The World of Suzie Wong and Sayonara....
. - Death by Darkness by Elizabeth Orndorff. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher.
- Love, Sex and the IRS by Billy Van ZandtBilly Van ZandtWilliam "Billy" Van Zandt is an American playwright and actor.-Personal life:Van Zandt was born in Red Bank, New Jersey, the son of Mary H. Lento and William Brewster Van Zandt. He is of Italian and Dutch descent...
and Jane Milmore. The production was directed by Synge Maher. - Cookin' with Gus by Jim BrochuJim BrochuJim Brochu is an American actor, writer, director, and playwright. Born in Brooklyn, he studied at Carnegie-Mellon University and received his B.A. from St. Francis College. His stage debut was in a production of William Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew...
. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher.
- Leading Ladies
- 2007
- Babe, The Sheep Pig by David WoodDavid Wood (actor)David Wood OBE is an English-born actor and writer, called "the National Children's Dramatist" by The Times.He was educated at Chichester High School For Boys and Worcester College, Oxford....
. The production was directed by Robby Henson. - The Servant of Two Masters by Carlo GoldoniCarlo GoldoniCarlo Osvaldo Goldoni was an Italian playwright and librettist from the Republic of Venice. His works include some of Italy's most famous and best-loved plays. Audiences have admired the plays of Goldoni for their ingenious mix of wit and honesty...
. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. - The Odd CoupleThe Odd CoupleThe Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. - A Jarful of Fireflies by Catherine BushCatherine BushCatherine Bush is a Canadian novelist.- Biography :Born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, she attended Yale University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Literature....
. The production was directed by Robby Henson. - Greater TunaGreater TunaGreater Tuna is the first in a series of 4 comedic plays , each set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, the "third-smallest" town in the state. The series was written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard...
by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, & Ed Howard
- Babe, The Sheep Pig by David Wood
- 2006
- My Sister EileenMy Sister EileenMy Sister Eileen originated as a series of short stories by Ruth McKenney that eventually evolved into a book, a play, a musical, a radio play , two films, and a CBS television series in the 1960-1961 season....
by Joseph A. Fields & Jerome ChodorovJerome ChodorovJerome Chodorov was an American playwright and librettist.-Biography:He was born in New York City, and entered journalism in the 1930s. He is best known for his 1940 play My Sister Eileen, its 1942 screen adaptation, and the musical Wonderful Town, which based on his play. Joseph A. Fields was... - RumorsRumorsRumors is a farcical play by Neil Simon.At its start, several affluent couples gather in the posh suburban residence of a couple for a dinner party celebrating their hosts' tenth anniversary. When they arrive, they discover there are no servants, the hostess is missing, and the host - the deputy...
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that... - Shakespeare in Hollywood by Ken LudwigKen LudwigKen Ludwig is an American playwright and theatre director.Born in York, Pennsylvania, Ludwig was educated at the York Suburban Senior High School, York PA Haverford College , Harvard Law School, and Trinity College at Cambridge University...
- Wait Until DarkWait Until DarkWait Until Dark is a play by Frederick Knott.-Synopsis:Susy Hendrix is a blind Greenwich Village housewife who becomes the target of three con-men searching for the heroin hidden in a doll, which her husband Sam innocently transported from Canada as a favor to a woman who has since been murdered...
by Frederick KnottFrederick KnottFrederick Major Paull Knott was an English playwright, best known for writing the London-based stage thriller Dial M for Murder, which was later filmed in Hollywood by Alfred Hitchcock.... - Social SecuritySocial Security (play)Social Security is a play by Andrew Bergman.It focuses on trendy Manhattan art gallery owners Barbara and David Kahn, whose life is upended when her Mineola housewife sister Trudy deposits their eccentric mother Sophie on the couple's doorstep while she and her husband Martin head to Buffalo to...
by Andrew BergmanAndrew BergmanAndrew Bergman is an American screenwriter, film director, and novelist. New York magazine in 1985 dubbed him "The Unknown King of Comedy".He graduated from Binghamton University and earned a Ph.D...
- My Sister Eileen
- 2005
- On the RazzleOn the Razzle"On the razzle" is a euphemism often used in the British press to describe the actions of a celebrity who has drunk, or is about to drink, a considerable amount of alcohol...
by Tom StoppardTom StoppardSir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and... - Squabbles by Marshall Karp
- The Man Who Came to DinnerThe Man Who Came to DinnerThe Man Who Came to Dinner is a comedy in three acts by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It debuted on October 16, 1939 at the Music Box Theatre in New York City. It then enjoyed a number of New York and London revivals. The first London production was staged at The Savoy Theatre starring Robert...
by Moss HartMoss HartMoss Hart was an American playwright and theatre director, best known for his interpretations of musical theater on Broadway.-Early years:...
& George S. KaufmanGeorge S. KaufmanGeorge Simon Kaufman was an American playwright, theatre director and producer, humorist, and drama critic. In addition to comedies and political satire, he wrote several musicals, notably for the Marx Brothers... - The Last of Jane Austen by Shirl Hendryx
- Death by Golf by Gregg Kreutz
- On the Razzle
- 2004
- Cactus Flower by Abe BurrowsAbe BurrowsAbe Burrows was a Tony and Pulitzer-winning American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:...
- Mr. Shaw Goes to Hollywood by Mark SaltzmanMark SaltzmanMark Saltzman began his career in New York City as a script writer and songwriter for Sesame Street, where he earned seven Emmy awards.-Early career:...
- Biloxi BluesBiloxi BluesBiloxi Blues is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon. The second chapter in what is known as his Eugene trilogy, it follows Brighton Beach Memoirs and precedes Broadway Bound....
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
- Cactus Flower by Abe Burrows
- 2003
- Impossible Marriage by Beth HenleyBeth HenleyElizabeth Becker "Beth" Henley is an American dramatist and actress. She writes primarily about women's issues and family in the Southern United States. She is also a screenwriter who has written many film adaptations of her plays...
- ProposalsProposals (play)Proposals is a play by Neil Simon. Incidental music was written by Stephen Flaherty.A nostalgic memory play, Proposals recalls one idyllic afternoon in the summer of 1953, the last time the Hines clan gathers at its retreat in the Poconos. Clemma, the family's housekeeper , dreads a visit from the...
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that... - SylviaSylvia (play)Sylvia is a play about a dog, the couple who adopts her,and the drama that results. It was written by A. R. Gurney and first produced in 1995....
by A.R. Gurney
- Impossible Marriage by Beth Henley
- 1995
- Tom Jones
- HarveyHarvey (play)Harvey is a 1944 play by American playwright Mary Chase. Produced by Brock Pemberton and directed by Antoinette Perry, the play premiered on 1 November 1944 at the 48th Street Theatre on Broadway where it was staged for 1,775 performances before closing on January 15, 1949. The original production...
by Mary ChaseMary ChaseMary Chase may refer to:*Mary Chase , American author of fourteen plays, mostly comedies, one of which, Harvey, ran on Broadway for four years and earned her 1945 Pulitzer Prize for Drama... - My Fat FriendMy Fat FriendMy Fat Friend is a play by Charles Laurence.The comedy is an ugly duckling tale about an overweight young woman who attracts the attention of a potential suitor...
by Charles LaurenceCharles Laurence-Early life:Charles Laurence was born Carlos Felipes in Tangiers on 10 January 1931 when it was an International Zone, to a Swiss-Scottish mother and a Gibraltarian father of Spanish-Italian decent. Until the age of seven he spoke only French and Spanish. He learned English as well when the family...