Summer stock theatre

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Summer Stock is also the title of a 1950 musical motion picture starring Judy Garland.

A summer stock theatre is a theater that generally produces plays only in the summertime. The name combines the seasonal aspect with a tradition of putting on the same shows each year and reusing "stock" scenery and costumes. Some smaller theaters still continue this tradition, and a few summer stock theaters have become highly regarded theatre festivals. Equity status and pay for actors in these theaters varies greatly, sometimes resulting in sub-minimum wage pay for acting "interns." Often viewed as a starting point for professional actors, stock casts are typically young, just out of high school or still in college.

Summer stock theatres frequently take advantage of better weather by having their productions outdoors. The reliance on stock often leads summer theaters to specialize in a particular type of production, such as Shakespeare plays, musicals, or even opera. Some notable summer theaters include: Calgary & Toronto Summerstock Theatre Festival, Utah Shakespearean Festival, Santa Fe Opera, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Glimmerglass Opera, and Vancouver's Bard on the Beach.

The heyday of summer stock took place in the 40s, 50s and 60s, when a solid circuit of indoor theaters in New England-- dubbed the "straw hat circuit"--provided a training ground for the country's best actors and great, cheap entertainment for millions of vacationing East Coast urbanites. Plays and musicals that had closed during the previous season on Broadway would hit the circuit, which included the Ogunquit and Skowhegan Playhouses in Maine; Cape Playhouse in Dennis, MA; the Woodstock Playhouse in that upstate New York City; Falmouth Playhouse in Massachusetts; and the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope (suburban Philadelphia), PA. The Westport COuntry Playhouse, since purchased by and now operated with the support of Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman, was also part of the summer stock circuit.

Stars of Broadway and television would regularly spend summers on this circuit. The Council of Stock Theatres (COST) negotiated a special contract with Actors Equity Association to cover the work of actors and stage managers. Touring companies would carry hand props, costumes to each venue, where sound, lights and set would be awaiting them. Engagements usually lasted a week (Tues-Sunday, 8 shows). A similar circuit was set up in Florida during the winter. Venues included the Royal Poinciana Playhouse, the Parker Playhouse in Ft Lauderdale. John Kenley, a famous Ohio-based producer, ran his own summer stock circuit in Dayton, Akron and Canton, OH. Hardly a summer went by in America's mid-section when Paul Lynde, Gordon MacRae or Patrice Munsel didn't show up to star in stock.

In a song in broadway musical The Producers, Max Bialystock states he was "the first producer ever to do Summer Stock in the winter", alluding to his desperation for hit shows.