The Community Theatre Podcast

By Mary Eliza Hendricks

Supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre, the Community Theatre Podcast is a theatre podcast for anyone. Its aimed at discussing topics and issues around community theatre, its limitations, its possibilities, what it could be, what we want it to be, and how to get there. Join me, Mary Eliza Hendricks, a theatre artist and general enthusiast about most things. We'll talk to guests, we'll ask questions, we'll do research, I'll tell bad jokes, we'll debate, and we'll tell stories. Come join the convo!

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Planting the Seed of a Safe Space- An interview with Seed Theatre!

The Community Theatre PodcastJun 28, 2023

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30:01

Planting the Seed of a Safe Space- An interview with Seed Theatre!

We speak with Elizabeth and Kai of the Seed Theatre about their mission, their variety of programming, the community they serve, and the importance of the safe space they provide. If you want to find out more about them, head over to their website https://b4ck.org/1433-2/. Thank you all for listening!

This podcast is produced by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and supported by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to http://theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (Me!). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com, I'd love to hear from you. Please send me your thoughts on the definition of community theatre! Or your experiences with community theatre. I will like both.

Jun 28, 202330:01

They popped in for an interview: Interview with the Pop-up Project

The Pop-Up Project Popped in for a wonderful interview about who they are and what they do. I've said since the beginning of this podcast that community theatre should support its community, but could it really the other way around? We discuss that and much more on this episode of the Community Theatre Podcast.

Check out the Pop-Up Project at: https://www.thepopupproject.org, or look them up on social media @thepopupproject on Facebook and Instagram.

Jan 10, 202322:04

Just a bunch of Amateurs?

Are they just a bunch of amateurs? Or are they so much more than what we think that means? This week we talk to volunteers at the Chattanooga Theatre Centre, who are performing in CTC's fall season. We talk about why they give their time to community theatre, why they do so at the theatre centre, what they think community theatre is, and what they get out of doing it. If you are interested in getting involved as an actor or performer in a production here at the Theatre Centre, keep a look out on the Facebook page, as well as the website under "get involved", for audition announcements!

Our guests today were: Beth McClary-Wolford, Adam Cash, Lilly Wright, and John Echols. Thank you all for your enlightening interviews. If you want to catch them onstage this coming month, their shows' schedules are below:

Sound of Music runs Sept 30-Oct 16, and August Osage County runs Oct 28-Nov 13.

You can get your tickets online at theatrecentre.com. If you are interested in volunteering to be in or work on one of our shows, keep an eye on the Facebook page for audition announcements, or call the box office at (423) 267-8534

Nov 15, 202225:34

Interview #2: Anne Rittenberry of the Signal Mountain Playhouse

An exciting interview with Anne Rittenberry from the Signal Mountain Playhouse Board! We talk about the history of SMPH, the benefits of a volunteer-lead theatre organization, the importance one expert can have, and the dedication of an audience watching live theatre from under an umbrella.

This podcast is supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to http://theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor, and Splice editing app. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (Me!). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com, I'd love to hear from you. Please send me your thoughts on the definition of community theatre! Or your experiences with community theatre. I will like both.

Aug 25, 202226:19

Interview #1: Rodney Van Valkenburg and the Chattanooga Theatre Centre

This week we have our first guest! Rodney Van Valkenburg, Executive Director of the Chattanooga Theatre Centre, talks about balancing quality with opportunity, expanding community engagement, and the necessity of emergency paint clothes in theatre.
This podcast is supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor, and Splice editing app. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (ME). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for me and the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com
Please send me your thoughts on the definition of community theatre! Or your experiences with community theatre. I will like both.

Jun 29, 202231:13

Ep. 3 Community Theatre- social activity or social activism? Why not both!

Today, we're going abroad and talking about some influences from social activism and government funding. Then we meet a hand puppet. Bon voyage!

This podcast is supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to http://theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor, and Splice editing app. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (ME). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for me and the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com

Please send me your thoughts on the definition of community theatre! Or your experiences with community theatre. I will like both.

Sources:

About Theatre of the Oppressed:

https://imaginaction.org/media/our-methods/theatre-of-the-oppressed-2

About Augusto Boal:

https://ptoweb.org/aboutpto/a-brief-biography-of-augusto-boal/

CETA's Wikipedia Pages:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CETA_Employment_of_Artists_(1974-1981)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Employment_and_Training_Act_(CETA)

About the San Fransisco Arts Commission:

https://www.sfartscommission.org/our-role-impact/press-room/press-release/recognizing-movement-changed-san-francisco-arts-forever

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1877916611000087

Interviews with the San Fransisco Arts Commission:

https://californiarevealed.org/islandora/object/cavpp%3A13454

About the UK Community Art's Movement:

https://collective-encounters.org.uk/centre-for-excellence/participatory-theatre-timeline/

Guerilla theatre:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guerrilla_theatre

Pickle Family Circus:

https://www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=Pickle_Family_Circus:_Origins_and_Influence

Cultural Democracy Library of Congress definition

https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-5051/

Jun 03, 202218:33

Ep. 2 Baby Boom? More like Community Theatre Boom!

Today we talk WW11, the Baby Boom, arts legislation, definitions, and judgey-ness. Never thought that someone could contextualize all these with the development of community theatre eh? Think again! We dive into the expansion and growth of community theatre through the second half of the 20th century!

This podcast is supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to http://theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor, and Splice editing app. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (ME). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for me and the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com

Please send me your thoughts on the definition of community theatre! Or your experiences with community theatre. I will like both.

Sources:

The AACT:

https://aact.org/community-theatre-history

Merriam-Webster Definition:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/community%20theater

Wikipedia Definition:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_theatre

National Endowment for the Arts:

https://www.arts.gov/sites/default/files/Theater_FactSheet_7.15.19.pdf

The Community Theatre in Theory and Practice by Louise Burleigh:

https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=S3UXAAAAYAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=how+little+theatre+became+community+theatre&ots=wzsvTSj47n&sig=T9Ov38TT4yJffIhbbA98L9U0Pwg#v=onepage&q=how%20little%20theatre%20became%20community%20theatre&f=false

The Little Theatre in the United States by Constance D’Arcy MacKay, 1917:

https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=WvE_AAAAYAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=little+theatre+movement&ots=sUs82oLU7m&sig=baugoCjO9-_cBnncP6sVHKUvR6g#v=onepage&q=little%20theatre%20movement&f=false

https://www.playbill.com/article/actors-equity-at-100-the-regional-theatre-movement-com-198647

May 24, 202213:58

Ep.1 The Little Theatre's Coming of Age Story

Community Theatre. You've heard of one, or seen a show at one, or even performed at one. But where did they come from? How did they get to be what they are today? Join me for a deep dive into the origins of community theatre.

This podcast is supported by the Chattanooga Theatre Centre and by listeners and supporters like you. To find out more go to http://theatrecentre.com. Also, thank you to Anchor, and Splice editing app. This show is produced by Chuck Tuttle and Mary Eliza Hendricks (ME). If you have comments, questions, or ideas for me and the podcast, email me at podcast@theatrecentre.com

Links to my sources below:

American Association of Community Theatre Website: