Summit Playhouse

The Summit Playhouse is a theater in Summit, New Jersey and home to one of the oldest continuously operating amateur community theaters in the United States[3] producing a new show each calendar season.[4] In 2011, it presented Meet Me in St. Louis,[5] Closer Than Ever,[6] and Speed the Plow.[3]

Summit Playhouse
Original 1891 building
Location10 New England Avenue
Summit, New Jersey
Coordinates40°42′54″N 74°21′55″W
Builtca. 1891
ArchitectArthur Bates Jennings
Architectural styleRomanesque
NRHP reference No.09001177 [1]
NJRHP No.4407 [2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPDecember 30, 2009
Designated NJRHPSeptember 29, 2009

History

The original stone Romanesque building designed by Arthur Bates Jennings was constructed in 1891 as the town's first library.[1] A municipally-operated Summit Public Library was established in 1900, and in 1910 the library was moved to another building, leaving the Romanesque building under-utilized but still belonging to the library. In 1918, The Playhouse Association was founded as a World War I relief organization, and the theatrical group rented the empty older library from the Summit Library Association for one dollar a year for the next fifty years on condition that the group maintain the facility. In 1960, a 120-seat auditorium was added and the original 1891 structure was converted into a stage. The Summit Library Association officially deeded the building to the theater in 1968.[4]

Directors

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Union County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office. April 1, 2010. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 24, 2012.
  3. John De Bellis (January 19, 2011). "A Challenging Work in Progress at Summit Playhouse". Summit Patch. Retrieved 2011-09-12. ... the historic community theater–one of the oldest amateur companies in the nation–...
  4. "Summit Playhouse". Summit Playhouse Association. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  5. "SUMMIT PLAYHOUSE PROUDLY PRESENTS 94TH SEASON". The Alternative Press. September 9, 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-12. MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS is running at the Summit Playhouse November...
  6. Liz Keill (April 28, 2011). "'Closer Than Ever' at Summit Playhouse; a light-hearted musical romp across the life span". Independent Press. Retrieved 2011-09-12. Director Susan Speidel brings the music to life in a spirited production at The Summit Playhouse.
  7. Patricia E. Meola (1998). Summit: Wish You Were Here. ISBN 9780752413495. The first director was Norman Lee Swartout, the first stage manager was Jack Manley Rose, and the first costume manager was Marjorie Cranstoun Jefferson ...
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