CALIFORNIA CENTRAL COAST THEATRICAL BEGINNINGS, ENDINGS, AND IN BETWEEN!

With the Labor Day weekend comes the traditional end of summer and the beginning of many fall programs and activities: football, pumpkin patches, preparation for harvest ... and here on the Central Coast, many a theatre organization is preparing in earnest for their Fall Theatre seasons - or are already off and running!

The Santa Maria Civic Theatre (www.smct.org) is currently putting the finishing touches on the first production of their 50th Anniversary Season - Love, Sex, and the I.R.S., which runs September 11 - October 3.  Audition dates for the second show of the season, Wake Up, Darling, are scheduled for September 21 & 22, with performances November 20 - December 12.

The Santa Maria Civic Theatre was founded in 1959 as the first organization in Santa Maria to provide continuous live theatre performances.  In 1961 the group was incorporated in the state of California as a non-profit educational organization. They are one of the longest running continuous performance groups of any community theatre in the area between Ventura and Monterey.

In 50 seasons the "SMCT" has produced over 200 productions to entertain more than 85,000 people.  From the 22 free Fairy Tale theatres to the numerous other special productions, they have strived to present first rate entertainment for the community.  They have never lost money for a season since their inception, nor have they ever missed settling a bill.  They have achieved this record of responsibility by sound business policies, frugality, ingenuity, and by presenting good productions of plays desired by the local community.

Although their performances are classified as "non-professional," some present members are former professional actors.  A number of past members have gone on to later appear in professional productions. They have provided drama training for scores of neophyte actors.

They have a small intimate theatre seating 100 in comfort and providing excellent acoustics and sight lines from any position in any of three staging configurations.  While perhaps not the epitome of elegance, their facility is very effective and provides a pleasant experience for the audience.  As is always the case, they hope to make many more improvements as their funds allow.

In 1964 they purchased their present building from the Pacific Telephone Company and converted it from a relay station to a black box theatre.  The original building had only one rest room, no dressing rooms or Green Room.  Those were added later.

The original seats were salvaged from the burned out Santa Maria Theatre. Their members stripped, repainted, reupholstered, and installed the seats.  The first lights were made from empty coffee cans painted black. They now have new lighting (but you will still occasionally see a black coffee can up there!).  Forty-eight lighting units, an adaptation of a professional design, were built by the members from a mixture of wholesale fixtures, the coffee cans, and donated units.  In addition they now have twelve Fresnel fixtures and a computer-controlled light board.

Over the last 10 years, a new heating and air conditioning system was installed, along with new lighting and sound systems and new seats.  You are cordially invited to come see what "The Little Theatre Off Broadway" (one block east to be exact!) at 1660 N McClelland in Santa Maria has to offer its theatre patrons and participants!

The Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts (www.pcpa.org), whose home base is the Allan Hancock College campus in Santa Maria, is wrapping up their 2008/9 Season with The Spitfire Grill at the Festival Theatre in Solvang through September 13, and Distracted at the Severson Theatre in Santa Maria through September 20.  Some friends and I had the opportunity to see The Spitfire Grill on its final weekend in Santa Maria before moving to Solvang, and it is a wonderful show that I would highly recommend, with a powerful message and some musical harmonies that are both fresh and delightful!  And then you won't want to miss the first show of PCPA's 2009/10 season - C.S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, which will run November 5 - December 23 at the Marian Theatre in Santa Maria.

Up the coast a bit in Oceano, The Great American Melodrama & Vaudeville (www.americanmelodrama.com) is running 2 productions in an alternating format - Gold Fever at the Rough and Ready and Rip van Winkle through September 20.  Both shows are followed by a high energy vaudeville review that highlights the individual and combined singing & dancing talents of the company - with many a patron expressing the opinion that the vaudeville review alone is worth the price of admission!  Auditions for young actors (boys age 5-14 and girls age 5-18) for their 2009 production of A Christmas Carol will be held September 13 & 14.  The fall/Halloween production of Scary Poppins opens September 24 and runs through November 15. 

Continuing northward, the Studio of Performing Arts (www.thestudioofperformingarts.com), located in Arroyo Grande, will hold auditions for The Miracle Worker on September 17, with performances November 6-21.

The Clark Center (www.clarkcenter.org), also located in Arroyo Grande, has a number of fun entertainment opportunities in the weeks ahead, including the Count Basie Orchestra (September 12), Bearfoot (September 13), One Night in Andalucía with the Chris Burton Jácome Flamenco Ensemble (September 18), Gloriana (September 22), the San Francisco Stand-Up Comedy Competition (September 24), the Central Coast Follies "Love is in the Air!" October 1 - 4 to support Parkinson's Disease research, and Emmylou Harris and her Red Dirt Boys on October 7.

In Pismo Beach, New LIfe Community Church (www.newlifepismo.com) is presenting Uncle Phil's Diner September 11-20.  Call (805) 489-3254 xt. 200 for tickets.

At the San Luis Obispo Little Theatre (www.slolittletheatre.org), the first production of their 2009/10 Season, The Clean House, will run through September 20.  Auditions for How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying are September 9 & 10 with call-backs on the 11th; performances are November 20 - December 20.  Auditions for a staged reading of The Devil's Chaplain, a play about "the real Charles Darwin," by Alan Navarre, will be held September 19 & 20, with performance scheduled for November 29.  The Man from Nebraska will be presented in a readers' theatre format on September 25, directed by Emmy award winning actress and founding director of the Studio at Actors Warehouse (www.studioatactorswarehouse.com), Rae Stone.  The second show of the season, Rumors, will be presented October 9 - November 1.

Also located in San Luis Obispo, Kelrik Productions (www.kelrikproductions.com) is currently in rehearsal for RENT, which will be presented at the Spanos Theatre (www.pacslo.org) October 15-18.

For a wider selection of live entertainment options, the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center (www.pacslo.org), is pleased to present the Glenn Miller Orchestra on September 10, Glenn Yarbrough in Concert on September 18, Kathy Griffin on September 23, Bellydance Superstars on September 27, Merle Haggard on September 30, and Imani Winds with special guest vibraphonist Stefon Harris on October 2.

The Brickyard Theatre (www.brickyardtheatre.com), in Atascadero, will present Humble Boy through September 26.

The Pewter Plough Playhouse (www.pewterploughplayhouse.org), in Cambria, will be opening the first show of their fall season, The Mousetrap, on September 25, running through November 8.  Homeland Insecurity or How I Learned To Love The Patriot Act will be presented in a readers' theatre format on October 14.

The Houselights Theatre (www.houselightstheatre.org), also located in Cambria, recently completed a remount run of their popular summer musical Always ... Patsy Cline at the Spanos Theatre (www.pacslo.org).  Stay tuned for details concerning their next show.

Up North County way in Paso Robles, the Pioneer Players (www.pioneerplayers.org) are gearing up for their next production - Oliver, scheduled to be presented sometime in January of 2010.  Stay tuned for specific details concerning audition and performance dates in the near future!

Sponsored by the City of Paso Robles and the Paso Robles REC Foundation, 30 frames per second, inc will present The Fantasticks on September 17 & 18 FOR FREE in the Paso Robles Centennial Park Outdoor Amphitheatre.  For additional information, call 805-466-4741.

Hopefully you had a healthy helping of the summer theatre offerings here on the Central Coast - now it's time to make plans for a theatrical fall feast that awaits your attention and attendance!  Hope to see you at one of our local theatre venues in the near future (I'll be the big guy with the white beard, probably wearing a gray Greek fisherman's cap!).

Curt Miner ... your BroadwayWorld.com guy on the ground with the California Central Coast theatre "news & views"