Regional Theater of the Week: Bay Street Players at the Historic State Theatre in Eustis, FL

BroadwayWorld.com, the largest theatre site on the Internet, is excited to announce a new feature to its comprehensive regional coverage - the Featured Regional Theater of the Week! Each week, BWW will introduce its readers to a regional theater located in one of our (over 130!) coverage cities. By exploring these different venues, their history and showcasing the production seasons, BWW continues its commitment to expand our presence in communities and cities across the United States.

This Week's Featured Regional Theater: Bay Street Players at the Historic State Theatre in Eustis, FL

In 1975 a small group of theatre aficionados re-discovered the vacant State Theatre building, and with visions of bringing live performances back to Eustis, promptly moved in and began the arduous task of renovation. In July of that year, they opened a successful run of Hello, Dolly, and finished only marginally in the red. The following year they mounted eight shows, and the Bay Street Players became permanently established. By 1986, BSP owned the building outright.

The State Theatre has undergone two major renovations since the Bay Street Players took it over. The first, in the early 80's, pushed the auditorium wall back to allow more room for seating, and modernized the lobby and restrooms. The second, done in 2005 with the help of a state grant, restored the building's facade to its original 1922 appearance. Future renovation dreams include a new roof, electrical system, and expanded lobby.

They are currently running Phase II of A Theatre Reborn, which will include building repairs and upgrades to the roof, electric and fire doors. You may donate to A Theatre Reborn through PayPal HERE or download a donation form HERE.

The Bay Street Players are honored to have made the State Theatre their home. They have a thriving main stage schedule of five plays yearly; the Young People's Theatre, the longest continual theatre program of its kind in Central Florida, is growing; and the recently added Second Stage series, The Bay Street Project continues to gain in popularity. Soon BSP will celebrate 40 years at the State, and we are looking forward joyfully to the next 40!

NOW PLAYING! A Musical Matinee at The Historic State Theatre, presented by: Public Arts & Music
and Lake Eustis Institute, hosted by The Bay Street Players is presented July 28th, 2013 2:30 pm. The rest of the summer season includes: Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID JR, August 1-4; and NEXT TO NORMAL August 9-10.

The Mainstage 2013-2014 season includes:

Lost in Yonkers

The season starts with Neil Simon's beautifully heartfelt dramatic comedy Lost in Yonkers. Winner of the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play, this memory play is set in the summer of 1942 when two young boys are sent to stay with their stern grandmother and childlike aunt in a strange new world called Yonkers, New York.

September 13 - October 6, 2013

A Christmas Story

Humorist Jean Shepherd's memoir of growing up in the midwest in the 1940s follows 9-year-old Ralphie Parker in his quest to get a genuine Red Ryder BB gun under the tree for Christmas. Ralphie pleads his case before his mother, his teacher and even Santa Claus himself, at Goldblatt's Department Store. The consistent response: "You'll shoot your eye out." All the elements from the beloved motion picture are here, including the family's temperamental exploding furnace; Scut Farkas, the school bully; the boys' experiment with a wet tongue on a cold lamppost; the Little Orphan Annie decoder pin; Ralphie's father winning a lamp shaped like a woman's leg in a net stocking; Ralphie's fantasy scenarios and more.

November 15 - December 8, 2013

The Drowsy Chaperone

A musical with book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar, and music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, is a parody of American musical comedies of the 1920s. The story concerns a middle-aged, asocial musical theatre fan. As he plays the record of his favorite musical, the show comes to life onstage.

January 31 - February 23, 2014

Boeing-Boeing

A classic farce written by French playwright Marc Camoletti, tells the story of Bernard, a self-styled playboy, and his three fiancees, all airline attendants who, due to a scheduling mishap, end up in Paris on the same night. Winner of the Tony for Best Revival.

April 18 - May 11, 2014

Legally Blonde: The Musical

Music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and book by Heather Hach, is based on the novel Legally Blonde and the 2001 movie of the same name.

Sorority sister Elle Woods enrolls in Harvard Law School to win back her ex-boyfriend, only to discover that her knowledge of the law can help others, especially exercise queen Brooke Wyndham, accused of murder.

June 27 - July 20, 2014

For tickets and more information about the Bay Street Players, visit: http://www.baystreetplayers.org/

Know of a theater we should feature? Contact christina@broadwayworld.com.

To post a comment, you must register and login.