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2012 60th Anniversary Year For Flat Rock Playhouse
Over the past 60 years, Flat Rock Playhouse has welcomed millions of patrons to its 14-acre property where some of the most talented actors, directors and designers in the country have come to practice their craft with a level of artistic freedom and community support distinct to this little corner of the American theatre landscape.
“Our 60th Anniversary Mainstage Series is both a homage to the past and a step into the future with a compelling mixture of shows like Guys and Dolls, Noises Off, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that celebrate the theatre's past and shows that lay the foundation for our future like My Favorite Things, Our Show of Shows, Zelda, and our holiday re-imagining of the classic Nutcracker story. In 2012, The State Theatre of North Carolina will embrace its past and celebrate its compelling future, offers Vincent Marini, Producing Artistic Director of Flat Rock Playhouse.
What does it mean to exist in the same place for more than half a century? Flat Rock Playhouse has been a fixture in the Western North Carolina arts community since 1939. When Robroy Farquhar and his company of Vagabond Players arrived in the Hendersonville region, the troupe was in search of an audience and a home. For a short time they performed in a modified space on the site of today’s Highland Lake Inn and then moved to a location in Lake Summit. After several summer seasons, the Vagabond Players had found their audience, but remained transient in their borrowed space. The troupe began to look for a permanent location and a home for the growing company of performers and theatre artists. In 1952, Robroy Farquhar and his newly formed Board of Directors initiated the purchase of the historic home and estate “Rockworth,” built by Richard I’on Lowndes, Jr.
While the Vagabond Players were proud to have made Flat Rock, North Carolina their permanent theatrical home – their first few summer seasons were spent humbly producing theatre under a borrowed circus tent. However, in addition to producing summer entertainment, Farquhar, his staff, artistic team and board; became a non-profit, marketing machine and in 1959, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a resolution recognizing Flat Rock Playhouse as the Western North Carolina Theatre. Then with this designation as a launching pad, Flat Rock Playhouse worked harder to achieve more recognition for the arts in Western North Carolina. For its concerted advocacy, the North Carolina General Assembly designated Flat Rock Playhouse as The State Theatre of North Carolina in 1961, sealing a relationship with Henderson County making Flat Rock Playhouse a center for cultural exchange. Sixty years later, the administration still works from the historic location and the company continues to grow.
A theatre’s history doesn’t simply make itself; this history is made by a group of cooperative people with dedication and a willingness to work hard setting a new artistic standard for future generations. Robroy Farquhar and his wife, Leona Fraki initiated Flat Rock Playhouse’s history, launching a professional ten-week summer stock season and a multifaceted education program, a process requiring decades of dedication by theatre professionals. Fast forward to year 2002, under the leadership of their son, Executive Director Robin R. Farquhar, Flat Rock Playhouse became a nationally recognized professional theatre boasting a Mainstage season lasting eight months alongside a thriving Theatre for Young People, now titled YouTheatre. During his tenure he oversaw the first Capital Campaign to build a YouTheatre Education Center. Nurturing the small program of specialized children’s theatre to a year-round program that offers classes in acting, dance, musical theatre, technical theatre, visual arts, and other specialty areas for ages Pre-K thru adult. YouTheatre along with the Playhouse Pre-Professional Program for Apprentices and Interns offers great theatre education, which in turn helps to provide young people with the tools to become contributing, collaborative members of their community. With the 2011 Season, under the current leadership of Producing Artistic Director, Vincent Marini, Flat Rock Playhouse launched a second venue, Playhouse Downtown. Located at 125 South Main Street, in Historic Downtown Hendersonville, what was former retail space is now a 9,500 square foot, multi-purpose performance space.
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“The 2012 Playhouse Downtown Series will be our first full season in our new second home in Historic Downtown Hendersonville. Our new 250-seat, venue allows us to program a series of shows that emphasizes the incredible bonds that can develop between an audience and actor in an intimate, immersive setting. People often ask, "How do the downtown shows differ from what's on the Mainstage?" The answer is simple. Every show programmed for Playhouse Downtown benefits from having the audience surround the action. The venue is all about creating a sense of not only watching a show, but also experiencing a journey,” continued Marini.
In 2012, the Playhouse will produce seventeen shows between the two venues in Flat Rock and Hendersonville. The new and popular Music on the Rock Concert Series, launched by Marini in 2010 – will include ten concerts during 2012. In addition to serving as the new home for Music on the Rock, the new Playhouse Downtown will also host many Henderson County community events – an ambitious and progressive season for an organization that has remained at the top of its game for fifty-nine years. For 2012, the Flat Rock Playhouse 60th Anniversary will be a landmark season of entertainment – celebrating the classic style that was a trademark of its early days, and the progressive nature of the current administration that is leading the organization in new directions.
For more information on the Flat Rock Playhouse 2012 season, call the box office at (828) 693-0731 or toll free at (866) 732-8008. Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage is located at 2661 Greenville Highway across from the Carl Sandburg Home in Historic Flat Rock, North Carolina. Playhouse Downtown is located at 125 S. Main in Historic Downtown Hendersonville. Visit the Playhouse website – www.flatrockplayhouse.org.
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