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Washington Community Theatre marks 50 years
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WASHINGTON — Washington Community Theatre spent its 50th anniversary celebration doing what it has done for generations: inviting the community inside.
The anniversary event ran from 4-6:30 p.m. at the theater, Tuesday, Jan. 20 with behind-the-scenes tours, raffles and appetizers and drinks. The evening connected the new with the history of the Washington Community Center with the presence of Jan Gallagher and Teresa Peterson, who performed in the original production staged when the building opened, and the introduction of Theater Manager and Technical Director Mark Fischer.
Fischer, a Missouri native with experience in arts leadership and theatre operations, arrives as the organization looks toward a milestone season and a renewed push to reach residents who still have never stepped into the building.
“I’m excited to begin this position and to join the Washington community,” Fischer said. “While I never expected to leave my hometown, the opportunity and the warm welcome we have received here convinced us to make Washington our home. The community’s commitment to the arts is evident and refreshing, and I look forward to meeting more members of the community and helping continue the legacy of Washington Community Theatre.”
For Theater Board President Mike Jewell, the celebration doubles as an open invitation, especially for neighbors who drive past the building without realizing how much happens inside.
“As president of the Washington community incorporated board I’ve been trying to promote that we do a lot of different special things,” Jewell said in a recent interview. “We’ve lived here over, well, gosh, long time, 30 years. And there are people in the community that have never, never been in the building for anything.”
Jewell said the theater hosts far more than stage productions. Just over the holidays, the stage featured dance recitals and a laser show. According to Jewell, performances aren’t all there is either, as the space has been used for receptions, weddings and funerals, as well.
Washington Community Theatre opened in October 1976 with the Gershwin musical “Of Thee I Sing,” Jewell said, but its roots reach back even further. He traced the tradition to volunteer productions staged by YMCA members decades earlier in the old high school auditorium, which he described as having “a very small stage.” As productions grew, he said, so did local ambitions.
“Richard and Sarah McCleery, many years ago, they owned the calendar factory,” Jewell said. “The men from the YMCA who had put on plays … basically outgrew the space, and they wanted to do bigger shows.”
Jewell said Richard McCleery gathered community leaders for a dinner and floated the idea of fundraising for a permanent theater.
“The McCleerys gave, you know, so much money and that the community was asked to at least match it, which they did,” he said.
According to a press release from the Washington Chamber of Commerce, the McCleery’s, “pledged the first $500,000 toward the original $750,000 goal, promising to move forward if the community raised the remainder. When construction costs increased to $1 million, the community once again rose to the occasion, making the project possible without the use of government funds.”
Jewell said the theater endured because volunteers kept showing up, even through disruptions like the pandemic.
“Now, 50 years later, it’s still running, and even through COVID, keep everything going,” he said. “We have a lot of volunteers.”
The anniversary year also includes a full season of productions, with “Grumpy Old Men: The Musical” in March, “Meet Me in St. Louis” in June and “The Shawshank Redemption” in October.
“You know, some great shows,” he said.
Jewell said he wants the anniversary to feel visible across the community, right down to the small details. A logo contest helped start that push, with plans to use a new design across programs, publicity and items still to be determined.
The chamber said the theater unveiled its new anniversary logo at the Jan. 20 celebration, designed by Kayla Schindler, and announced plans for a celebratory gala later this year. Schindler received $200 and two season tickets for her winning design.
Jewell said he hopes the anniversary becomes a reason for first-timers to walk through the doors — and for longtime supporters to remember why they helped build it in the first place.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
