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McKeesport Little Theater
brings quality productions
and programs to residents
and friends of McKeesport
for over 55 years.
cKeesport Little Theater was one of
the first community theaters in the
Mon Valley area. With its initial founding
dating back to the 1960s, the organization is
now in its 56th season of producing quality
theater and musical theater for patrons from
near and far.
Between 1960 and 1963, an informal
group known as the Mon-Yough Players used
various facilities in the McKeesport area,
including the YWCA, to put on a series of
productions including the stage plays “Blithe
Spirit” and “The Boy Friend,” as well as the musical “The Pajama Game.” These
productions were a huge success so the group, spearheaded by Phyllis Braveman
and William Buchanan, decided to reorganize and in 1963 was officially named
McKeesport Little Theater.
A church located at the corner of Penny and Jenny Lind streets in downtown
McKeesport was acquired from attorney Robert Palkowitz in 1963 for the unheardof sum of $1. The group began refitting the building into a playhouse with a fund
drive and the ingenuity of members. They carried theater seats from a nearby
synagogue that was remodeled, re-created the ceiling at the entrance/box office and
laid carpet on the once-uneven cement floors. “A veritable Judy Garland/Mickey
Rooney ‘Let’s do theater’ dream had come true,” says Jan Gerber, current treasurer
of the organization.
On June 29, 1965, McKeesport Little Theater was formally incorporated under
the laws of the state of Pennsylvania, thereby instituting a 15-person Board of
Directors with P. Joseph Gallagher as president. Official Articles of Incorporation
and bylaws were instituted for the operation of the organization.
In the spring of 1972, after almost 10 seasons of producing four shows a year,
a catastrophic fire reduced the playhouse to shambles. The fire had started in an
abandoned adjacent building, presumably by vagrants. At the time, “The Sound
of Music” was midway through its run. The then president and director, Phyllis
Gerber, led the rebuilding of sets and costumes in just five days’ time. The cast was
FEATURE
Little Theater
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