Theatre Archives - Bob on Books

The Hopewell Theatre, Mahoning Commons by Jack Pierce is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

I must have walked by or driven by this old church hundreds of times to and from downtown Youngstown without paying it much attention. At one time, it was the home of the Church of St. George and built in the 1890’s. It is located at 702 Mahoning Avenue, in the Mahoning Commons neighborhood just west of the Spring Common underpass, a rail bridge over Mahoning Avenue.

In 1992, Dr. Jean McClure Kelty, a former Youngstown State professor led an effort to convert this small church building into an intimate theatre, forming a theatre company then known as the Victorian Players. The original aim was to focus on plays from the Victorian era. They called the building The Victorian Players Theater. From pictures, it looks like a cozy space with 55-60 seats that are close up on the stage, more a large living room than an auditorium.

The organization changed its name to the Hopewell Theatre, reflecting an expanding scope of plays. From photos on the Theatre’s Facebook photo page it appears that the new name for the company and theatre made its debut in the summer of 2017. In recent years their performances have included An Evening of O’Henry, Snoopy The Musical, Godspell, The Man with the Plastic Sandwich, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, 20th Century Blues, I’ll Be Back Before Midnight, Rude Awakening, Child of Glory: A Gospel Nativity, and Becky’s New Car. The Business Journal offers a preview of Becky’s New Car, which performed in Spring of 2023, giving a sense of the play and the intimate setting of the theatre.

The 23-24 season starts soon with a slate of six plays scheduled. They include:

August 25-September 3: Grace and Glorie, Hopewell Theatre
October 20-29, Sweeney Todd, Millenial Theatre Company
December 8-17, Exit, Pursued By A Bear, Hopewell Theatre
January 19-28, Cabaret, Millennial Theatre Company
May 17-26, It Shoulda Been You, Millenial Theatre Company
June 14-23, Rabbit Hole, Hopewell Theatre

As you might notice, three of the plays are offered by the Millenial Theatre Company, which also performs at the Youngstown Playhouse as well as offering a variety of classes. Their website describes the Company’s purpose as follows: “The Millennial Theatre Company (MTC), a 501(c)3 nonprofit theatrical organization, founded in April of 2016, aims to produce excellent theatrical experiences while focusing on the involvement of the Millennial Generation.”

Tickets for the performances are available through the Hopewell Theatre website. The Youngstown Foundation, The Thomases Family Endowment, and the J. Ford Crandall Memorial Foundation help provide funding for the Hopewell Theatre, but performing to full houses will certainly help the bottom line of this non-profit organization. Recent construction of ramps has enhanced handicapped access.

Dr. Kelty passed away in 2003 but her vision lives on. This year marks the 30th season for this arts organization, one that has weathered recessions and the pandemic and continues to offer live theatre productions in a unique intimate setting. I think it is amazing to see the number of cultural opportunities available in Youngstown!

To read other posts in the Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown series, just click “On Youngstown.” Enjoy!

Program from Kenley Players production of Man of La Mancha

I went on my first real (double) date to a Kenley Players production in Warren, Ohio with tennis buddy Tom and our dates. We saw Giorgio Tozzi, a famous operatic bass, in the lead role of Man of La Mancha in the summer of 1970. I’ve loved that music every since. One summer at a camp, my son, then in high school, and I did a duet in a talent show where I played Sancho Panza to his Don Quixote. Strictly a one-off performance!

Cast and credits from Sugar

I went to Kenley Players one other time, in the summer of 1975 when my wife and I were dating. Sugar with Mickey Rooney and Ken Berry was funny, if less inspiring. These days, the play would be off limits–my principle memory was of Rooney groping every woman in the play.

Packard Music Hall, in Warren, was one of a number of locations where John Kenley and his Players staged productions, including Deer Creek, Reading, Lakewood Park, York, and Bristol in Pennsylvania, and Dayton, Warren, Columbus, Akron, and Cleveland in Ohio. Kenley was a pioneer of summer stock productions that combined regional actors with older stars from Hollywood and current television actors.

Program from Finian’s Rainbow

The Players were in Warren from 1958 to 1977, after which the summer productions in northeast Ohio moved to Akron, and then two seasons at Playhouse Square in Cleveland. During many of the years that Kenley Players were in Warren, they were also Dayton and Columbus. The summer schedule was different at each site with some overlap. For example, Finian’s Rainbow featuring Barbara Eden, a play my wife saw in Warren, was also produced in the other two cities.

Kenley lived to be 103 years old. He helped to launch the career of a Canadian actor by the name of Robert Goulet, who became famous a few years later on Broadway in Camelot. The scores of other actors in his productions include Gypsy Rose Lee, Arthur Godfrey, Burt Reynolds, Mae West, William Shatner, and Betty White.

Kenley Players billed themselves as “America’s most exciting summer theatre.” For many of us growing up in the Mahoning Valley, this was our opportunity to see famous stars and talented players in quality productions at reasonable prices (cheap enough for a high school date!). He provided work and a resume’ for aspiring actors. After retirement in 1995 stars like Ann Margaret and Carol Channing honored his work. When asked the secret of his longevity, he replied, “Keep breathing. And don’t die.” Good advice for us all!

What are your memories of the Kenley Players? What shows did you see?

Article sources: The Kenley Players website; John Kenley, legendary Ohio impresario dead at 103: Obituary