![]() ![]() Each Spring, the Dock Street is one of numerous venues for the internationally-acclaimed Spoleto Festival USA, which brings some of the world’s brightest talent to the stage in a variety of performances that includes dance, theater, opera, chamber music, orchestra, mime, poetry and visual arts.īeginning each Summer, the Dock Street hosts a full season of professional theatrical and musical productions, that includes award- winning local troupes such Charleston Stage, as well as heralded visiting stars such as Diana Ross. Cecilia Society, which has been active since 1766.Ī new Dock Street Theatre was reopened in 1937, and today features a year-round schedule that is indicative of Charleston’s full plate of cultural interests. The Dock Street Theatre was opened in 1736 as the first building designed exclusively for cultural performances, and Charleston’s dedication to the arts spawned theatrical and musical venues and clubs throughout the years, such as the famed St. Barnum during the antebellum era, Victorian stars Jenny Lind and Lily Langtree, vaudevillians Billy Burke and the Ziegfield Follies, mid 20th century composer George Gershwin, to recent international talents such as Joshua Bell and Gil Shaham, the chance to entertain in or be inspired by Charleston has always been a significant draw. Rickett’s Circus, the famed Booth family actors and P.T. From 18th century entertainers such as Col. Listen to the episode here.Charleston SC Arts and Culture | Spoleto, Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Dock Street Theater, Charleston Ballet, Footlight Players and more.Ĭharleston has been on the cultural map since its colonial inception, as dance, music and theater troupes made the city a regular stopover since the early 1700’s. We are truly a community space hosting a number of special events each season including hosting the Italian Film Festival every year as well as serving as the primary venue for Piccolo Spoleto.īrian along with the Footlight Player’s Artistic Director Kyle Barnette were recently guests of Small Talks, Big Ideas with Steve. We are the only theatre that owns its own space which affords us the opportunity to welcome in other artists and performers to practice their art and gain exposure in the community. We are also launching a new second stage series (Act II) with more risqué shows like The Rocky Horror Experience, where we perform live with movies, “Who’s Holiday”, about Mary Lou Who as she is now a chain smoking 40 year old living in a trailer, and “The Last Five Years”, a two person musical about a relationship told from the beginning by one character and backwards by the other.ģ.What makes the Footlight Players unique and/or special from other theatres in the area? One Sunday of every month, we will have local artists perform in our historic lobby. We are also launching our new cabaret series called Sunday Night Speakeasy. We have an amazing lineup of full stage productions including The Full Monty, Misery, our annual Holiday Special, The Mountaintop, God of Carnage and ending with Monty Python’s Spamalot. Ģ.Does the theatre have anything exciting coming up that you can share? For more information about the history of the Footlight Players, click here. ![]() The series was such a success and drew such a following that The Footlight Players formally organized and incorporated in the fall of 1932. Commander Charles Russell Price at the Charleston Navy Yard. The Footlight Players was launched in 1931 with a series of one-act plays directed by Lt. For this Q&A, we caught up the theatre’s Executive Director, Brian Porter ahead of their 91st season.ġ.Can you give a brief history of the Footlight Players? This Lowcountry giant has been a part of the local arts scene since the early 1930s. ![]() For the month of August, we’re celebrating the arts! We’re proud to have dozens of small business members, including the Footlight Players, a theatre company located in Downtown Charleston. ![]()
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