A BRIEF HISTORY
Community theatre was first introduced to Bethlehem in 1926 in the Parish House of Trinity Episcopal Church by a group who called themselves Plays and Players. The ‘little theatre’ grew through the early thirties and by 1938 the group was sponsored by the Bethlehem Recreation Department and was known as Bethlehem Civic Theatre. Productions were given on the Henry Snyder Estate at Green Pond, at the Stoughton Estate in Wydnor and finally at Moravian College for Women.
In the early forties, Bethlehem Civic Theatre transformed an empty warehouse next to Monocacy Creek into a playhouse and later purchased the old brewery cooperage building on Old York Road. With total assets of $100, Bethlehem Civic Theatre was incorporated in 1946.
During the forties, the Drawing Room Theatre was formed by a few members of Bethlehem Civic Theatre and offered its productions in the new ‘arena style’ on School Street until 1954, when it was disbanded. Prior to the closing of The Drawing Room Theatre, another group from the Bethlehem Civic Theatre formed The Community Players and held their productions in Hotel Bethlehem. In 1957, Community Players and Bethlehem Civic Theatre merged. This new group continued to perform from the Old York Road facility, and by 1961 the mortgage was paid on the building.
In 1963, the theatre became part of the Bethlehem Redevelopment Project. The Old York Road building had to be demolished. The following year, the city of Bethlehem made land on Illicks’ Mill Road available to the group on a 99-year $1.00 lease. A fundraising drive was launched to allow the construction of a new building. In May of 1965 ground was broken, and in October of the same year, the new 180 seat theatre opened its first production, “A Shot In The Dark.” The new theatre building was named The Pennsylvania Playhouse, which had been the name of the corporation since its incorporation in 1946.
The theater grew and prospered in its new location until December 31, 1974, when a fire destroyed the stage, auditorium, costumes, scenery and electrical equipment. Continued Playhouse operation was made possible by Northampton Community College's generous offer to let the Playhouse use its South Campus Theater. The college's stage was used for the next three productions of the 1975 season while the Illicks Mill Road structure was rebuilt, eliminating the former proscenium stage and adopting the thrust-type stage patrons of the Pennsylvania Playhouse still enjoy today. In 1977 a 2,500 square foot addition was built with funds raised through public subscription and proceeds from continuously successful productions. In 1999, the Pennsylvania Playhouse increased the comfort level for their patrons by gutting the auditorium and installing new seats and carpeting throughout. In 2020, while shut down because of the Coronavirus, The Playhouse began offering online streaming performances of shows, as well as outdoor cabarets. Meanwhile, inside the theatre, our lobby and bathrooms were renovated, and new lighting control systems were installed (thanks to a grant from the County of Northampton) to replace equipment that had been in use since the 1980’s. Our theater continues to grow and change every year, thanks to the tireless work of our volunteers and community members.
The Pennsylvania Playhouse is a nonprofit organization, is opened to everyone and is operated entirely by volunteers.
Brief History written by Humphrey L. Frey in the 1980’s, with updates by Brett Oliveira
