The Berkshire Theatre Festival is one of the oldest professional performing arts venues in the Berkshires, celebrating its 80th anniversary season in 2008.

History

The main building of the Berkshire Theatre Festival was originally the

Stockbridge Casino The Stockbridge Casino is a historic building at the junction of East Main Street and Yale Hill Road in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Built in 1887, it is a prominent local work of architect Stanford White, and has served as a cultural center in t ...

, designed by Stanford White and built in 1887. At one point the center of social life in Stockbridge, by 1927 it had fallen into disuse.

Mabel Choate Mabel Choate (December 26, 1870 – December 11, 1958) was an American gardener, collector and philanthropist. Biography Born on December 26, 1870, in New York City, Mabel Choate was the fourth of five children of Joseph Choate and Caroline ...

, the daughter of one of the

casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...

's founders, purchased the property for $2,000, but wasn't interested in the casino itself (she moved the

Mission House The Mission House at Kerikeri in New Zealand was completed in 1822 as part of the Kerikeri Mission Station by the Church Missionary Society, and is New Zealand's oldest surviving building. It is sometimes known as Kemp House. Samuel Marsden esta ...

to the property). Three prominent Stockbridge residents, sculptor

Daniel Chester French Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, best known for his 1874 sculpture ''The Minute Man'' in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monume ...

, businessman and artist

Walter Leighton Clark Walter Leighton Clark (1859–1935) was an American businessman, inventor, and artist based in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and New York City. Biography Among other achievements, in 1923 he founded with John Singer Sargent the Grand Central Ar ...

, and Dr. Austen Fox Riggs, formed a committee called the Three Arts Society to save the casino; Choate sold the building to them for $1 on the condition that it be relocated. French, Clark, and Riggs agreed, and had the structure dismantled and moved to its current location. After an extensive renovation, the newly christened Berkshire Playhouse opened on June 4, 1928, with a production of "The Cradle Song" with

Eva Le Gallienne Eva Le Gallienne (January 11, 1899 – June 3, 1991) was a British-born American stage actress, producer, director, translator, and author. A Broadway star by age 21, Le Gallienne gave up her Broadway appearances to devote herself to founding t ...

. Actors who have starred in productions at the Berkshire Playhouse include

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

Lionel Barrymore Lionel Barrymore (born Lionel Herbert Blythe; April 28, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio as well as a film director. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''A Free Soul'' (1931) ...

Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema", ...

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

, and

Buster Keaton Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...

. Notable producing directors have included Billy Miles,

Joan White Joan White (1909-1999) was a British actress, theatre director and educator who over a career that spanned 65 years became a popular figure on the London stage, appeared in films and television and produced and directed plays on both sides of th ...

, Robert Paine Grose,

George Tabori George Tabori ( György Tábori; 24 May 1914 – 23 July 2007) was a Hungarian writer and theatre director. Life and career Tabori was born in Budapest as György Tábori, a son of Kornél and Elsa Tábori. His father Kornél (Cornelius) was m ...

Arthur Penn Arthur Hiller Penn (September 27, 1922 – September 28, 2010) was an American director and producer of film, television and theater. Closely associated with the American New Wave, Penn directed critically acclaimed films throughout the 19 ...

, Josephine Abady, Julianne Boyd, Bill Gibson, Richard Dunlap, and

Arthur Storch Arthur Storch (June 29, 1925 — March 25, 2013) was an American actor and Broadway director. A life member of The Actors Studio, Storch founded Syracuse Stage in 1974. Productions Storch directed included: *''Tribute'', on Broadway *''The Comed ...

. In 1967, the Three Arts Society was dissolved and the Berkshire Playhouse was incorporated as a nonprofit organization, the Berkshire Theatre Festival. In 1982, the Berkshire Theatre Festival purchased

Beaupré Performing Arts Center Beaupré Creative Arts Center was an American summer camp for girls, located in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The camp, which ran from 1955 to 1980, focused mainly on theater, dance, and art. The Beaupré property was sold in 1982 to the Berksh ...

's property in Stockbridge, renaming it the Lavan Center for the Performing Arts. The site was used as a dormitory, classroom, and performance space for the organization's apprentices and interns. In 1993, a formal season of plays was offered in the Unicorn Theatre to meet the growing popularity of the festival. Prior to that, the Unicorn had been in use for years to house various offerings over the course of the season, including a slate of cabaret and workshop productions in 1992. The Unicorn Theatre was completely replaced with a new facility prior to the 1996 summer season; the inaugural production in the new space was "L-Play" by Beth Henley. In 2010, Berkshire Theatre Festival merged with The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA to form Berkshire Theatre Group. The Berkshire Playhouse facility was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1976.National Register of Historic Places

Past seasons

Over the past 80 years, the Berkshire Theatre Festival has produced 550 fully staged productions, an eclectic mix of revivals, classics and premieres, embracing fully its role as a true theatrical “Festival.” More than 2,100 actors have worked at the BTF in more than 6,000 performances, including notable actors that have won

Emmys The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

Oscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

, and

Tonys The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

. Many playwrights at BTF have won

Pulitzer Pulitzer may refer to: *Joseph Pulitzer, a 20th century media magnate *Pulitzer Prize, an annual U.S. journalism, literary, and music award *Pulitzer (surname) * Pulitzer, Inc., a U.S. newspaper chain *Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a non-pro ...

and

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

Notable Artists

Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' — a ...

Calista Flockhart Calista Kay Flockhart (born November 11, 1964) is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for portraying the title character on the Fox television series '' Ally McBeal'' (1997–2002), for which she received a Golden Globe Award in 1998 ...

Christopher Walken Christopher Walken (born Ronald Walken; March 31, 1943) is an American actor. Prolific in film, television and on stage, Walken is the recipient of numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Awar ...

in ''The Rain Maker''

Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received numerous accolades: including an Academy Award, two Tony Awards, and two Primetime Emmy ...

in ''Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie'' (1967)

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable characters. He is th ...

in ''Fragments'' (1966)

Gene Hackman Eugene Allen Hackman (born January 30, 1930) is an American retired actor and former novelist. In a career that has spanned more than six decades, Hackman has won two Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, one Screen Actors Guild Award, two BAFTAs ...

in ''Fragments'' (1966)

Karen Allen Karen Jane Allen (born October 5, 1951) is an American film and stage actress. After making her film debut in ''Animal House'' (1978), she portrayed Marion Ravenwood opposite Harrison Ford in '' Raiders of the Lost Ark'' (1981), a role she lat ...

Linda Hamilton Linda Carroll Hamilton (born September 26, 1956) is an American actress. She played Sarah Connor in the ''Terminator'' film series and Catherine Chandler in the television series ''Beauty and the Beast'' (1987–1990), for which she was nominat ...

Jeffrey Donovan in ''Toys in the Attic'' (2000)

Randy Harrison Randolph Clarke Harrison (born November 2, 1977) is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Justin Taylor on the Showtime drama '' Queer as Folk''. Early life and college Harrison was born in Nashua, New Hampshire, where he starting ...

in ''Equus'', ''Amadeus'', ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'', ''Mrs. Warren's Profession'', ''Waiting for Godot'', ''Ghosts'', ''The Endgame'', and ''The Who's Tommy''

Kate Baldwin Katherine Baldwin (born May 2, 1975) is an American singer and actress known for her work in musical theater. She received a Tony Award nomination for her work in the 2009 Broadway revival of ''Finian's Rainbow''. She also co-starred opposite Bet ...

''A Little Night Music'' (2014)

References

External links

Berkshire Theatre FestivalPark service pageA video
{{Authority control Theatre festivals in the United States Festivals in Massachusetts 1928 establishments in Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Berkshire County, Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Berkshire County, Massachusetts Stockbridge, Massachusetts Recurring events established in 1928 Festivals established in 1928