Mad Cow Theatre was a not-for-profit regional theatre based in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

. Founded in 1997, the theatre is located in

Downtown Orlando Downtown Orlando is the historic core and central business district of Orlando, Florida, United States. It is bordered by Marks Street in the north, Mills Avenue ( SR 15) in the east, Orange Blossom Trail ( US 441) in the west, and Kaley Avenue in ...

within the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

History

Mad Cow Theater began in late 1997, founded by Rus Blackwell, Trudy Bruner, Alan Bruun, and Dennis Neal, as a simple two-show project in a former blueprint studio in

Maitland, Florida Maitland is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States, part of the Greater Orlando area. The population was 19,543 at the 2020 census. The area's history is exhibited at the Maitland Historical Museum; the city also hosts the M ...

. Shortly after, the venue moved numerous times in a four-year period. Renting space from Central Florida organizations such as

Rollins College Rollins College is a private college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several graduate programs. It is Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institution. History Rollins Colle ...

, Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival, Civic Theatre of Central Florida, and the

Orlando International Fringe Theater Festival The Orlando International Fringe Theatre Festival is a 14-day annual arts festival held during the month of May in Orlando, Florida. The festival includes theater, music, dance, and art. It was one of the first American Fringe Festivals and has no ...

. Supported in part with public funds from United Arts of Central Florida, the State of Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, and Orange County through the Arts & Cultural Affairs program, as well as local theatre community members, the Mad Cow Theatre has received a 2013 Golden Brick Award for contributions to increasing the quality of life downtown, and was named "Best Theatre" by Orlando

Magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

, several years in a row. Adult and teen acting classes are directed and taught by local talent and professors from Rollins and UCF.

Facilities

In October 2012, Mad Cow moved to the location at 54 W. Church St. The venue houses two theaters, which share a common lobby, box office, and coffee and wine bar. The facility has a combined capacity of 227. The theaters are used for regular season productions, the Orlando Cabaret Festival, as well as business meetings and community and social events. * The Harriett Theatre has seating for 167. It is named after Harriett Lake, a prominent philanthropist for the arts and other causes in Central Florida. Limited-view seats are included in the total count due to a structural column in the theatre. * The Zehngebot-Stonerock Theatre is a black-box theatre with seating for 60. In May 2022, the theatre moved from the Church St. address due to a forbearance agreement with the City of Orlando.

Recent Production History

The Harriett Theatre

2017-2018 Season

* ''Big River'' – Sept. 22-Oct. 22, 2017 * ''Born Yesterday'' – Nov. 17-Dec. 17, 2017 * ''The Tale of the Allergist's Wife'' – Jan. 19-Feb. 18, 2018 * ''A View From the Bridge'' – March 23-April 22, 2018 * ''Fun Home'' – June 1-July 1, 2018 * ''The Little Foxes'' – Aug. 3-26, 2018

The Zehngebot-Stonerock Theatre

2017-2018 Season * ''Grounded'' – Oct. 20-Nov. 19, 2017 * ''Silent Sky'' – Feb. 16-March 18, 2018 * ''Bad Jews'' – June 15-July 8, 2018 * ''Buyer & Cellar'' – Aug. 10-Sept. 9, 2018 Special Events * Teatro Español: ''Prohibido Suicidarse en Primavera –'' Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 2017 * Teatro Español: ''Amor de Don Perlimplin con Belisa en su jardin''—Jan. 10-14, 2018 * Teatro Español: ''Romeo y Julieta''—Feb. 6 and 7, 2018 * Other special events will be announced.

Collaborations

The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra

Mad Cow Theatre has collaborated with the

Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra is Central Florida's resident professional orchestra, appearing in more than 125 performances each season. Founded in 1993. At over $4 million, the Orlando Philharmonic has the largest endowment of any arts i ...

for several concerts, presented at

Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the NSW Branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He later en ...

Theater. Those productions have included ''

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments ...

'', ''

Sweeney Todd Sweeney Todd is a fictional character who first appeared as the villain of the penny dreadful serial '' The String of Pearls'' (1846–47). The original tale became a feature of 19th-century melodrama and London legend. A barber from Fleet Stre ...

'', ''

My Fair Lady ''My Fair Lady'' is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play '' Pygmalion'', with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons ...

'', and ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on " The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also b ...

'', and have attracted star talent, including Davis Gaines and

Faith Prince Faith Prince (born August 6, 1957) is an American actress and singer, best known for her work on Broadway in musical theatre. She won the Tony Award as Best Actress in ''Guys and Dolls'' in 1992, and received three other Tony nominations. Life ...

. They have also collaborated on a series of concert opera productions, including ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the ...

'' and ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', ...

'' to fill the void left by the now-defunct

Orlando Opera The Orlando Opera was Orlando, Florida's professional opera company, founded in 1958. The opera performed multiple times a year in the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre and other venues in the central Florida region. On April 16, 2009 the company an ...

References

External links

{{authority control Buildings and structures in Orlando, Florida Regional theatre in the United States Theatres in Florida Theatre companies in Florida Culture of Orlando, Florida Tourist attractions in Orlando, Florida 1997 establishments in Florida