People's Light is a professional, not-for-profit theatre in

Chester County, Pennsylvania Chester County (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Tscheschter Kaundi''), colloquially known as Chesco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the De ...

About People's Light

Founded in 1974, by Dick Keeler, Ken Marini, and Meg and Danny Fruchter, People's Light serves as one of Pennsylvania's largest professional non-profit theatres, known for their resident company of artists, eclectic mix of productions, and innovative work with young people. In each of their 8-9 play seasons, they present a wide range of stories drawn from ancient times through tomorrow that have direct relevance to the local communities and their concerns. In support of this scope, they produce classics and contemporary plays, and commission and produce new work: of their 436 productions, over a third (166) have been world or regional premieres.

The Theatre and Grounds

The People's Light campus is located on of what was once a tract granted by

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

to the Malin family in 1709. Part of this tract of land was occupied by

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

's troops after the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Ame ...

. The barn that houses the Leonard C. Haas Stage of the theatre was renovated in 1978 by Knabb Associates. The residence was built in 1790 and was used as a private boys' school, which was the first school in

East Whiteland Township, Pennsylvania East Whiteland Township is a township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,650 at the 2010 census. Mailing addresses associated with East Whiteland include Malvern, Frazer, and a small area of Exton. History Fo ...

. Today it houses The Farmhouse Bistro, a French bistro-style restaurant owned by the theatre, and The Farmhouse at People's Light, an event venue. People's Light is the third owner of the property, following artist Gager Philips, who owned the property in 1936. The original site of the theatre was Strode's Mill, in East Bradford Township, Pennsylvania. The mill was built in 1721 and has had a number of uses. Originally used as a grist mill, it is currently being used as an artist's gallery and residence.

Community Programs

In 1987, People's Light started the "Project Discovery" program, which was later renamed "Arts Discovery." Arts Discovery extends the theatres mission with school residencies, student matinees that bring youth from 21 high schools to People's Light each year for free, and a broad array of theatre classes for grades K through 12. Community Matters is a series of events that spark dialogue about vital social issues with free staged play readings and town hall-style discussions in partnership with local service organizations.

2018/2019 season

*Such Things as Vampires by Zak Berkman, Stuart Carden, Jessie Fisher, and Mary Tuomanen *

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

: A musical Panto by Kathryn Peterson *Sweat by

Lynn Nottage Lynn Nottage (born November 2, 1964) is an American playwright whose work often focuses on the experience of working-class people, particularly working-class people who are Black. She has received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: in 2009 for he ...

*Nina Simon: Four Women by Christina Ham *For

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

on Her 70th Birthday by

Sarah Ruhl Sarah Ruhl (born January 24, 1974) is an American playwright, professor, and essayist. Among her most popular plays are ''Eurydice'' (2003), ''The Clean House'' (2004), and ''In the Next Room (or the Vibrator Play)'' (2009). She has been the reci ...

*Endgame by

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

*Mud Row by

Dominique Morisseau Dominique Morisseau (born March 13, 1978) is an American playwright and actress from Detroit, Michigan. She has authored over nine plays, three of which are part of a cycle titled ''The Detroit Project.'' She was a recipient of the MacArthur Fell ...

*Our Town by

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 ...

*Little Red Robin Hood :A Musical Panto

About People's Light

The Theatre and Grounds

Community Programs

2018/2019 season

References

Further reading