The Pioneer Playhouse, located in

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a home rule-class city in Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 Census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes ...

, is the oldest outdoor

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

in the state of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

History

The Pioneer Playhouse was built by Col. Eben C. Henson who established the outdoor theater in 1950. Notable alumni actors include

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...

Lee Majors Lee Majors (born Harvey Lee Yeary; April 23, 1939) is an American actor. Majors portrayed the characters of Heath Barkley in the American television Western series ''The Big Valley'' (1965–1969), Colonel Steve Austin in the American television ...

, then known as Harvey Yeary, and

Jim Varney James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 – February 10, 2000) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his broadly comedic role as Ernest P. Worrell, for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award, as well as appearing in films and n ...

.Profile of Col. Henson. Randy Kennedy, ''New York Times'', 1999
In 1962, Pioneer Playhouse became the first theater in the nation to be accorded the legal status of State Theater by act of Legislation. Since Henson's death in 2004 the theater has been run by Henson's widow, Charlotte. Her daughter Holly served as

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

until her death in 2012. Robby Henson, her son, directs at least one play at the theater every summer.

Productions

*2020 (season curtailed due to COVID-19 pandemic) **Maybe Baby, It's You by Charlie Shanian and Shari Simpson *2019 **Kong's Night Out by Jack Neary **Sherlock Holmes and the Ice Palace Murders by Jeffrey Hatcher, based on the novel by Larry Millett **Breaking Up With Elvis by Robby Henson **Not Now Darling by Ray Cooney and John Chapman **Red, White and Tuna by Ed Howard, Joe Sears, and Jason Williams *2018 **The Return of Tinker Doyle (sequel to 2013's Search for Tinker Doyle) by Elizabeth Orndorff **Drinking Habits 2: Caught in the Act by Tom Smith **Granted (sequel to Grounded and Guarded) by Holly Hepp-Galván and Robby Henson (adapted from the novel by Angela Correll) **Unnecessary Farce by Paul Slade Smith **Living on Love by Joe DiPietro *2017 **Death by Darkness by Elizabeth Orndorff. The production was directed by Anthony Haigh. **Drinking Habits by Tom Smith **Guarded (sequel to 2015's Grounded) by Holly Hepp-Galván and Robby Henson (adapted from the novel by Angela Correll) **Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery by Ken Ludwig **Elvis Has Left the Building by V. Cate and Duke Ernsberger *2016 **One Man, Two Guvnors by Richard Bean **Mom's Gift by Phil Olson **Good Blues Tonight by Robby Henson **The Tell-Tale Farce by Don Zolidis **The Murder Room by Jack Sharkey *2015 **One Slight Hitch by Lewis Black **La Bete (The Beast) by David Herson **Grounded by Chelsea Marcantel (adapted from the novel by Angela Correll) **Sherlock's Secret Life by Will Severin, Ed Lange **Boeing, Boeing! by Marc Camoletti, Beverley Cross, Francis Evans *2014 ** Whodunnit, Darling? by

Charles Edward Pogue Charles Edward Pogue Jr. (born January 18, 1950) is an American screenwriter, playwright and stage actor. He is best known for writing the screenplays of ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' (1983), ''Psycho III'' (1986), '' The Fly'' (1986) and ' ...

and

Larry Drake Larry Richard Drake (February 21, 1950 – March 17, 2016) was an American actor and comedian. He was best known as Benny Stulwicz in '' L.A. Law'', for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards. He also appeared as Robert G. Durant in both ''Dark ...

Is He Dead? ''Is He Dead?'' is a play by Mark Twain based on his earlier 1893 short story. The play, written by Twain in 1898, was first published in print in 2003 after Mark Twain scholar Shelley Fisher Fishkin read the manuscript in the archives of the Mark ...

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

, adapted by

David Ives David Ives (born July 11, 1950) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. He is perhaps best known for his comic one-act plays; ''The New York Times'' in 1997 referred to him as the "maestro of the short form". Ives has also written ...

** The Wonder Team by

Robby Henson Robby Henson is an American director and screenwriter. Biography Robby Henson began his directing career at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. Henson is now a skilled film and documentary maker. He writes and directs all his films, ...

**Walking Across Egypt by

Catherine Bush Catherine Bush is a Canadian novelist. Biography Born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, she attended Yale University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Literature. Her debut novel, ''Minus Time'' ( ...

(adapted from the novel by

Clyde Edgerton Clyde Edgerton (born May 20, 1944) is an American author. He has published a dozen books, most of them novels, two of which have been adapted for film. He is also a professor, teaching creative writing. Biography Edgerton was born in Durham, N ...

) ** A Visit from Scarface by V. Cate and Duke Ernsberger *2013 ** Deathtrap by

Ira Levin Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novels ''A Kiss Before Dying (novel), A Kiss Before Dying'' (1953), ''Rosemary's Baby (novel), Rosemary's Baby'' ...

Tamed A tame animal is an animal that is relatively tolerant of human presence. Tameness may arise naturally (as in the case, for example, of island tameness) or due to the deliberate, human-directed process of training an animal against its initially ...

by Holly Hepp-Galvan, adapted from

Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

** The Search for Tinker Doyle by Elizabeth Orndorff **

Moon Over Buffalo ''Moon Over Buffalo'' is a 1995 comic play by Ken Ludwig set in Buffalo, New York in 1953. This play marked the return, after a 30-year absence, of Carol Burnett to the Broadway stage. Characters *George Hay, a traveling actor. *Charlotte Hay, ...

Ken Ludwig Ken Ludwig is an American playwright and theatre director whose work has been performed in more than 30 countries in over 20 languages. Personal life Ken Ludwig was born in York, Pennsylvania. His father was a doctor and his mother was a former ...

**Cockeyed by

Samuel French Samuel French (1821–1898) was an American entrepreneur who, together with British actor, playwright and theatrical manager Thomas Hailes Lacy, pioneered in the field of theatrical publishing and the licensing of plays. Biography French foun ...

*2012 ** Dracula Bites! by V. Cate and Duke Ernsberger **

Picasso at the Lapin Agile ''Picasso at the Lapin Agile'' is a full-length play written by American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician Steve Martin in 1993. Description The play features the characters of Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso, who meet at a bar ...

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominated ...

**Bottoms Up! by Gregg Kreutz **High Strangeness by Elizabeth Orndorff ** Tuna Does Vegas by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears and Ed Howard *2011 ** The 39 Steps adapted by Patrick Barlow **

Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; french: Tartuffe, ou l'Imposteur, ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical thea ...

: The Southern Version adapted from Moliere **That Madcap Moon by Janet Henson Dow ** Don't Cry for Me, Margaret Mitchell by V. Cate and Duke Ernsberger ** Kosher Lutherans by

William Missouri Downs William Missouri Downs is an American comedy writer, playwright, screenwriter, stage director, and author Life & Writing William Missouri Downs started as an actor earning an MFA in acting from the University of Illinois, but a bout with vira ...

*2010 ** A Nice Family Gathering by Phil Olson ** Miranda: The Catch of the Day ( Adapted from Miranda, by Peter Blackmore) ** The Dillinger Dilemma ( World Premiere by Elizabeth Orndorff) ** For Better by

Eric Coble Eric Coble is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is a member of the Playwrights' Unit of the Cleveland Play House. Eric Coble was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and raised on the Navajo and Ute reservations in New Mexico and Colorado. Bef ...

The production was directed by Katherine M. Carter ** Run for Your Wife by

Ray Cooney Raymond George Alfred Cooney, OBE (born 30 May 1932) is an English playwright, actor, and director. His biggest success, '' Run for Your Wife'' (1983), ran for nine years in London's West End and is its longest-running comedy. He has had 17 ...

The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher *2009 ** M is for Million by

Jack Sharkey Jack Sharkey (born Joseph Paul Zukauskas, lt, Juozas Povilas Žukauskas, October 26, 1902 – August 17, 1994) was a Lithuanian-American world heavyweight boxing champion. Boxing career He took his ring name from his two idols, heavyweight ...

** The Infamous Ephraim by Holly Henson **

Lend Me a Tenor ''Lend Me a Tenor'' is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End (1986) and Broadway (1989). It received nine Tony Award nominations and won for Best Actor (Philip Bosco) and Best Director (Jerry Zaks). A Broadway re ...

Girl Crazy ''Girl Crazy'' is a 1930 musical by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin and book by Guy Bolton and John McGowan. Ethel Merman made her stage debut in the first production and co-lead Ginger Rogers became an overnight star. Rich in song, ...

Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred w ...

& John McGowan **

Be My Baby "Be My Baby" is a song by American girl group the Ronettes that was released as a single on Philles Records in August 1963. Written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector, the song was the Ronettes' biggest hit, reaching number 2 in ...

*2008 ** Leading Ladies by

Mornings at Seven James Last (, ; born Hans Last; 17 April 1929 – 9 June 2015), also known as Hansi, was a German composer and big band leader of the James Last Orchestra. Initially a jazz bassist (Last won the award for "best bassist" in Germany in each of ...

Paul Osborn Paul Osborn (September 4, 1901 – May 12, 1988) was an American playwright and screenwriter. Osborn's original plays are '' The Vinegar Tree'', ''Oliver Oliver'', and ''Morning's at Seven'' and among his several successful adaptations, ''On Bo ...

. ** Death by Darkness by Elizabeth Orndorff. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. ** Love, Sex and the IRS by

Billy Van Zandt William Van Zandt (born December 13, 1957) is an American playwright and actor, and the author of the best-selling TV memoir ''Get in the Car, Jane (Adventures in the TV Wasteland).'' Early life Van Zandt was born in Red Bank, New Jersey, to Ma ...

and Jane Milmore. The production was directed by Synge Maher. ** Cookin' with Gus by Jim Brochu. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. *2007 ** Babe, The Sheep Pig by David Wood. The production was directed by Robby Henson. **

The Servant of Two Masters ''The Servant of Two Masters'' ( it, Il servitore di due padroni, links=no) is a comedy by the Italian playwright Carlo Goldoni written in 1746. Goldoni originally wrote the play at the request of actor Antonio Sacco, one of the great Harlequins ...

Carlo Goldoni Carlo is a given name. It is an Italian form of Charles. It can refer to: *Carlo (name) *Monte Carlo *Carlingford, New South Wales, a suburb in north-west Sydney, New South Wales, Australia *A satirical song written by Dafydd Iwan about Prince Char ...

. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. **

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

. The production was directed by Lawrence Lesher. ** A Jarful of Fireflies by

. The production was directed by Robby Henson. **

Greater Tuna ''Greater Tuna'' is the first in a series of four comedic plays (followed by '' A Tuna Christmas,'' ''Red, White and Tuna'', and '' Tuna Does Vegas''), each set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, the "third-smallest" town in the state. The se ...

by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, & Ed Howard *2006 **

My Sister Eileen ''My Sister Eileen'' is a series of autobiographical short stories by Ruth McKenney, originally published in ''The New Yorker'', which eventually inspired many other works: her 1938 book ''My Sister Eileen'', a play, a musical, a radio play (a ...

by Joseph A. Fields &

Jerome Chodorov Jerome Chodorov (August 10, 1911 – September 12, 2004) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. He co-wrote the book with Joseph A. Fields for the original Broadway musical ''Wonderful Town'' starring Rosalind Russell. The musi ...

Rumors A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; see spelling differences; derived from Latin:rumorem - noise), is "a tall tale of explanations of events circulating from person to person and pertaining to an object, event, or issue in p ...

** Shakespeare in Hollywood by

Wait Until Dark ''Wait Until Dark'' is a play by Frederick Knott, first performed on Broadway in 1966 and often revived since then. A film version was released in 1967, and the play was published in the same year. Synopsis Susy Hendrix is a blind Greenwich V ...

Frederick Knott Frederick Major Paull Knott (28 August 1916 – 17 December 2002) was an English playwright and screenwriter known for his complex crime-related plots. Although he was a reluctant writer and completed only a small number of plays in his caree ...

Social Security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

Andrew Bergman Andrew Bergman (born February 20, 1945) is an American screenwriter, film director, and novelist. His best-known films include '' Blazing Saddles'', '' The In-Laws'', '' The Freshman'' and '' Striptease''. Early life Born to a Jewish family, Be ...

*2005 ** On the Razzle by

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

** Squabbles by Marshall Karp **

The Man Who Came to Dinner ''The Man Who Came to Dinner'' is a comedy play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It debuted on October 16, 1939, at the Music Box Theatre in New York City, where it ran until 1941, closing after 739 performances. It then enjoyed a number of N ...

Moss Hart Moss Hart (October 24, 1904 – December 20, 1961) was an American playwright, librettist, and theater director. Early years Hart was born in New York City, the son of Lillian (Solomon) and Barnett Hart, a cigar maker. He had a younger brother ...

& George S. Kaufman ** The Last of Jane Austen by

Shirl Hendryx Shirl is a given name, often a short form (hypocorism) of Shirley. It may refer to: People: * Shirl Bernheim, stage name of American actress Shirley Raphael (1921–2009) * Shirl Conway, stage name of American actress Shirley Crossman (1916–20 ...

** Death by Golf by Gregg Kreutz *2004 ** Mr. Shaw Goes to Hollywood by

Mark Saltzman Mark Saltzman is an American script writer who has written films, plays and musicals and for TV. He worked for several years for ''Sesame Street''. He has been given seven Emmy Awards for Best Writing for a Children's Show. TV and film work He g ...

** Cactus Flower by

Abe Burrows Abe Burrows (born Abram Solman Borowitz; December 18, 1910 – May 17, 1985) was an American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage. He won a Tony Award and was selected for two Pulitzer Prizes, only one of which was awarded. Ear ...

**The Village Wooing by George Bernard Shaw **Sherlock's Secret Life by Will Severin, Ed Lange ** Biloxi Blues by

*2003 ** Impossible Marriage by Beth Henley **A Little Family Business by Jay Presson Allen **Fiddler on the Roof **

Proposals Proposal(s) or The Proposal may refer to: * Proposal (business) * Research proposal * Proposal (marriage) * Proposition, a proposal in logic and philosophy Arts, entertainment, and media * ''The Proposal'' (album) Films * ''The Proposal'' ...

** Sylvia by

A.R. Gurney Albert Ramsdell Gurney Jr. (November 1, 1930 – June 13, 2017) (sometimes credited as Pete Gurney) was an American playwright, novelist and academic. He is known for works including ''The Dining Room'' (1982), ''Sweet Sue (play), Sweet Sue'' (1 ...

* 1997 ** Moon Over Buffalo ** The Liar ** Summer and Smoke ** A Flea in Her Ear ** Cookin' with Gus * 1996 ** King of Hearts ** That Madcap Moon ** Sylvia ** Spider's Web ** Crossing Delancey *1995 **The Nerd ** Tom Jones **Any Given Day **

Harvey Harvey, Harveys or Harvey's may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Harvey'' (play), a 1944 play by Mary Chase about a man befriended by an invisible anthropomorphic rabbit * Harvey Awards ("Harveys"), one of the most important awards ...

by Mary Chase **

My Fat Friend ''My Fat Friend'' is a play by Charles Laurence. Plot The comedy is an ugly duckling tale about an overweight young woman who attracts the attention of a potential suitor. With the help of her friends/roommates, she undergoes a diet and exercis ...

Charles Laurence Charles Laurence (10 January 1931 – 13 July 2013) was a British actor and playwright who worked in films and television. Early life Charles Laurence was born Carlos Felipes in Tangiers when it was an International zone, to a Swiss-Scottish m ...

* 1994 ** Boy Meets Girl ** Look Howard, Angel ** The Man Who Came to Dinner ** Scapino! ** Social Security * 1993 ** Lend Me A Tenor ** Murder on the Nile ** The Traveling Lady ** Arsenic and Old Lace ** Beau Jest * 1992 ** The Matchmaker ** Will Heal This Land ** Born Yesterday ** And A Nightingale Sang ** I Hate Hamlet * 1991 ** Noises Off ** The Front Page ** My Three Angels ** Postmortem ** Alone Together

References

External links

{{Commons, Danville, Kentucky, Pioneer Playhouse
The Pioneer Playhouse official web site
Theatres in Kentucky Buildings and structures in Danville, Kentucky Tourist attractions in Boyle County, Kentucky