The Powerhouse Theater (officially the Hallie Flanagan Davis Powerhouse Theater) is a theater building on the campus of

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...

in the town of

Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsi ...

, US. Originally built as a power station in 1912, it was renovated and repurposed as a theater in 1973. Each summer it hosts student productions as well as professional workshops and readings as part of the Vassar–

New York Stage and Film New York Stage and Film is an art and film institution founded in 1985 by Mark Linn-Baker, Max Mayer and Leslie Urdang in order to provide artists with a rigorous and nurturing environment to invigorate the artistic process; to promote collabora ...

Powerhouse Theater program.

History

Vassar College, the first degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, was founded in 1861 in the town of Poughkeepsie, New York. The campus transitioned to electrical lights from

gas lighting Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either directl ...

in 1912, which necessitated the construction of a

power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many p ...

. The building was designed by Lord & Co. and constructed adjacent to the school's Main Building, where it ran until 1954. Thereafter, the college began buying its power from a nearby utility company. The old power house was retrofitted as the Powerhouse Theater in 1973 by Chicago architect Robertson Ward Jr. A

black box theater A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...

space, the Powerhouse was designed to allow the audience to occupy a third of the floor space, while the remaining two thirds were to be used as performance space. The building is officially named the Hallie Flanagan Davis Powerhouse Theater, in honor of

Hallie Flanagan Hallie Flanagan Davis (August 27, 1889 in Redfield, South Dakota – June 23, 1969 in Old Tappan, New Jersey) was an American theatrical producer and director, playwright, and author, best known as director of the Federal Theatre Project, a pa ...

, founder of the Vassar Experimental Theater program. At the Powerhouse's opening, theater critic

Brooks Atkinson Justin Brooks Atkinson (November 28, 1894 – January 14, 1984) was an American theatre critic. He worked for ''The New York Times'' from 1922 to 1960. In his obituary, the ''Times'' called him "the theater's most influential reviewer of his ...

spoke and several scenes from Flanagan's works from 1926 were performed. After its renovation, the Powerhouse stood as the only significant construction among the nearby cluster of former service buildings, known collectively as the "backyard" until the 1990s, when the adjacent structures received their own renovations.

Productions and programs

During the academic year, student-led productions presented by the Experimental Theater are presented in the Powerhouse. During the summer months, the theater plays host to an eight-week professional theater development program, named the Powerhouse Theater after the eponymous structure in which many of the program's readings and performances take place. A collaboration between Vassar College and

(NYSAF), the program offers theatermakers room to workshop and develop works of film and theater. The NYSAF Powerhouse Theater program was founded in 1984 by Max Mayer,

Leslie Urdang Leslie R. Urdang (born 1956) is an American film producer and theatre executive. Education Urdang attended Forest Hills High School in New York City, where she was Chairman of ''Senior SING! 1972'' during her senior year, and at which she wa ...

, and

Mark Linn-Baker Mark Linn-Baker (born June 17, 1954) is an American actor and director who played Benjy Stone in the film ''My Favorite Year'' and Larry Appleton in the television sitcom '' Perfect Strangers''. Early life and education Mark Linn-Baker was bor ...

. By 2009, it offered an apprenticeship program and had an annual budget of $900,000. Tickets for works presented at the Powerhouse Theater program are open to anyone but reviews, except by local papers, are banned. Broadway shows first presented with the Powerhouse Theater program include 2016

Tony Award 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 cer ...

winners ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

'' and '' The Humans'', and 2016 Tony award nominee '' Bright Star'', which had won the 2016

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...

Notes

References

Cited

* * * *

External links

Vassar–NYSAF Powerhouse Theater official website
{{Vassar College Vassar College buildings University and college theatres in the United States School buildings completed in 1912 1910s architecture in the United States Theatre festivals in the United States 1912 establishments in New York (state)