Theatre Cedar Rapids (TCR) is a

community theatre Community theatre refers to any theatrical performance made in relation to particular communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a community with no outside he ...

Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids () is the second-largest city in Iowa, United States and is the county seat of Linn County, Iowa, Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River (Iowa River), Cedar River, north of Iowa City, Iowa, Iowa City and north ...

. The theatre performs several stage shows every year, and offers acting classes. Each year TCR is seen by more than 50,000 patrons, who view the work of over 35,000 volunteer hours.

History

Early years

In 1925 as part of the

Little Theatre Movement As the new medium of cinema was beginning to replace theater as a source of large-scale spectacle, the Little Theatre Movement developed in the United States around 1912. The Little Theatre Movement served to provide experimental centers for the dra ...

Grant Wood Grant DeVolson Wood (February 13, 1891 February 12, 1942) was an American painter and representative of Regionalism, best known for his paintings depicting the rural American Midwest. He is particularly well known for '' American Gothic'' (193 ...

and other local community members staged small performances in Wood's apartment at 5 Turner Alley. Wood created sets for the theatre, as well as writing, directing, and acting in plays. Wood also used the space as his artist studio, and painted the famous

American Gothic ''American Gothic'' is a 1930 painting by Grant Wood in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. Wood was inspired to paint what is now known as the ''American Gothic'' House in Eldon, Iowa, along with "the kind of people efancied shoul ...

at this location. Additional scenery was also built and painted by

Marvin Cone Marvin Dorwart Cone (October 21, 1891 – May 18, 1965) was an American painter in the Regionalism (art), regionalist style.Walch, Timothy (2009)"Cone, Marvin Dorwart" ''The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa''. University of Iowa Press Cone was b ...

. The onset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

put the theatre group on hiatus.

Post-war years

In 1948, after the war ended, the group reorganized calling themselves "The Footlighters". They generally performed at the local

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

and at

Coe College Coe College is a private liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was founded in 1851 and is historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). The college is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and the Associat ...

. In 1955 the group moved to the Old Strand Theatre, a building that had been a movie palace since 1912, and had also been known as The Olympic. The group renamed themselves to 'The Cedar Rapids Community Theatre (CRCT)'

Modern era

In June 1928, the '

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...

Iowa Theatre' opened and served as a cinema, as well as offering

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

stage shows. In 1940,

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 ...

played at the theatre in the stage version of '' The Philadelphia Story''. In April, 1983 the theater was shut down. Four months after the closing of the theater, the space was donated to the CRCT by Audrey Linge. When they occupied the Iowa Theatre building, the group renamed itself Theatre Cedar Rapids.

2008 flood

During the

Iowa flood of 2008 Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

, the theatre was significantly damaged, and was shut down until February 2010. While the building was being repaired the group performed at local malls and churches. Stars

Michael Emerson Michael Emerson (born September 7, 1954) is an American actor who is best known for his roles as serial killer William Hinks on ''The Practice'', Benjamin Linus on ''Lost'', Zep Hindle in the first ''Saw'' film, Cayden James on ''Arrow'', and H ...

and

Ron Livingston Ronald Joseph Livingston (born June 5, 1967) is an American actor. He is known for playing Peter Gibbons in the 1999 film ''Office Space'' and Captain Lewis Nixon III in the 2001 miniseries '' Band of Brothers.'' Livingston's other roles include ...

both natives of the Cedar Rapids area, recorded videos to help fundraising efforts for repairs. Livingston had previously performed at TCR. The

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...

contributed over $4 million to the repair, and produced a short documentary about the renovations. The theatre is home to the only remaining 'Rhinestone'

Barton Organ The Bartola Musical Instrument Company of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA, was a producer of theater pipe organs during the age of silent movies. History The company was founded in 1918 by Dan Barton, who was from Amherst, Wisconsin. The sixth large ...

, which has been restored since it was significantly damaged in the 2008 floods. After the theatre restoration, one of the early shows was ''Rent''.

Anthony Rapp Anthony Deane Rapp (born October 26, 1971) is an American actor and singer who originated the role of Mark Cohen in the Broadway production of ''Rent''. Following his original performance of the role in 1996, Rapp reprised it in the film version ...

, who originated the role of Mark Cohen in the Broadway production of the show, was invited to and attended one of the performances. After the show he participated in an extensive question and answer session about the history of the show. Of the TCR performance and theatre he said "Thank you guys, for a performance with so much heart, grace, humor and spirit", and "To be able to restore this theater shows the community’s commitment to the arts — and this theater is amazing"

Laramie Project protest

In 2010, TCRs production of ''

The Laramie Project ''The Laramie Project'' is a 2000 play by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project (specifically, Leigh Fondakowski, writer-director; Stephen Belber, Greg Pierotti, Barbara Pitts, Stephen Wangh, Amanda Gronich, Sara Lambert, ...

'', a play about the murder of gay student

Matthew Shepard Matthew Wayne Shepard (December 1, 1976 – October 12, 1998) was a gay American student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten, tortured, and left to die near Laramie on the night of October 6, 1998. He was taken by rescuers to Pou ...

, was the target of a protest by

Westboro Baptist Church The Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) is a small American, unaffiliated Primitive Baptist church in Topeka, Kansas, founded in 1955 by pastor Fred Phelps. Labeled a hate group, WBC is known for engaging in homophobic and anti-American pickets, as ...

. The church website said "We will picket your filthy, goofy 'theatrical production' of the Laramie Project". Theatre supporters and others opposed to the church's position arranged a counter-protest, but in the end the church protest did not materialize. The counter-protesters converted their protest into a solidarity rally when it was apparent that the church was not going to appear.

80th season

Theatre Cedar Rapids will be one of the first community theatres in the world to perform ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

''. Movie star

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor. Beginning in theatre and television, he landed his breakthrough role as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine in the 20th Century Fox ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2017), a role ...

, who performed the role of

Jean Valjean Jean Valjean () is the protagonist of Victor Hugo's 1862 novel ''Les Misérables''. The story depicts the character's struggle to lead a normal life and redeem himself after serving a 19-year-long prison sentence for stealing bread to feed his ...

in the movie version, recorded a greeting to the theatre wishing " Chookas". TCR is also one of the first theatres in the world to perform the stage version of

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

Notable alumni

Don DeFore Donald John DeFore (August 25, 1913 – December 22, 1993) was an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the sitcom ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' from 1952 to 1957 and the sitcom ''Hazel'' from 1961 to 1965, the former of w ...

Macdonald Carey Edward Macdonald Carey (March 15, 1913 – March 21, 1994) was an American actor, best known for his role as the patriarch Dr. Tom Horton on NBC's soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. For almost three decades, he was the show's central cast member. ...

* Megan Reinking * Joshua Casteel

External links

*
FEMA documentary "Iowa Theatre Takes a Bow"Cinema Treasures entry on the Iowa TheatreRon Linvingston speaks about Theatre Cedar RapidsMichael Emerson speaks in support of Theatre Cedar RapidsAnthony Rapp Q&A after TCR's production of RentHugh Jackman message for TCR

References

{{authority control Community theatre Theatre companies in Iowa Movie palaces Musical theatre companies Performing arts centers in Iowa Buildings and structures in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Tourist attractions in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Public venues with a theatre organ