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“If you can
dream it, it can be
done.”
—
Unofficial motto
of the TCP
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In 1983, there was no
live-theater company in Tyrone. During the
1930s and 1940s, a vibrant, critically acclaimed
company, The Tyrone Players, called this town home.
But the group disbanded when TV became the focus of
entertainment.
Back to 1983!
What can be more persuasive and
driven than several mothers who feel a need for their
children to have the opportunity to participate in
the creative outlet provided by live theater?
That’s what happened here!
Laurie Cave and Cindy Bennett both
wanted to create those opportunities for their
children — and themselves. Together they forged
a small, untested, but enthusiastic group of people
who had a similar desire.
The first order of business was to
contact as many of the former members of The Tyrone
Players as were available and absorb as much
information from them as possible. Next, to speak
with other community theater companies to find the
right track to take. And then, to just
begin.
With the help of Anna Roseberry,
whose mother and uncle had been active participants
in The Tyrone Players, and who was a drama coach at a
local high school, a play was chosen and auditions
set. Anna agreed to direct that first production,
The Orphans, and the newly incorporated Tyrone
Community Players were on their
way.
A few things stood in their way;
the two biggest were the lack of money and the need
for a location to perform. Money was raised in a wide
variety of ways, all unusual (hand-painted Easter
eggs, for example). As it turned out, the group was
well-supported by the community. Finding a location
to perform, however, was not as simple to
solve!
After checking out the facilities
in local churches, schools, and storefronts, Laurie
and Cindy decided to take a look at the historic
theater in the Tyrone YMCA, the place The Tyrone
Players had called home. There was an immediate
attachment to the 1914 jewel of Baroque architecture,
even though she had seen far better days. The deal
was done!
As soon as electrical power was
restored to the Y theater, cleaning done, a little
painting attempted, and railings polished, it was
time to plan for the actual
production.
Enter Kelly and Mike
Yeaton.... Kelly Yeaton was a professor
emeritus of drama at Penn State University and
possessed the wealth of thespian knowledge that this
fledgling organization needed. His son, Mike, was as
versed in technical theater as Kelly was in acting
and staging. Between the two of them, they showed a
handful of “eager beaver” thespians how
to build and paint a set, design a lighting plot,
stage a production, and do a million other tiny tasks
that make for a successful production. Kelly even
went as far as to visit the home of an aspiring
costumer, with his handful of
“glued-to-him” sidekicks, to watch a
fashion show right out of her own closet so as to
help find the most appropriate clothing from which to
create a costume plot.
The Tyrone Community Players
premiered in June 1984 to a sold-out audience. The
Orphans was the only show produced in that first
year. In the second season, they presented four
productions (a novice mistake): Blithe Spirit,
Annie, Star Spangled Girl, and
Something’s Afoot. Three shows were
produced in the third season: Wait until Dark, The
Music Man, and A Midsummer Night’s
Dream (a three-show schedule that’s
retained to this day).
Unfortunately, in September 2004,
the Tyrone Community Players lost their home in the
YMCA because of the damage cause by “Ivan the
Terrible” (a.k.a. Hurricane Ivan). The local
YMCA disbanded, and the building that housed the
theater was closed as being
unsafe.
Although the loss of the YMCA
theater was a devastating blow, the Tyrone Community
Players purchased the building of the former
Tyrone-Snyder Library, a red-brick structure built in
1924 that had begun its life as an Elks lodge.
Because the building is located across Logan Avenue
from their beloved theater, it’s hoped that
good vibes won’t have far to travel to find
this still-undaunted group of theater
enthusiasts.
Plans for renovating the building
still are in their preliminary stages, and options
are being explored for a new performance space. In
the meantime, the Tyrone Community Players are
producing and performing quality theater in this
hometown of Tyrone.
The shows produced during the
twenty-three seasons of the Tyrone Community Players
are:
1984
The Orphans
1984–85
Blithe Spirit
Annie
Star Spangled Girl
Somethings Afoot
1986–87
Wait Until Dark
The Music Man
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
1987–88
The Seven Year Itch
The Fantastiks
Twain by the Tail (TCP’s first
dinner-theater show)
1988–89
Dracula
The Sound of Music
Robin Hood
1989–90
God’s Favorite
Camelot
Two one-act plays:
The Traveling Sisters and The Day It Rained
Forever
1990–91
Mousetrap
Hello, Dolly!
Foxfire
1991–92
Angel Street
A Little Night Music
Fools
1992–93
Harvey
Into the Woods
They Went Thataway
1993–94
A Christmas Carol
South Pacific
Murder at Rutherford House
1994–95
See How They Run
Kiss Me Kate
Greater Tuna
1995–96
Arsenic and Old Lace
Gypsy
The Odd Couple
1996–97
Death Trap
Oklahoma!
An evening of three one-act plays
1997–98
Nunsense
My Fair Lady
They’re Playing Our Song
1998–99
Bell, Book and Candle
Fiddler on the Roof
The Dining Room
1999–2000
A Christmas Caroled
Pump Boys and Dinettes
I Do! I Do!
2000–01
Nuncrackers
Forever Plaid
Southern Fried Murder
2001–02
Some Enchanted Evening
Peter Pan
The Taffetas Reunion
2002–03
Sherwood
Steel Magnolias
Always, Patsy Cline
2003–04
Cinderella
“Music, Magic and Memories” — A
20th Anniversary Retrospect
Pippin
GI Jukebox
2004–05
The Best Christmas Pageant
Ever
Annie Get Your Gun
My Way — A Musical Tribute to Frank
Sinatra
2005–06
Barefoot in the Park
Seussical — The Musical
Meshuggah-Nuns!
2006–07
A Christmas Caroled
Crimes of the Heart
A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline
A History of The Tyrone
Players
Compiled from
information given in
the playbooks of the
organization.
The Tyrone Players was
organized in September 1936 as a W.P.A. (Works
Project Administration) project under the direction
of Mr. Scott Geesey. A non-profit, non-sectarian,
non-political organization, its purpose was to
cultivate dramatics appreciation and vocational and
social culture. Under the leadership of President
Reuben Rudy, Secretary Frances Schneider, and
Treasurer Louise Griffin Tonkin, the venture sprang
into activity and soon became a vital part of
Tyrone’s community life. The W.P.A. sponsorship
ceased at the close of the first season; however, The
Tyrone Players remained active, and Mr. Eugene Dayton
replaced Mr. Geesey as director.
The first presentation, Marry
before Midnight, led to twenty-four successful
productions, the last of which was My China
Doll, produced for the benefit of the Tyrone
Kiwanis Fund for underprivileged
children.
The productions made by The Tyrone
Players are as follows:
1936–37
Marry before Midnight
Meet the Duchess
A Full House
1937–38
One Mad Night
The Music Master
Outward Bound
Night of January 16th
1938–39
The Swan
The Enemy
The Music Master
The Torchbearers
The Passing of the Third Floor Back
1939–40
Death Takes a Holiday
Journey’s End
First Lady
Peg o’ My Heart
1940–41
The Royal Family
The Late Christopher Bean
Ceiling Zero
George Washington Slept Here
Smilin’ Through
1941–42
Abie’s Irish Rose
The Family Upstairs
The Trial of Mary Dugan
My China Doll
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