About The Santa Maria Civic Theatre
Introduction
The Santa Maria Civic Theatre was founded in 1959 as the first organization in Santa
Maria to provide continuous live theatre performances. In
1961 the group was incorporated in the state of California
as a non-profit educational organization. We are the
longest running continuous performance group of any
community theatre in the area between Ventura and Monterey.
In 50 seasons the "SMCT" has produced over 200 productions to
entertain more than 85,000 people. From the 22 free Fairy
Tale theatres to the numerous other special productions, we
have strived to present first rate entertainment for our
community. We have never lost money for a season since our
inception, nor have we ever missed settling a bill. We have
achieved this record of responsibility by sound business
policies, frugality, ingenuity, and by presenting good
productions of plays desired by the local community.
Players
Although our performances are classified as
non-professional, some present members are former
professional actors. A number of past members have gone on
to later appear in professional productions. We have
provided drama training for scores of neophyte actors, and
we recently concluded four one act plays produced
specifically to develop new talent both on stage and behind
the scenes.
Facility
We have a small intimate theatre seating 100 in comfort and
providing excellent acoustics and sight lines from any
position in any of three staging configurations. While
perhaps not the epitome of elegance, our facility is very
effective and provides a pleasant experience for the
audience. As always, we hope to make many more improvements
as our funds allow.
In 1964 we purchased our present building from the Pacific
Telephone Company and converted it from a relay station to
a black box theatre. The original building had only one
rest room, no dressing rooms or Green Room. Those were
added later.
The seats were salvaged from the burned out Santa Maria
Theatre. Our members stripped, repainted, reupholstered,
and installed the seats. At present, all our tools and
supplies are stored in the small annex in the rear yard,
and nearly all the set construction must be done outdoors.
Our first lights were made from empty coffee cans painted
black. We now have new lighting, but you will occasionally
see a black coffee can up there. Forty-eight lighting
units, an adaptation of a professional design, were built
by the members from a mixture of wholesale fixtures, the
coffee cans, and donated units. In addition we now have
twelve Fresnel fixtures and a computer-controlled light
board.
In 1999 we installed new heating and a new air conditioning
system. 2000 saw the installation of new lighting and sound
systems. We are working toward installing new seats in
2003.
Name the Seat Project
You still have the opportunity to sponsor a seat in the
newly refurbished Santa Maria Civic Theatre.
For a $125 dollar sponsorship you can inscribe a brass
plaque to be embedded in the arm of seat honoring or
memorializing a loved one. You may leave a short message
(up to 3 lines) or just your name.
Request a Seat application from SMCT, P.O. Box 161, Santa
Maria, CA 93456 or call 922-1204.
About Our Summer Children's Program
In 1993, the Santa Maria Civic Theatre Board and membership
embarked on a simple yet ambitious undertaking: to make
live theatre accessible to youngsters in the Santa Maria
valley. The results have been successful beyond our
greatest expectations. We are delighted by the support and
enthusiasm with which the children and their "grown-up
guests" have received this program. After producing these
shows for seven summers, we are amazed at the support of
our audiences and the commitment of the actors and crews
who are involved in this completely volunteer effort.
Backstage
We Build
Volunteers build all of our sets. No experience is
required, and it is a great way to make new friends and be
part of the theatre. Just pitch in and give us a hand!
We Rehearse, Rehearse...
...and rehearse!. Our cast members may start off a little
clumsy backstage, but they keep improving until the show
debuts.
We Write
Several of our Fairy Tale Theatre productions are based on
original scripts written by SMCT members, including Phyllis
Rodenberger, Dennis Headrick, and Don M. Schuettee.
We Disguise
If a character has to look younger, we can do that. Older,
we can do that too. How about fatter? Yep. Smaller? We even
have a few tricks for that one! We use theatrical make-up
and teach the performers how to apply their own make-up.
Costumes are made by volunteers.
We Perform
After all, that's what we do! The show must go on, and it
does. We produce several complete shows every season.
