A Brief History of Peninsula Players Theatre

Take a rustic, woodsy site outfitted with a few little cabins that once served as boys’ camp along the bay. Add a dream, a barn-like proscenium stagehouse and a hundred or so seats open to the stars above and you have the early days of Peninsula Players Theatre.

Richard and Caroline Fisher, a young novice brother-and-sister team, started the troupe in 1935 when they produced Noël Coward’s Hay Fever at a site behind the former Bonnie Brook Cottage/Motel in Fish Creek, now the Fish Creek Town Park.

By 1937 the Fishers along with their parents (“Mama” who designed and made costumes and fed the company and “Papa,” the general handyman) realized the ensemble had outgrown the motel site so they purchased the 22-acre Wildwood Boys Camp, the present site of the theater.

Now in its 88th season, it is no longer a dream, we are America’s oldest professional resident summer theater.

In the 88 years Peninsula Players Theatre has performed in the Theatre in a Garden, more than 1,000 actors have crossed our boards. Some had their first professional experiences here. Many continued their careers in the arts, either on- or off-stage, and some have even gone onto stardom.

Although Peninsula Players Theatre began under the stars, a canvas top was draped above the audience in 1946, and in 1957 Caroline’s dream of a permanent roof came true when the open-sided pavilion was built.

In 1960, after 25 years of involvement, the Fishers sold the theater at public auction to Kenneth Carroad, a New York City attorney. Jim McKenzie was hired to oversee the theater’s operations as producer. He and his wife, actress Jeanne Bolan, both associated with the theater since 1947, took on the Fisher legacy.

The non-profit organization, Peninsula Players Theatre Foundation, Inc., was formed in 1962, to operate the theater, and in 1978 Carroad sold the theater. McKenzie became owner of the property in 1978 and continued as the Company’s producer.

Anticipating significant renovation and repair to the theater pavilion and surrounding support buildings, as well as the need for new production and housing facilities, McKenzie decided to sell the property to the Peninsula Players Theatre Foundation, Inc. in 1993. As a member of the Players Board of Directors, McKenzie continued to help preserve and improve the theater’s facilities and environment until his death in 2002.

More than a decade ago many improvements were made, including actor housing, public restroom facilities, an expanded and upgraded rehearsal hall and storage areas, and a computerized box office. The close of the 2005 season brought the beginning of the theater's largest improvement – a new stage house and audience pavilion.

Through the generous support of many donors, benefactors and volunteers all intent on continuing the magic of live theater for future generations, the organization built a new facility in the exact same foot-print of the first theater. In June 2006, the 621-seat audience pavilion opened. Included was up-to-date wiring, more space for actors and scenery, a redesigned space to provide better sightlines for the audience, not to mention new comfy seats.

The passion that Richard and Caroline shared to stretch their imaginations, provide reason for laughter and tears and furnish cutting edge theater experiences is still the hallmark at Peninsula Players Theatre. Safeguarding that dream and this lovely Theatre in a Garden is paramount to the Board of Directors which is committed to –

• Preserving America’s oldest professional resident summer theater;

• Supporting the most exciting theater company possible;

• Providing freedom, tools and facilities so artists may entertain, uplift and inform audiences; and

• Fostering future generations of theater professionals through internships.

We hope you enjoy your visit as you explore the theater where the sun sets, the curtain rises and the stars shine.

Welcome to our theater in the woods.

Eric returned to Door County nine years ago to establish himself as an artist and pursue his talented career in Landscape Design. He brings to the theater more than 20 years of experience in design and landscaping, having worked for companies such as Leids Nursery and David J. Frank Landscaping. He served as grounds manager for Community Memorial Hospital in Menomonee Falls and as a computer graphics art designer at Flexcraft, Inc. in Wisconsin. Eric’s special talents for landscape painting, photography and his love for the outdoors add to his ability to create the beautiful gardens that are displayed throughout the property of Peninsula Players Theatre. Truly a work of art in the making!

The Box Office emails curtain time reminders 24-hours before the show. If you did not receive a reminder, please contact the Box Office to verify we have your email address.

Are you interested in our pre-show seminars?

ANNI & DEB LAMPERT

Cook & Head Chef

Once upon a time, Mrs. Lampert had a beautiful daughter, then another (then another, but that’s a story for another day). One decided she was the queen, and the other decided to be a princess. Now they run our kitchen and feed us all summer. God save the queen and the princess, too. You may know them as Deb Lampert and Anni Lampert. They live in a small castle in Sturgeon Bay, where they exercise active imaginations but rarely caution.

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