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‘Tis the Season for Summer Stock Theatre

by Jennifer Vosters

Three people in suitcoats stand on an illuminated stage facing audience members at nighttime.
Photo Credit: Hannah Jo Anderson / American Players Theatre
Summer stock brings thousands of people to theaters often nestled in hidden pockets of the Midwest, including Spring Green, Wisconsin (population: 1,566), Mount Carroll, Illinois (population: 1,479), and Custer, South Dakota (population: 1,919).

When it comes to great ways to spend a summer evening, summer stock stages steal the show.

Welcome to summer stock season! From Shakespeare festivals to classic American musicals, the Midwest has plenty to go around.

But . . . what is summer stock? The answer may vary, but for the most part:

  • Summer stock theaters only produce in the summer. While many theater seasons mirror the school year or run year-round, summer stock starts in late spring and usually wraps in August or September. (Some may tack on a separate fall show as well.)
  • Most summer stock theaters program their shows “in rep,” meaning multiple productions are happening at the same time (or in very quick succession), with the same teams working on them.
  • Most summer stock theaters are in rural areas, small cities, and vacation hotspots, hiring artists from across the country to work—and live—together for several months.
Photo Credit: Callie Server and Mia Roldan / Courtesy of Clinton Area Showboat
“Many summer stock theaters are buildings like barns and airplane hangers that have been retrofitted to make them theaters, which makes each one very unique,” says Crouse. “The Showboat is a great example.”

The camaraderie of a bunch of artists converging for the summer—often in a beautiful, hidden-gem of a locale—is a whole “summer camp vibe,” says stage manager Bri Humke, a veteran of several Midwest summer stocks. “We’re pushing ourselves to do an insane amount of shows, but also having fun while doing it.”

Along with those key similarities, there’s plenty of variety. Some summer stocks focus on supporting up-and-coming artists, like Porthouse Theatre at Kent State University in Ohio. Others employ veterans of the field and have won national acclaim, including American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin (which won the Regional Tony Award this year). Some focus on Shakespeare and “the classics”; others frontload musicals; still others produce world premieres. Some are outdoors, in retrofitted barns, or even on a riverboat.

Photo Credit: Callie Server and Mia Roldan / Courtesy of Clinton Area Showboat
The company of a summer stock theater is usually big. And for many artists, this is the longest contract of the year.

“When these actors come out to perform, rural audiences get a level of productions that they may not otherwise see,” says Courtney Ryan Crouse, Artistic Director of Clinton Area Showboat Theatre, a 75-year-old boat-turned-theater serving Northeast Iowa and Northwest Illinois. “For many patrons, this will be the closest they ever get to Broadway.”

Humke grew up attending shows at American Players Theatre and worked on the house staff in high school and college before transitioning to stage management. Their other summer stock gigs include Door Shakespeare in Sister Bay, Wisconsin; Hope Summer Repertory in Holland, Michigan; and, currently, the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City, Utah. 

“Summer stock has become the home base that I work out of,” they say. “It is such a good way to learn a bunch of things really quickly.”

Crouse, too, has a long history in summer stock as an actor and director, starting when he was 12. “I gained many connections and skills that I would not have acquired otherwise,” he says.

With top-notch performances in memorable locations, summer stock offers audiences a lot of bang for their buck. Including—and especially—those who don’t see theater the rest of the year.

“You get a scenic view, and you get to see the most amazing theatre from actors who are local and actors who are from literally everywhere,” says Humke.

So plan your own midsummer night’s dream and check out the summer theater magic happening near you!

 

A (Non-Exhaustive) Summer Stock Sampler

Illinois

Illinois Shakespeare Festival (Bloomington-Normal, ISU campus)

McLeod Summer Playhouse (Carbondale, SIU campus–on hiatus)

Oak Park Theatre Festival (Oak Park)

Timber Lake Playhouse (Mount Carroll)

Indiana

Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival (South Bend, ND campus)

Red Barn Summer Theatre (Frankfort)

Summer Stock Stage (Indianapolis)

Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts (Warsaw)

Iowa

Cedar Summerstock Theatre (Osage)

Clinton Area Showboat Theatre (Clinton)

Des Moines Metro Opera (Des Moines)

Okoboji Summer Theatre (Spirit Lake, operated by Stephens College)

Michigan

Hope Summer Repertory (Holland, Hope College campus)

Michigan Shakespeare Festival (Detroit)

Tibbits Summer Theatre (Coldwater)

Minnesota

Great River Shakespeare Festival (Winona)

Straw Hat Players (Moorhead, Minnesota State campus)

Theatre L’Homme Dieu (Alexandria)

North Dakota

Minot State Summer Theatre (Minot)

Ohio

Ohio Light Opera (Wooster, College of Wooster campus)

Porthouse Theatre (Cuyahoga Falls, Kent State campus)

Weathervane Playhouse (Newark)

South Dakota

Black Hills Playhouse (Custer State Park)

Prairie Repertory Theatre (Brookings)

Wisconsin

American Players Theatre (Spring Green)

Door Shakespeare (Sister Bay)

Northern Sky Theatre (Fish Creek)

Peninsula Players Theatre (Fish Creek)