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about DCP
Our Mission
Davidson Community Players is a non-profit
organization established to produce theatre that entertains,
enriches, and encourages community participation in
the dramatic arts.
Statement of Purpose
The Davidson Community Players (DCP),
founded in 1965, seeks to provide members of the community
opportunities to participate in and experience live
theater of good quality throughout the year, particularly
in the summer.
As the region around the town of
Davidson has developed, DCP understands the community
in an increasingly broad sense, extending well beyond
Davidson to Mecklenburg and Iredell counties and the
entire Lake Norman area. DCP does not limit itself geographically
in seeking talent, participation, or support.
As a community theater, DCP relies
on volunteer time and talent to support high quality
productions and to provide organizational stability.
DCP encourages community participation, entertainment,
and education through productions sufficiently diverse
to provide both serious theater and light entertainment.
Relying on the support of generous
individuals and corporations, as well as box office
receipts, DCP is committed to responsible stewardship
of resources as one of the area’s most visible
and vital arts organizations.
A Brief History of
Davidson Community Players
Davidson Community Players was founded by Constance Welsh a drama teacher, director and actress. Connie also started The Tarradiddle Players, a touring company that performs for children, and was instrumental in the beginning of the Charlotte Rep and Charlotte Shakespeare Festival (both now defunct).
The Players’ first production, in July 1965, was an original play “Time of Harvest,” written by Connie’s husband, Wilmer Welsh. Connie, a graduate of Carnegie Mellon in theatre arts, gathered a group of college and town residents interested in theater. They produced one or two plays every summer primarily in Hodson Hall on the Davidson College campus.
During the years 1965 to 1980, the Players were loosely organized. Connie directed the majority of productions. Among the shows produced during this period were “The Bald Soprano” by Eugene Ionesco, “You Can’t Take it With You” by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, “Our Town” by Thorton Wilder, “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, “Major Barbara,” by George Bernard Shaw, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” by Edward Albee, and “The Cherry Orchard” by Anton Chekhov.
In the early 80’s, Connie moved to Charlotte. To survive the gap left by her departure, the Players hired their first executive director, Pam Stephenson, and organized an executive board under chair Max Polley. Connie returned to direct “A Thousand Clowns” in 1981, and her final production with the Players the year before her death, “The Rainmaker” in 1990.
During the period from 1982-89, seventeen plays were produced and a number of significant developments occurred. The Players applied for and received non-profit status, performances were increased to two weekends for each production, Fireside Readings were established, and in 1985 the first children’s play in collaboration with Davidson College’s Theater department was produced. The Players began to pay for the services of set designers, stage directors and technical coordinators as well as the executive director.
Kim Beard served as Executive Director for ten years (1989-99). Twenty-three plays were produced, including the Players’ first musical in 1991, “The Music Man” by Meredith Willson. In 1996 a children’s theater company, The Connie Company was formed, under the direction of Rupert Barber. The Players also continued to work with the Davidson College Theater department to produce a children’s play every year.
From 2000 to 2002 Karen Sorenson served as executive director. During her term in office the Players presented their first production in the Duke Family Performance Hall, “The Sound of Music,” by Rodgers and Hammerstein, breaking all attendance records. In 2003, the Players hired Cindy Rice as their first full-time executive director.
The Players now produce a four play-season, which includes a March production, the two summer shows, and a November production for adults as well as a January children’s show and summer workshops for kids under The Connie Company. Davidson Community Players is a non-profit organization established to produce theatre that entertains, enriches, and encourages community participation in the dramatic arts.
Our 2008 Board
Cindy Rice, Executive Director
Jay Butler, Chair
Lisa Combs, Vice Chair
Nancy Gardner, Secretary
Rebecca Slay, Treasurer
Megan Blackwell
Lisa Brueggemann
Drew Crawford
Tamara Dial
Jim Fuller
Meg Kimmel
Bob King
Georgia Krueger
Judy Leonard
Bruce McMillen
Susan Medlin
Amy Powell
Lori Tate
Denise Thunberg
Ann Todd |
