A variety of spaces around county host the arts
Venues around Butler County host many and varied performances year-round.
From the 446-seat Succop Theater at Butler County Community College to the 50-chair open floor at The Butler Art Center, flexible settings for music and theater abound.
Penn TheaterThe Penn Theater Performance Company, the new group trying to revive the Penn Theater on Main Street, plans to open the lobby and upstairs theater to the public first and have the main theater as a work in progress for a while, said Dane Winkler, chairman of the group.The upstairs theater seats 119 and the main theater could seat about 450, Winkler said.“We plan (to have) mostly live performances: bands, theater, comedy, some original programming,” he said. “We will probably screen movies but not Hollywood feature films. It'll be more like independent films, educational documentaries, and we had a local production company express interest in doing a weekend long filmfest.”He said “short-term plans are to continue to fundraise and gain support from the community, and fix the front marquee to be able to use it as a way to sell advertising,” as well as have engineering, construction, electrical and plumbing consultations.
Butler Little Theatre“The building was a stable/carriage house for the apartment building in the front,” said Sue Collar, chairman of Butler Little Theatre's board of directors.BLT, which started in 1941 and just celebrated its 75th anniversary, puts on five plays during a regular season plus one in the summer. Improv nights and children's theater workshops are branches of BLT.The group recently has been renting out the space at One Howard St. a bit more, said Collar.“We've had a couple of musicians there,” she said. “We can't do it too much because we're using it most of the time.”The venue has 155 seats including four handicapped seats.
Succop TheaterHoused in the Science, Technology & Cultural Center on Butler County Community College's main campus, the Succop Theater seats a sizable 446 patrons.The building opened in August 2002.The venue is utilized for BC3's performing arts series, Pittsburgh Philharmonic concerts, and shows by Musical Theatre Guild, Hobnob Theater Company, Sing Hosanna! and Greater Harmony Chorus, said Jessica Matonak, executive director of communications and marketing at BC3.Also, the Slippery Rock University dance department has been making use of the facility until its own dance space is completed at the university.The space offers modern lighting, sound and background capabilities.
<b>Comtra Theatre</b>Comtra Theatre in Cranberry Township was founded in 1983 by Marie Teets and takes its name from theater's comedy and tragedy masks, said Jessica Kavanagh for Comtra.The theater, run by volunteers, hosts about a dozen events each year.“The original theater group performed in a tent set up in a parking lot and eventually moved to an old barn along Route 19,” Kavanagh said. “The barn was renovated into a theater in the round, allowing guests to sit on all sides.”Comtra seats just over 140, but the balconies can increase the house to about 160, said Kavanagh. The theater does rent out to other groups, usually only about once a month, she said.<b>The Butler Art Center</b>In addition to hosting regular art exhibits, The Butler Art Center has rented out its open floor area for several Hobnob Theatre Company performances.Hobnob also has staged shows at the Succop Theater, the Grand Ballroom and Preston Park.“They come in with their sets and lighting and everything,” said Terry Hagan, art center manager and board president. “All we do is make our gallery space available. They feel it's a nice, cozy atmosphere.”Seating for the shows is about 50, Hagan said.“It's a rental space for us,” Hagan said. “We want to make it as nice as possible for them so they keep coming back.”The all-volunteer art center also is available for meetings and parties.<b>Tanglewood Center</b>Tanglewood Center in Lyndora brings in professional entertainers and serves as a site for the activities of area groups.Recent shows have featured the Doo Wop Shop as well as a Johnny Cash impersonator who sold the place out, according to member George Schroth.He said Tanglewood's Coleman Hall can hold 300 people, its Phillips Hall 200 and Founder's Hall 80. There is also a meeting room that seats 15 to 20, he said.Activities that take place at the handicapped-accessible facility include bingos, exercise classes and craft shows as well as a dinner dance the second Saturday of each month.Spaces are rented for wedding receptions, banquets, seminars and parties of all kinds.<b>Slippery Rock University</b>SRU hosts a performing arts series of groups from outside the university as well as theater, music and dance performances by students.Performance facilities arein the process of undergoing renovation, and designs are being finalized, said Scott Albert, assistant vice president of facilities and planning.The University Union has been the site of many shows during renovations.
