Once and (Almost) Future Playshops

Between the time of inception, August 15th 1937, and the first show presented in the theatre on Lover's Lane, May 1st 1954 (Charlotte's Review), it seems that various other structures in and about the town of Wilton were anxiously vying for the honor of becoming The Wilton Playshop.

First, of course, was the Town Hall. The majestic building on Rt. 7 in which beats the heart of a vibrant suburban town government. Many a Playshop production was presented on stage in that edifice. However even though we would like to believe that the Town Hall secretly pined to be a theatre, it could never be, for once a Town Hall always a Town Hall (except in cases of Old Town Halls which turn out to be Garden Clubs or very nice rehearsal dinner spots, thank you very much).

Much consideration was given to "the Old Quaker Meeting House"" on Rt.7. This is the self same Quaker Meeting House which nobody (including the Quakers) has ever heard of before. That, of course makes nailing down the details a bit dicey.

Legend (in the form of articles written in 1947 and 1968) has. it that The Wilton Playshop (Group) was in search of a Wilton Playshop (Building) and were in negotiations with the owner (whom they never mention by name) of "'the Old Quaker Meeting House on Route No. 7" (which according to current legend never existed in the first place). The Building (or figment of an overactive imagination) was destroyed in the hurricane of 1938 while negotiations with "landlord X" were in progress.

It is our belief now that the old Kent Methodist Church may have served at one time, briefly, as a Quaker meeting house (and therefore be the building in question). The story of the church, based on accounts in the history room at the Library, seems to have several similarities with our accounts of the first attempt to find a home for The Playshop. It was about the size of our current house, it was on RT7 and was destroyed (or severely damaged in the Hurricane of '38).

Going through the minutes of Playshop Board of Directors meetings, the last paragraph of the last minutes we have in our archives for the period of 1938-1946 say basically "Hey, let's find a building". After that there is a nine year gap in the records. It is holes in the records like this one that often force historians to either take up the bottle or turn to cult activity.

The Playshop was on a roll Our good luck continued when, in 1946, the largest barn on the Harb's property (now tennis courts and football fields along Rt.7) came up for auction. We were excited! A home at last, at long last, a home. We were outbid.

Various other buildings housed Playshop activities during "the vagabond years". The Faulkners allowed the use of their largest barn for storage and set construction (now part of "White Fences" on Danbury Rd. just south of Scribner Hill where the Girl Scout office is). The Harbs lent space in their cider mill for which the school is named. Sets were stored in the Cannondale school (now The Olde Schoolhouse Grille) when it was still located on the comer of Danbury Rd. and Olmstead Hill (in the clearing next to the yellow house). The Laboratory Workshop arm of The Playshop frequently used the Cannon Grange Hall for their presentations.

Reference is also made in Playshop history of the then Erskine property at #200 Nod Hill Road. This is the spot where meetings of the playreading branch took place during the 1930's and 40's. But we can be reasonably sure that the thought of having a theatre so far out of town (at that time) never allowed "Nodway" as it was called, to really ever be seriously considered.

Which brings us to our current home

The auditorium in which you sit and watch some pretty darn good theatre (if I do say so myself) was originally part of the Congregational Church complex at the top of the hill (where you are directed to park in neat, little rows). It was constructed in 1871 as an annex to the Church itself. It was positioned approximately where the current parish hall stands but was not attached to the church. It was used for church school and the Yankee Fair took place between the two buildings. See Top Picture

In the September 1953, it was moved down the hill and, over a period of some four years, joined to a goat barn (where the cast and crew pictures hang in the Greenroom.) which had either been moved up from the Harb property (where the tennis courts are now) or been standing on this spot for longer than anyone could remember (from the looks of it, probably longer than even the Vikings could possibly remember).

It is interesting to note, (to me anyway), that auditions for the very first official Playshop production, The Late Christopher Bean, were held in "the parish hall of the Congregational

Church", some 16 years before anyone know that it would be moved and become our home of 50 years. Perhaps it had a wish that came true?