Gamut Theatre Group to Unveil Completed Education Center
On Monday, August 6, Gamut Theatre Group will unveil its recently renovated, 10,000 square-foot Gamut Theatre Education Center at its location at 15 North 4th Street. Gamut Theatre Group is the combined company of Popcorn Hat Players Children’s Theatre and Harrisburg Shakespeare Company.
The new center will feature:
A model of Gamut Theatre's Second Stage
The Alexander Grass Second Stage
two renovated classrooms
technical teaching shops for costume construction, scenery design, sound and lighting
four-stop elevator
outdoor access (making the space fully ADA-compliant)
The new stage will be the permanent home for the Popcorn Hat Players Children's Theatre, as well as the Stage Door Series Ensemble and Gamut Theatre Academy.
“Gamut will finally be able to expand its programming to meet the demands of the community and provide more educational offerings. Additionally, the space will be available to rent as an affordable alternative to the larger downtown presentation venues,” said Melissa Nicholson, Gamut’s Executive Director.
Funding for the center was led by anchor grants from the Impact Harrisburg Foundation, the Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Foundation, and Dauphin County. Gamut has steadily been raising funds for Phase II for the past two years, including a public fundraising campaign that began on March 1.
One of the unique features of the center is a wall-to-wall mural painted by local artist Jacintha Clark.
“I can’t wait for everyone to see the beautiful wall mural that Jacintha Clark has painted,” said Nicholson. “We wanted to invoke the feeling of being inside a storybook – not necessarily a children’s book, but the setting of a classic tale that can be used as a backdrop for the many different kinds of presentations that Gamut Theatre conducts.”
The inaugural production on the new Alexander Grass Second Stage will be Choose Your Own Play: HIJACKED! August 9-19 . Based on the book by Rick Brightfield and adapted by local artist David Ramón Zayas, HIJACKED! utilizes the same team that created the wildly successful Choose Your Own Adventure The Play: Space Vampire, which was performed in 2017.