From humble beginnings in 1926, Greenville Theatre has grown into the “largest locally producing professional theatre company” in the Upstate. Seventy five members of the community formed a theatre group that performed in the Fine Arts Auditorium of the Women’s College.
Following WWII, Greenville Little Theatre held performances in the auditorium of Greenville High School, where Robert McLane taught Art and Drama. McLane had an amazing student who went on to become an Academy Award winning actress. Joanne Woodward came to Greenville to star in The Glass Menagerie with her old teacher and coach. Other notable names, including Will Rogers and Leonard Bernstein, were once a part of the theatre’s performances.
This year marks the 100th birthday of Greenville Theatre. From directors to actors, everyone involved in these performances is local talent. That’s what makes these shows so special.
We were fortunate enough to experience the first show of the 101st season, The Shark Is Broken. The shark may have been broken, but the play was perfect.
The audience was given a glance “behind the scenes” of the filming of the ocean scenes (say that three times fast) from the 1975 blockbuster JAWS. The movie’s three main actors were played by John Michael Cox (Roy Scheider), Jason Culbreth (Richard Dreyfuss) and Evan Harris (Robert Shaw). Director Steven Spielberg insisted on putting a ship in the ocean for the shark scenes. That caused three of the actors to spend more time than planned NOT on dry land!
Water was a problem for the mechanical JAWS. Action…daunting music plays…NOTHING. Turns out, salt water and a complicated mechanical shark weren’t exactly a match made in Hollywood heaven. The shark’s constant problems delayed filming, leaving the actors with a whole lot of time together aboard the Orca. The Shark Is Broken gives audiences a glimpse into what might have happened during the downtime. We really did feel like we were sitting there with them! With only three actors and one main setting, the production relies heavily on the actors – and they delivered! The chemistry between Cox, Culbreth and Harris makes you forget for a moment that you’re sitting in a theater in Greenville and not on a boat off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard. For JAWS fans, the behind-the-scenes stories are fascinating. For theatre fans, watching three local actors carry an entire production is just as impressive.
The Shark is Broken was only the beginning. The 101st season kicks off this fall with Titanic: The Musical (Sept. 11-27), followed by Murder on the Orient Express (Oct. 16- Nov. 1) and the family favorite The Wizard of Oz (Dec. 4-20). The curtain rises again in 2027 with Jesus Christ Superstar in Concert (Jan. 22-23), Big Fish (Feb. 26- Mar. 14), To Kill A Mockingbird (April 9-25), a special one night performance from Broadway’s original Jersey Boy John Lloyd Young (May 14) and Hairspray (June 4-27) to close out the season.
From mysteries and classics to big Broadway musicals, Greenville Theatre has another packed year in store!
One hundred years after a small group of the Greenville community came together to form a theatre group, the heart of the city’s theatre remains the same: local people coming together to put on one heck of a show!
For tickets, showtimes and additional information, visit Greenville Theatre’s official website.