Round House Theatre
Round House Theatre is a nonprofit theater production company with a venue in Bethesda, Maryland and an education center in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Theatre Logo | |
Formation | 1978 |
---|---|
Type | Theatre group |
Location |
|
Artistic director(s) | Ryan Rilette |
Website | www |
History
Round House began life in 1970 as “Street ’70”, a program of the Montgomery County Department of Recreation that provided educational outreach in the schools and performances throughout the county. In 1977, Montgomery County offered Street ’70 a permanent home in what used to be the Bushey Drive Elementary School in Silver Spring. The building was round, so the company changed its name to Round House Theatre. In 1982, Round House incorporated as a nonprofit. The company remained a part of the County’s Department of Recreation until 1993, when it became a separate and independent professional theater.[1]
About
Round House is one of the leading professional theaters in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, producing a full season of modern classics, new plays and musicals for more than 55,000 patrons each year at a 400-seat theater in Bethesda, Maryland. Round House has been nominated for 181 Helen Hayes Awards (including 22 in 2018) and has won 39 (including five in 2018). Its productions have won “Outstanding Resident Play” four times. Round House has also been honored for four consecutive years with the 50/50 Applause Award from the International Center for Women Playwrights.[2]
Round House’s educational programs serve more than 3,000 students of all ages at its six-classroom Education Center in Silver Spring and in schools throughout Montgomery County. Its many innovative education programs encompass classes for adults and youth, full day programs and summer programs for grades K–12; a teen performance company culminating in the Sarah Metzger Memorial Play, the only play produced by a regional theater that is directed, acted and designed by high school students; school outreach, including school residencies, student matinees, and Free Play, a program that allows teenagers and college students to attend Round House shows for free.[3]
Round House is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and the League of Washington Theatres (LOWT). The theatre is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization with major support from Montgomery County, the Maryland State Arts Council (an agency funded by the State of Maryland and the National Endowment for the Arts), and the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County.
Productions
2018-19 season
- Small Mouth Sounds by Bess Wohl
- How I Learned to Drive by Paula Vogel
- Gem of the Ocean by August Wilson
- Oslo by J.T. Rogers
- A Doll's House, Part 2 by Lucas Hnath
2017-2018 season
- In The Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes, Co-Production with Olney Theatre Center
- I'll Get You Back Again by Sarah Gancher
- The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson
- Handbagged by Moira Buffini, part of the Women's Voices Theater Festival
- "Master Harold" ...and the Boys by Athol Fugard
- The Legend of Georgia McBride by Matthew Lopez
2016-2017 season
- Angels in America Part I: Millenium Approaches by Tony Kushner, Co-Production with Olney Theatre Center
- Angels in America Part II: Perestroika by Tony Kushner, Co-Production with Olney Theatre Center
- Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon
- Caroline, or Change by Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori
- Or, by Liz Duffy Adams
- How I Learned What I Learned by August Wilson, co-conceived by Todd Kreidler
2015-2016 season
- Ironbound by Martyna Majok, part of the Women's Voices Theater Festival
- The Night Alive by Conor McPherson
- Stage Kiss by Sarah Ruhl
- Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3) by Suzan-Lori Parks
- Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
- The Who & The What by Ayad Akhtar
2014-2015 season
- Fool for Love by Sam Shepard
- Fetch Clay, Make Man by Will Power
- The Nutcracker by Tommy Rapley, Jake Minton, Phillip Klapperich, and Kevin O’Donnell
- Rapture, Blister, Burn by Gina Gionfriddo
- Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov, new version by Annie Baker
- NSFW by Lucy Kirkwood
See also
References
- Rose, Lloyd. "In Round House's Corner; The Director With An Actor's Instincts", The Washington Post, May 3, 1998, p. G1
- "International Centre for Women Playwrights - 2017 Award". www.womenplaywrights.org. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
- "Round House Theatre Education". Round House Theatre. September 29, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.