You Don't Have to Go to Philadelphia for Quality Theater

by Bonnie Rankin, Montgomery Theater Board Member

When my employer transferred me back to the Delaware Valley a few years ago after a sojourn in New York, I was ecstatic to be returning to my family and friends, and thrilled to be back at our corporate headquarters. I was grumpy, however, that that the only way to see professional theater would now mean a night-time, hassle-laden trek into Philadelphia.
Or so I thought…

You see, theater and the arts (and travel, actually, except for post-work jaunts on the Schuylkill) are my great passions. Growing up in Doylestown, shows at the Bucks County Playhouse were a huge part of my life, and in college I acted in a dozen plays, travelling with friends to see dozens more. In New York, of course, there were countless opportunities, including road trips to the Stratford Festival and the Shaw Festival in Ontario, Canada. As this potential theatrical void loomed, evidently I became a bit whiney.

That’s when a dear friend (thanks, Pat!) mentioned that we should go see a play at Montgomery Theater. And so we did. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I did not realize back then that Montgomery Theater is a professional playhouse which hires Equity Actors, as opposed to being a “community theater.” Anyway, after thirty minutes in this jewel box of a theater, my heart was full again. What talent! What a venue! What positive energy! I was hooked.

The next day I phoned Tom Quinn and asked what I could do to help the theater. I remember my heart sinking when he asked if I could sew costumes. No. Or paint scenery. Umm, no… No talents in either of those areas. But I do know business and marketing and organizational development, and I know how to formulate strategies and make things happen. Might any of those things be useful? And so I was invited to join Montgomery Theater’s Board of Directors.

Now, four years later, it turns out that being involved with Montgomery Theater has become one of the great joys of my life. I’ve made wonderful, creative friends who share that sense of building something that matters. I’ve had the opportunities to help select a new Managing Director (the wonderful Allegra Ketchum) and to lead the Board and staff in the creation of a new three-year strategic plan. It’s incredibly rewarding to see our strategic initiatives in education and marketing forging ahead nicely. Currently I’m assisting in the revamping of our website so that Montgomery Theater’s image to the outside world is more like the first-class operation that we already are. And, I am working with another Board member to build an Ambassador program that will better leverage the energies of our loyal fan base in the coming years.

I describe Montgomery Theater to friends and neighbors as a little jewel in our midst, and tell everyone what a privilege to be part of this high quality organization. And I mean it. Encore!