PLATTSBURGH — The Adirondack Regional Theatre celebrates a quarter-century of local theater.
When Tom and Pam Lavin launched ART and their first show in 2000, they had no idea it would flourish into the community theater it is today.
“When my wife and I decided to take the plunge … there was no thought of, ‘Here we are, 25 years from now,’” Tom said.
“It was just mostly, ‘Well, let’s do a show. It’ll be fun,’ and we’ll see what happens.”
Since then, the group has supported over two decades worth of local productions, providing mentorships and artistic collaboration to shape a cultural cornerstone for the North Country.
Tom said his path to ART began when he first met his wife, a music teacher at Peru High School, who had recently started the Peru Music Theater, a community troupe.
“I joined them for a show, and from there on, it continued to grow,” he said.
The couple later became involved with the Plattsburgh Community Players, where Pam starred in Godspell.
“Over the course of a couple years, my wife and I basically kind of took the reins of that to help out,” Lavin said.
“We decided, ‘Well, why don’t we just start our own group?’ — which we did — which became Adirondack Regional Theatre.”
According to Tom, there was nothing like it in the area.
“Around the North Country, you have your school shows and a couple community theaters,” he said.
The groups that do, such as the Chazy Music Theatre and Theatre of Peru, typically hold shows in the winter and early spring.
“There really wasn’t anything in the summer for people that weren’t professional actors.”
ART stepped in to fill the void in the region’s art landscape, bringing theater productions to the North Country in the summer months and attracting high schoolers, college students and adults.
“For the high schoolers, it was great because they got to meet kids from other schools that would never have the opportunity to probably meet otherwise,” Tom said.
“And that’s the ‘regional’ in the Adirondack Regional Theatre name.”
Two of the biggest challenges ART has faced throughout its 25 years are securing financial support and finding local talent, Tom said. They needed actors, directors, musicians and sponsors to do more than one show.
“That is the bane of any community theater,” he said.
Despite these initial challenges, ART has had plenty of “mountainous moments” since the days of putting on shows under the MacDonough Monument or in the bandshell by the Saranac River, Tom said.
“We used to do everything outside at the monument and the band shell down by the river,” he said. “One year we did the ‘Wizard of Oz,’ and an estimated 3,000 people showed up, so that was big.”
Tom believes the true scale of ART’s growth comes from the number of shows it produces each year.
“We have been able to go from one show in the summer to a year-round theater company that will produce anywhere from six to 10 shows in the course of a year,” he said.
From there the group has flourished, receiving support early on from the City of Plattsburgh and Clinton Community College. ART served as their theater compan in Stafford Theater for seven years and jumped from one musical per summer to two.
One of which was a junior show, which featured actors aged 8 to 18, that evolved into the Green Director Series, an opportunity for teen creatives to take leadership under seasoned mentors.
“The interesting part about that is we have a production team that is the same age as the actors,” Tom said. “They’re assisted by adults that know the production. They know directing, they know choreography, they know music to help them along.”
With 25 years in its rearview mirror, ART has plenty of ideas for the future, mainly expanding its youth and adult theater education programs.
“There really isn’t a lot of that in the area, especially youth theater, because, for a lot of kids, theater is their sport,” Tom said.
“Sports and theater have so much in common when you strip it all down. You do your teamwork, you have your practices or rehearsals, you get better, you support each other, you learn how to think independently and there’s, of course, interpersonal communication skills.”
He said ART wants to host workshops to give aspiring local directors a chance to gain experience and practice their skills.
“We have a lot of plans for the future,” he said.
The heart of ART’s longevity lies in the community.
“We wouldn’t be here for 25 years if we didn’t have community support. That is the main thing, that people have come back to see our shows time and time again.”
A FAMILY AFFAIR
He also emphasized some ART members span generations for some families.
Judy Akey and her husband have been involved since the production of “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” — ART’s very first show.
“We wanted to be a part of what our children were interested and involved in,” Akey said.
The pair worked behind the scenes at their children’s school productions. Before they knew it, the whole family was involved.
“Four generations of acting, singing, lights, sound, front of house, concessions, ticket sales, costumes, set construction, props, staging, producing and directing,” she said.
Akey said it was an easy decision to follow Tom and Pam when they launched ART, having worked with them at the Theatre of Peru and Plattsburgh Community Players.
For Akey, ART means opportunities, new experiences, family, friends, growth, laughter and security.
“ART is being a part of an adventure of memorable experiences shared with family, friends and a multitude of amazingly talented people,” she said.
Akey and her husband have served on the ART board of directors for 23 years, and are still involved in the ART murder yystery events.
Mason Barber, who joined ART at 7-years-old, played a Lost Boy in their production of “Peter Pan.” He said he has been in at least one show a year since then.
“Mason was our very first young director when he was in eighth grade,” Tom said. “He is right now directing Rocky Horror show, which will go up this weekend (Saturday).”
Barber directed “The Little Mermaid Junior” for ART, a show for 8 to 18 year olds, and 10 years later, directed “The Little Mermaid” at the Strand Center for the Arts, which was a community, all-age show.
He said ART is a great resource in the North Country and reflected on how it’s grown over the years.
“The group really had humble beginnings and only started with one show a year, and our next season will have eight,” Barber said. “It’s awesome to witness how grand the group has become and how many people care about the success and future of ART in the North Country.”
For LeAnn Yelton, vice president of ART, the group provides a space for people to have fun, connect with each other and the community, and an opportunity to build new skills.
“When I hear why other adults and kids join, I always hear the same: ‘I feel like I belong. I meet so many new people and have lifelong friends. I learned something new. I feel more confident,’” she said. “That is why we do what we do at ART.”
Yelton, who joined during the pandemic at one of the murder mystery events, said she loves working with students in the summer theater camps at the Strand.
“The students make each day unique and have made the theater a growing company for the past 25 years.”
To celebrate the milestone, ART will host “A Night Under the Stars,” a 25th anniversary fundraiser gala. Tickets are $65 for the Nov. 8 event from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Rainbow Wedding Hall in Altona.
The event is black-tie optional and open to ART alumni, current members and the community. A ticket includes entry, dinner and a drink. There will also be live entertainment, dancing, a cash bar and a silent auction.
More information and tickets, visit givebutter.com/25thStars