About The Evergreen Players
The Evergreen Players began in 1950 as a group of friends gathering in each other's homes to read plays aloud. Today it is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization producing four to five shows per year for the foothills community. Offerings range from comedies to musicals to dramas. Annually the group involves amateur volunteers of all ages and walks of life, on stage and behind the scenes.
A volunteer board of directors governs the organization. Paid staff consists of a part-time administrator and a part-time artist in residence. The artist-in-residence position was created in 2001 by the board to assist in developing our creative talent, improving our productions and developing a long-term vision for the organization.
Although the core of our audience (and volunteers) resides in the Evergreen area, we regularly draw from as far away as Boulder and Aurora. Our audience attendance has been growing in recent years, up by more than a third from fiscal 1998 to fiscal 2000, for instance.
Since 1998, the Evergreen Players has entered the Colorado Community Theater Coalition's annual festival. Entrants are adjudicated and may be chosen for appearances at the regional and national level. In 2001, our production of "All in the Timing" took first place at regionals and went on to the national festival where we performed on stage along with 11 other top theater groups in the United States. In 2003, "The Trip To Bountiful" won six of eight major awards, including Best Production, Best Director and People's Choice awards. We have won a variety of awards at state, regional and national levels, including a national acting award. For amateurs and volunteers there are few if any other opportunities that offer such a concentrated blend of learning and performing in a single setting. We credit our festival participation with revitalizing our 55-year-old organization.
Since July 2000 as part of our mission to provide theater arts education, the Players has sponsored a Youth Drama Camp for children ages 5-15. Some 35 local children attended the camp in its first year and the number tripled by 2003. The Camp's mission is "to provide aspiring theater artists the opportunity to develop their skills and talents under the guidance of professionals from within a professional theatre environment." Participants attend workshops and perform in (and in some cases help create) original plays.
The home of the Evergreen Players is Center/Stage in Evergreen, shared with the Evergreen Chorale and the Evergreen Children's Chorale.
Award-winning cast & crew for The Trip To Bountiful, CCTC, 2003