Local Theatre History Part III - First Stage

 We've looked at Marshall University and Musical Arts Guild, so now it's time to look at the longest-running community theatre group (that's still active) in Huntington. The group has gone by two names over the years, but the one it's carried the longest is First Stage: 

   The First Stage Theatre Company got its start 23 years (and one name change) ago. After auditions in 1990 for shows like Annie and Hansel and Gretel brought in - literally - hundreds of kids, it was obvious that there was a need for an outlet for these young thespians. 

   As with many local theatre groups, its beginning are tied to the Musical Arts Guild (MAG). George Snider and Jennifer Salcines approached the board of MAG and asked the group to sponsor the children’s theatre, and that’s how the Musical Arts Guild – Children’s Theatre (MAG-CT) began. The group’s first production was You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown on Sept. 14, 1990.

   There are, basically, two kinds of children’s theatres. One features adults putting on shows for young people (with the cast perhaps including a few young actors), and the other stars young actors in the leads (with the cast sometimes including a few adults). MAG-CT would be the latter, and over the years it has allowed young people the chance to star in all kinds of shows, both musical and non-musical.

   Like any youth organization, the group has an ever-changing board, as young actors and their parents get involved, graduate and move on to other interests. There's only one board members still involved with the group who were there at the beginning - the group’s past chairman, C.E. Wilson, who was the first liaison between MAG and MAG-CT (he’s a darned good actor, too).

    By 2001 it was obvious that MAG-CT was able to stand on its own two feet, so in an amicable split the two groups separated, and the children’s theatre adopted a new name (one suggested by board member Clint McElroy): the First Stage Theatre Company.  

    Like its parent group, First Stage was a theatre group without a home - so it roams from theater to theater, depending on which one is available and which one fits the needs of the production. Every year the group produces either two or three shows (although it produced four shows in 2010, and five during the current season), each one featuring young actors from across the Tri-State area. The purpose of the group is to provide young people with a positive experience either on the stage or working behind the scenes.  

    If anyone out there is avoiding their shows because it’s a “children’s theatre,” you’re missing out on some great young talent - many of whom you’ll see on stage in other local theatre productions. 

   Over the years the group has staged major shows like Bye, Bye Birdie, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Seussical: the Musical, Honk, Les Miserables: The School Edition, The Little Mermaid, Jr., and Cats, in addition to smaller shows like Tom Sawyer, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Winnie the Pooh, A Christmas Story, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The Three Musketeers and Babes in Toyland.

    First Stage also offers up two scholarship programs - one named in honor of Jim Stone, a local actor who was a great supporter of the arts and a mentor to many young actors, and another in honor of Leslie McElroy, an actress and board member for First Stage. 

    First Stage has established itself as a great place for young people to get their start in theatre. There they gain the skills and confidence that will serve them well throughout their life. 

    Next: Started just a few years after the Children’s Theatre, this group ruled the month of July - which must be why it’s called HOT.