About Us

Sobre Nosotros

El Teatro Cívico de Waukesha ha sido un elemento básico en la comunidad de Waukesha para el entretenimiento en vivo de calidad y la educación teatral desde 1957. El año 2020 marca la 64a temporada de WCT. El Teatro Cívico de Waukesha es un teatro local sin fines de lucro ubicado en el centro histórico de Waukesha.

A Brief History

A BRIEF HISTORY
WAUKESHA CIVIC THEATRE is one of the oldest community theatres in Waukesha County. It opened in 1957 on the stage of Waukesha High School with a three-show season. In 1964, the theatre company purchased and moved into a building at 506 North Washington Ave., at which time, the 1964-65 season was expanded to include a fourth show. 1976 saw the absorption by WCT of the Penny Players, a youth theatre, which added a summer musical to the docket.

By 1980, the theatre had grown to the point of needing managerial leadership, at which time a grant was obtained to hire a Managing Director. A Christmas show was added, which is the theatre’s Christmas gift to our community. The holiday theme, geared for family entertainment, runs during the month of December.

In the summer of 1985, a very popular children’s theatre workshop was added. The Academy at the Civic Theatre serviced approximately 100 youngsters ranging in age from six to eighteen each semester and during the summer.

PARTAKE, a project originally sponsored by the Wisconsin Arts Board and TARGET STORES, encouraged the use of the theatre as a creative resource for the community through tours, workshops, slide/tape presentations, classes and discussions.
During the 1996-97 season, the Theatrical Readers Troupe took a form of live theatre to those unable to attend full-length productions at the WCT facility. This group performed at adult day centers, nursing homes, and libraries. By the end of 1999-2000, the group had evolved into PlayMakers. The PlayMakers group is now run through ACAP – Adaptive Community Approach Program and The ACAP PlayMakers is an inclusive theatre group composed of performers with and without disabilities who perform at the Waukesha Civic Theatre.

The performing troupe, The Civic Senior Players, organized by Carol Mclean, performs comedy sketches throughout Waukesha county to nursing homes and retirement communities.

In the summer of 1999, The Waukesha Area Arts Alliance granted the funds to establish the Singers Troupe. Now called the Civic Broadway Singers, directed by Abby Lorenz, provides musical entertainment of popular show tunes to clubs and organizations county wide.

WCT has always offered a varied season, including comedies, dramas and musicals, as well as the Classics and contemporary and experimental pieces. In this way the viewing audience is entertained as well as enriched, while the acting audience is allowed to grow and explore.

In September of 1999, after a very successful Capital Campaign and the gift of the PIX Theatre building from Bryce and Anne Styza, WCT moved its facility to the heart of Downtown Waukesha downtown on Main Street. The beautiful Margaret Brate Bryant Civic Theatre Building contains the Mardi Bryant Jones Mainstage and Ralph North Studio Theatre/Rehearsal Room, as well as dressing rooms, a scenery construction shop, costume and props storage and many other amenities.

Fundraising is essential to the success of Waukesha Civic Theatre. With annual fundraisers including Fall Giving Campaign, the Annual Gala and Auction, and the Summer Academy Team Challenge, our supporters help us to continue to thrive as Downtown Waukesha’s live performance and theatre education venue.

Sixty-six years after its modest beginnings, the Waukesha Civic Theatre owns its own facility, has a full-time Executive Officer, Administrative Manager, Director of Education and Outreach, Administrative Manager, and part time Box Office Lead, Bookkeeper, and pBox Office Event Staff.

In 2019, right before the start of the COVID 19 Global pandemic, WCT purchased the property adjacent which was formerly The Little Swiss Clock Shop, and began a capital campaign for expansion. In 2021, the Academy Expansion Campaign was launched and in 2022 they broke ground. This four million dollar project was the largest campaign and expansion in Waukesha Civic Theatre history and included the remodeling of the lobby, bar and concession areas, adding a Main Street rehearsal and reception hall, a Riverfront upper level collaborative office suite, and a new 85 seat Blackbox Studio Theatre.

Waukesha Civic Theatre continues to be one of a very small group of community theatres that has been successfully operating for over 50 years.

The Waukesha Civic Theatre is very fortunate to have so many dedicated volunteers and patrons, along with the Board of Directors and staff ato provide quality live entertainment and theatre education to the whole community. We are all very proud to call Waukesha Civic Theatre our home.