Mission Statement
The mission of The Spartanburg Little Theatre is to educate, enrich, and entertain our community by providing quality theatrical experiences.
Our History:
In 1945 a group of people met for dinner at the Cleveland Hotel to form a literary club. This club became the Little Theatre of Spartanburg at a meeting on June 21, 1946 in the Parish Hall of St. Paul’s Catholic Church. The first officers elected were Dr. J.M. Wallace, President; Mr. John Carrington, Vice-President; Mrs. Jameston Fant, Secretary; and Mr. Jameston Fant, Treasurer. Meetings were held at the Herald-Journal building and Jenkins Junior High School to hear lectures on various phases of theatre and to perform one-act plays. Interest and membership increased rapidly, and in November of 1946, the first one-act play, Candlelight, by P.G. Wodehouse, opened at the City Recreation Hall, directed by Mrs. Dan Mitro.
David W. Reid of Milford, Mass., who had served at Camp Croft during the war, returned to Spartanburg as the public relations director at Converse College. He directed the second play, The Late Christopher Bean. Until his retirement in 1982 he served as director, producer, and actor. Stage manager, scenic designer and actor for most of the same years was Ed McGrath. The Little Theatre production staff has included such notables as Henry Janiec, John Mabry, Pat Dillard and Gary McCraw in the music department, Barbara Ferguson and Marianna Miller as choreographers, and Rene Royaards on lights.
