The Naples Players (TNP) is a

community theatre Community theatre refers to any theatrical performance made in relation to particular communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a community with no outside hel ...

company located in

Naples, Florida Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the historical city (i.e. in the immediate vicinity of downtown Naples) was 19,115. Naples is a principal city of the Naples-Marco Island, Flori ...

. The company was founded on January 19, 1953 in the Sugden Community Theatre at 701 5th Avenue South in downtown Naples. It has been named the "Best Live Theatre" in Southwest Florida (including professional theaters) fifteen times by the readers poll of ''The Naples Daily News''.Informational Brochure distributed by the Naples Players
/ref>

History

Naples Players Sugden Community Theatre 701 5th Avenue South 2010

The Naples Players Organization was founded on January 19, 1953. Its first production, '' I Remember Mama'' by

John Van Druten John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observation ...

, was staged in the

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...

of what is now Gulfview Middle School the night of March 20, 1953. The company staged its first musical,

HMS Pinafore ''H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which ...

in 1958. The group performed where it could in its first 22 years of existence in various locations in Naples, from local schools and storefronts to homes. In 1975, they established a home base for the next decade when a 40-seat playhouse was opened at 2363 Davis Boulevard. In 1985, TNP converted the now-demolished Kon-Tiki movie theatre on Goodlette-Frank Road.Information from the Explore Naples website
/ref> As many years passed, both the membership and audience for the company grew. However, as TNP entered its fourth decade of existence in the mid-1990s, the Kon-Tiki Playhouse began to suffer from a crumbling facade and mechanical breakdowns, and it soon became clear that a new location was necessary. Following an unprecedented fundraising campaign, and with a partnership with the City of Naples in choosing a suitable location, over $6 million was raised to build the Sugden Community Theatre in downtown Naples on a site provided by the City, which was completed in 1998. The Sugden Theatre sits only two blocks south of Gulfview Middle School, where TNP staged its first production in 1953; Today, the company stages productions year-round, has a dues-paying membership of 500 plus, and features the talents of volunteer actors, directors, designers, and crew drawn from across Southwest Florida. Currently according to treater's official website, The theatre currently plays to an audience of over 65,000

patrons Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

and

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and ...

subscription holders annually.

Performance schedule

TNP's annual performance season includes six main stage and three studio productions of more than 260 performances per year. The Players also present six KidzAct productions annually, as well as Readers Theatre, showcase classes, and special events such as their annual Front & Center Gala, held under the stars in front of the Sugden Theatre on Baker Plaza.

KidzAct Youth Theatre Program

''KidzAct'' is the

youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Yo ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

program of The Naples Players, founded in 2002. While TNP had traditionally produced a youth musical in the summer, an initiative was begun in the early 2000s to create a year-round educational

program featuring skills-building and production classes to children and young adults ranging from 4–18 years of age. KidzAct stages six productions annually. Children

audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece giv ...

to be admitted to the production classes, which make use in applying what the students learn in the skills building sections of the classes. There is a full-time staff for KidzAct and contracted artist specializing in

voice The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound producti ...

, dance, improvisation, and acting instruct nearly 1600 students in house.

Scholarships A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

to the program are available based on financial need.Information about the kids program from the Naples Players website
/ref> In the spring of 2007, KidzAct began an

Outreach Outreach is the activity of providing services to any population that might not otherwise have access to those services. A key component of outreach is that the group providing it is not stationary, but mobile; in other words, it involves meetin ...

program. The program teams with local businesses and private donors to present plays in schools which do not have any type of a

program. The program does not displace any existing teachers at the chosen school.

Performance facilities

The Sugden Community Theatre building includes two main performance spaces, two

sprung floor A sprung floor is a floor that absorbs shocks, giving it a softer feel. Such floors are considered the best kind for dance and indoor sports and physical education, and can enhance performance and greatly reduce injuries. Modern sprung floors are ...

rehearsal A rehearsal is an activity in the performing arts that occurs as preparation for a performance in music, theatre, dance and related arts, such as opera, musical theatre and film production. It is undertaken as a form of practising, to ensure t ...

halls, a music room and library, scenic and

costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...

construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form Physical object, objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Pr ...

shops, plus ticket and administrative offices for the full-time staff. It is located at 701 5th Avenue South.

Blackburn Hall

Blackburn Hall is a 318-seat proscenium theatre, with "European" style seating, meaning the aisles are located on the left and right sides of the

. The theatre features an

orchestra pit An orchestra pit is the area in a theater (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. Orchestral pits are utilized in forms of theatre that require music (such as opera and ballet) or in cases when incide ...

and fly tower with 29 lines of rigging to "fly"

scenery Theatrical scenery is that which is used as a setting for a theatrical production. Scenery may be just about anything, from a single chair to an elaborately re-created street, no matter how large or how small, whether the item was custom-made or ...

and lights from overhead. There are four motorized lines dedicated to stage lighting, and 25 lines available for scenic use. The stage features a

which consists of plywood and pine strips constructed with rubber cushioning. This type of flooring "gives" on impact to reduce and prevent foot and leg injuries to dancers. Blackburn Hall is the "mainstage" performance space of the company, as well as the KidzAct program.

Tobye Studio Theatre

The Tobye Studio Theatre is a 100-seat "Black Box" theatre in stage

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