PGSTT, A Summer Institution by Rick Bergmann

1967 was a busy year for the United States. We were at war in Vietnam. It was the height of the hippie movement, the “summer of love.” In the Heat of the Night with Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger won best picture at the academy awards. Other box office draws were The Graduate, Bonnie and Clyde, Doctor Doolittle, and The Dirty Dozen. On TV we were watching The Flying Nun, Ironside, and The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Elvis Presley married Priscilla, the Beatles released Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, and the musical Hair premiered Off-Broadway. The word “bell-bottom” was introduced to the dictionary. Gas was $0.33 a gallon.

It was also a year of firsts. Thurgood Marshall was confirmed as the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. Dr. Christian Bernard performed the first heart transplant. The First Superbowl was played. We celebrated Earth Day for the first time. The first microwave hits the consumer market and Sesame Street had its first broadcast. And in Beltsville, MD PGSTT is formed and its first production, Lil’Abner premiered.

When I became part of the PGSTT family in 1999, I did not know the rich history of our organization. I also did not know that I would be writing about it 10 years later. I started life in PGSTT as a stage manager. What I noticed almost immediately is that there was a strong commitment to teaching the theatre arts to those involved.

All of the actors were given the opportunity to learn how to build and paint a set. Actors were told they were responsible for their costumes and taught how to care for them. They were taught how to apply their make-up for the stage. PGSTT is an organization that is built around two words, education and family.

We strive to educate our casts and crew in order to expand their appreciation of theatre. We attempt to break down the walls that often separate individuals within the theatre community. You are no longer an actor, a part of the crew, the light guy, the sound guy, the producer, the director, or the stage manager. You are a member of the family. You may come in to our program knowing how to do only one of the jobs I listed, but by the end of the summer many have learned how to do at least one of those other jobs. We strive to foster a community where a student who comes through our program feels free to try one of the other jobs that are associated with theatre.

In my 10 years with PGSTT I have seen many students begin as actors and actresses and end up as directors, choreographers, music directors, stage managers, light designers, sound designers, producers, and many other jobs. Fostering a love and respect for the entire spectrum of theatre arts is what we are about.

Building the organization on the love and respect for the craft is what has kept PGSTT going strong for 42 years. Since 1967 we have not missed one summer, something that is rare within the theatre community. Our desire to develop the creative mind has helped us to maintain our program summer after summer. Teenagers coming through our program are not talked down to, they are given an opportunity to shine, to learn, and to create. This is why we are one of the longest running community theatre groups in the country.

As with all theatre, not everything goes right. Those of us who have been producers know this; there is always one more thing to be done, one more errand to run right before opening night. As an actor, there is always one scene you just can’t get right, or one dance move that you are always a beat behind on. How many times has a director looked at the stage and thought, I wish that set piece looked just a little different, or you know that costume piece does not look quite right. But all of those worries seem to disappear on opening night. The magic of opening night is one of the best feelings there is. The lights go down and the curtain opens and all of the hard work pays off. The joy in watching people creating something is amazing. Watching the audience react to scenes that you have been watching the cast create over the last few months is an awesome and wondrous feeling.

I have so many happy memories from my my years as a part of PGSTT and look forward to having so many more.