Before Port Charlotte had the entertainment choices residents have today, there was a group of local people putting on plays wherever they could find a stage.

Sometimes that stage was a bowling alley. Sometimes it was a community building, an auditorium or a borrowed meeting hall. 

And somehow, more than six decades later, the curtain is still going up.

Charlotte Players held its first organizational meeting on October 16, 1961, at the North Port Community Center. The group was formed under the direction of Dorothy Robbins, a local teacher of dramatics and public speaking. Its goal was simple: keep interest in theater alive in the growing community. 

The first production, Now Is The Time, opened on May 24, 1962, at the Charlotte Lanes Bowling Auditorium.

Tickets were a 50-cent donation. And the two performances sold out.

That's a pretty good first night.

But keeping a community theater alive for more than six decades requires considerably more than one successful production.

Over the years, Charlotte Players performed at locations throughout the area, including the Elks' Club, Punta Gorda Women's Club, American Legion Hall and Charlotte High School Auditorium. In 1968, the group moved performances to the newly dedicated Cultural Center Theater in Port Charlotte. 

Eventually, the organization found a permanent home.

Today, the Langdon Playhouse at 1182 Market Circle in Port Charlotte is home to the organization. The intimate theater seats about 104 people and also houses rehearsal space, offices, set-building facilities, costumes and props. 

And here's the part that makes Charlotte Players more than just another theater company. It's a community organization.

According to Charlotte Players, the organization has produced more than 300 theatrical productions and more than 2,200 individual performances since its beginnings. 

But the work doesn't stop when the curtain comes down. The organization also runs Kids Onstage, giving children opportunities to learn about acting and the many other pieces that go into putting together a production. The program began in 2007 and has included summer workshops and full-length productions. 

Then there is a completely different kind of community contribution.

Charlotte Players is a co-sponsor of the Charlotte County Imagination Library, a local program connected to Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. The organization says more than 125,000 free books have been provided to preschool children in Charlotte County through the program. 

So while the actors may be the people we see under the lights, there is a much larger group making everything happen behind the scenes.

Volunteers. Directors.Set builders. Costume people. Box office workers. People who paint scenery, move props and probably spend considerably more time backstage than they ever expected.

That's the funny thing about community theater. The audience sees two hours. The people who make the show happen see months of work.

It isn't just about watching a play. It's about giving local residents somewhere to participate. Someone who has always wanted to act can audition. Someone who doesn't want to be on stage can help build the set. A child can take an acting class.

And someone who simply wants a night out can sit in the audience and watch a story unfold a few feet away. In a world where so much entertainment happens through a screen, there is something different about sitting in a room with other people and watching your neighbors perform live.

No pause button. No retakes. No algorithm deciding what you should watch next. ]Just people, a stage and a story.

Charlotte Players' mission is to provide and promote theater arts programs that educate, entertain and enrich the Southwest Florida community.  After more than six decades, that's still happening in Port Charlotte.

And somewhere, right now, somebody who lives around the corner may be getting ready to step onto that stage.

That's community theater —

and that's a pretty good piece of Port Charlotte history.

Charlotte Players

• Location: 1182 Market Circle, Port Charlotte
• Phone: (941) 255-1022
• Website: CharlottePlayers.org
• History: Charlotte Players History
• Current productions: Charlotte Players — Current Season

No AI was used in writing this article.

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