Raising the Curtain: A History of Theater in Washington

Please join us on Zoom on Monday, December 13, 2021 at 6:30 pm for, “Raising the Curtain: A History of Theater in Washington” with Sarah Griswold, former Curator of the Gunn Historical Museum. This program is being co-sponsored by the Gunn Historical Museum and The Dramalites. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link for this free virtual program.

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This lecture will explore the many ways in which Washington, Connecticut residents enjoyed, performed in, and learned from the performances of plays and other entertainments from the mid 19th century to the present day. Theater in Washington at times confronted social norms and traditions, and at other times celebrated them. From anti-slavery productions to patriotic pageants and re-enactments, from commercially-produced minstrel shows to the productions of gifted amateurs such as the Dramalites, theater has been an important part of community life, bringing together residents from all walks of life.

A graduate of the Wykeham Rise School as an Art Major back in what she calls the school’s Golden Age, Sarah Griswold is an Independent Consultant and Mentor to Cultural and nonprofit organizations throughout Connecticut.  Recent clients include the Institute for American Indian Studies and many others.  She is a board member of the Mary and Eliza Freeman Center for History and Community in Bridgeport.  Previously, she was Curator of the Gunn Historical Museum and Executive Director for the Seabury Society for the Preservation of the Glebe House in Woodbury, CT. Her short-lived theatrical performing career began and ended in Fourth Grade where she delighted in being the wicked stepmother in the Woodbury Elementary School production of Hansel and Gretel. While at the Gunn she presented an exhibit on Washington Theater, and she recently left the board of Bated Breath Theatre Company, an organization that is completely rethinking what it is to do theater.

For more information visit www.gunnmuseum.org or contact the Gunn Historical Museum in Washington, CT at 860-868-7756 or [email protected].