The History of AFD Theatre
The Arlington Friends of the Drama, now
known as
AFD Theatre, was
founded in 1923 and is one of the ten oldest continually operating
community theatre groups in the United States.Incorporated as a
not-for-profit corporation in the early 1930s, Arlington
Friends of the Drama, Inc. outbid the Odd Fellows and came in with
the highest bid for the St. John's Episcopal Church building, now
our theatre. We bid $8,200. More recently - and at an expense
far exceeding its purchase price - our 194-seat theatre was
extensively updated and made handicap-accessible. With
justified pride we can say that
AFD Theatre is among the finest area
playhouses
for actors, directors, production designers and audiences to produce
and enjoy live theatre.
Our first major musical,
Iolanthe,
was performed in our 12th season (1935). We
currently design and produce a season of five shows ev.ery year,
usually including comedy, drama, a "smaller" musical and a major
musical. The regional and national awards garnered by our
productions are many, but we are most proud of the fact that year in
and year out we entertain thousands of people,
encourage local development and appreciation of the theatre
arts, and provide a home for some of the most
creative directors, designers and performing artists in New
England.
On July 26th 2007 we began to
add the new logo of AFD Theatre to our website, anticipating the
formal launch date of August 1, 2007, in time for our 85th Season.
As we advance in our own experience we have stepped up our
commitment to developing the next generation of theater artists and
audiences. We are doing this in several ways, among
them: the selection of productions in which youth may participate;
donation to the scholarship fund of Arlington Children's Theater;
providing ACT's older teens with production apprenticeship
opportunities; promoting Student Memberships that include a season
subscription priced at less than the cost of attending a movie;
and producing plays of import to young people and families.
We welcome you to join us!
