Theatre Salina experiences growth and success with regional and national exposure

As people drive down Iron Avenue in Salina, they may notice a new sign and name at a familiar and popular destination in the downtown area, Theatre Salina.

Earlier this year, what was once Salina Community Theatre made the change in its name after a couple of years of discussion about what the theater means to people inside and outside the community of Salina.

"We are much more regional than we've ever been," said Michael Spicer, executive director for Theatre Salina.

According to Spicer, about 40% of the ticket sales for the various theatrical productions at Theatre Salina come from people outside of Saline County.

"Last year, coming out of COVID, we sold tickets in 30 different states," Spicer said.

This regional and national appeal to the theatrical arts in Salina is a sign of the success and growth the theater has seen since the building was expanded in 2011.

"A big part of that has been an expansion in education," Spicer said. "We've been fortunate to have some pretty dedicated teachers since this building's been open especially."

As that educational aspect of the theater has grown, it was clear that it needed to continue with strong leadership for the theater's education program, the Center for Theatre Arts (CTA), as Megan Coberly, the education director for Theatre Salina, moves on with a new chapter in her life, as her husband accepted a position at Columbia University.

A nation-wide search for a replacement led to several candidates for the position, but a familiar face was decided as the best fit for the job, Maggie Spicer Brown, who grew up in the theater and is a graduate of Oklahoma City University.

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The importance of education at the community-theater level

Brown is excited to take on this role and see how educational opportunities can be expanded, as she knows the benefits of having a strong education within a community theater.

"Every year we watch our students, whether it be in the musical theater program or the dance program, develop their skills, strengthen their skills (and) get stronger with their skills," Brown said.

Each year, the theater looks at that educational programming and sees how it can expand to include new skills and strengthen the skills it already has.

An example of this has been adding hip-hop dance classes within the past two years.

"They were only in the summer, and there was such a demand that we did them during the school year," Brown said. "The first year we started with seven students and this year we have 14."

It's not only maintaining an education director with the hiring of Brown that Theatre Salina has done to help with this expansion of educational opportunities. It also announced that its ballet instructor, Jessica Polzella, would be hired on full-time and expand her role.

"We're able to add things that she has certification that other people at Theatre Salina or in town don't have," Brown said. "(These) are for adults, small children and anyone in between to expand our repertoire that will eventually, hopefully, match the expansion of our spaces."

Coberly said there are about 175 students currently enrolled in various classes, but that amounts to over 350 class registrations.

"A lot of the kids take three or four classes; some take eight," Coberly said.

It's not just individual classes that are nearly overflowing with students. Coberly said during the summer they offer musical theater camps.

"They have filled to the brim this summer," Coberly said. "We had to add one (more) and it's also full now."

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Never a dull moment at Theatre Salina

On top of these educational opportunities, the theater also runs theatrical productions throughout the year.

Theatre Salina just announced the new 2022 to 2023 season, which begins this September with seven shows, including "The Addams Family," "A Doll's House, Part Two," "A Christmas Story" and "School of Rock!"

Spicer said the theater is closed on some holidays, like Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's, but otherwise Theatre Salina is always a busy place.

"Besides those days, there's rehearsals, classes (and) performances in this space every other day of the year," Spicer said. "In most instances, there are three to five different activities going on at any given moment."

This last week in May is one of the few times the theater only has one thing really going on. "Kinky Boots," which closes out the 2021 to 2022 season. The show is in rehearsals and that's about it right now, but that all changes as the calendar moves into the next month.

"In June, we'll have 'Kinky Boots' in performance, we'll be auditioning 'Addams Family,' Summerstage will be up (and) Stage II will start," Spicer said.

On top of that, Coberly and Brown said the Center for Theatre Arts camp schedule begins May 31 and will go through July.

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Spicer said he knows there are changes here now, such as the new name, and more changes on the horizon for Theatre Salina, but he hopes that the people who come and buy tickets to performances, take classes at CTA or find other reasons to come to Theatre Salina see these changes as positives.

"The people who know us, the people who are our patrons, know that the quality of what they're going to see here is going to be the same, whether (the name is) Theatre Salina or Salina Community," Spicer said.