Greenwood Little Theatre Updating Its Bylaws

Bylaw updates at the Greenwood Little Theatre are paving the way for future opportunities, according to board President Pam Powers. 

“The updates really aren’t about changes at all but about new opportunities,” she said  Thursday. 

When the Little Theatre moved into the Davis Elementary School Auditorium, it partnered with the Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District to coordinate rehearsal and show times as well as update some of the facilities connected to the facility. 

“We want to be strategic as we adapt to new space,” Powers said. 

Jon Peede, a board member and a former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, said the board “wished to update their bylaws to incorporate best practices in a nonprofit.” 

Peede’s role was to search and identify areas that needed to be added or codified into the bylaws. 

These were practices the Little Theatre had already implemented, such as online voting for members during COVID-19 and discretion in conflicts of interest, but the board wanted to officially state its policy within the bylaws to help maintain its standard, he said. 

“The Greenwood Little Theatre has had a wonderful code of ethics for decades; these bylaws just make sure it is put into writing. High quality and longevity are the hallmarks of the Little Theatre, and these new bylaws will help ensure this tradition continues,” Peede explained. 

Since moving to Davis Auditorium, the Little Theatre has put additional emphasis on developing ways to expose students to more fine arts productions. 

The ideas include offering free attendance to age-appropriate plays for schoolchildren, bringing plays to different schools as a type of preview theater production and working with the school district to produce musicals, incorporating student talent into the production. 

The Little Theatre has also opened the door to Mississippi Valley State University and hopes to draw students and productions from the university to the Davis site. “We want to invite new talent while exposing more of our citizens to the fine arts,” Powers said.