Groups Visit GLT Site At Davis

The Greenwood Little Theatre, the Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District and Mississippi Valley State University officially celebrated their new partnership by visiting the auditorium of Davis Elementary, which will serve as the new site of productions and performances by the Little Theatre and MVSU. 

Those visiting the auditorium Tuesday included representatives of the Little Theatre and the school district, as well as Dr. Jerryl Briggs, president of MVSU, and Greenwood Mayor Carolyn McAdams. 

Walker Sturdivant, the Little Theatre’s incoming president, said Tuesday that moving to Davis is a return to the group’s roots. 

“The Little Theatre was started in 1956, and they started at Bankston School, believe it or not. It was not until 1967 that they moved out to the present location, where the Little Theatre is,” on Sycamore Avenue, Sturdivant said. “So, we’re coming full circle back to the public school system. I’m really excited about the opportunity we have here, and I compare that excitement with what they must have felt when they started in 1956.” 

Earlier this summer, members of the Little Theatre’s board approached the school board to inquire about using the Davis auditorium since construction issues at the Little Theatre’s previous venue, at 707 Sycamore Ave., prevented them from hosting productions. 

The school board later voted to allow the Little Theatre as well as MVSU to use the auditorium for four years, though the theater group hopes to use it for years  because of the venue’s large space and proximity to downtown Greenwood. 

Sturdivant described the auditorium as “beautiful” and “spacious.” Also, he said, with the location here, near downtown, it’s going to be so much easier for people of Greenwood to come here. The parking is a lot better.”

Additionally, the new venue is much larger, Sturdivant said. The Little Theatre’s previous venue seated 200 people, and the auditorium seats about 1,200.

A new venue means the Little Theatre is set to return to productions later this fall after plays and musicals were initially scuttled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The group’s last production, prior to the pandemic, was the musical “Annie,” which premiered in December 2019. 

The Little Theatre did hold a musical fundraiser earlier this month  that served as a teaser for the season to come.

“Crimes of the Heart,” a tragicomedy, will be performed Oct. 21-24, followed in February by a yet-to-be-selected musical, said Will Perkins, the outgoing Little Theatre president. Neil Simon’s play “The Odd Couple” will premiere in the spring, and the season will end with a production of “Steel Magnolias.”

In between these shows, Perkins said, the Little Theatre would like to host a standalone musical performance for one night, similar to the musical fundraiser held earlier this month.

There are also plans in place to improve the auditorium’s facility,  which include the installation of theatrical LED colored lighting to improve the dynamic of the productions; rehabilitating the two backstage bathrooms to serve as men and women’s dressing rooms; and implementing new security cameras and coded locks so theater members can enter the building without having to bother school officials.

The expenses for these additions, subject to approval by the school board, would be covered by the Little Theatre, Sturdivant noted.

A new partnership also means more cultural opportunities for the community at large.

Sturdivant said the Little Theatre would like to produce children-appropriate plays and musicals that would be free for the local youth and to purchase a projector and movie screen for showing family-friendly movies over the summer.

MVSU is also welcome to host its own productions and concerts at the venue and collaborate with the LITTLE THEATRE, he added. 

“This is just an outstanding opportunity for our community. I always say, ‘Individually we can be good, but together we can be great,’” Briggs said. 

McAdams said the Greenwood City Council was so supportive of the Little Theatre’s idea that it recently voted to donate $8,000 this year, with the intention of contributing every year.

“I think it will benefit the entire city. It’s great to have Valley come in and be a part of this, too. I’m thrilled about it,” she said. 

Pam Powers, a member of the Little Theatre’s board who worked with Perkins, Sturdivant and Bob Draper, another board member, on the partnership, said that Jon Peede, who was chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities under President Donald Trump, may be able to assist in applying for grants on behalf of the theater organization.

Peede, a Mississippian who was at Tuesday’s gathering, said there are various grants the Little Theatre can pursue to help with funding. 

Magdalene Abraham, a member of the school board, suggested that the Little Theatre could host summer workshops, an idea that was well received among the group.

Samantha Milton, the board’s president, expressed enthusiasm about the new partnership.

“We are excited and elated about this partnership and we cannot wait to attend the first play,” she said.

Those interested in tickets or becoming members of the Little Theatre may contact the group at 662-219-3822.

- Contact Gerard Edic at 662-581-7239 or gedic@gwcommonwealth.com.