Address | 33 North Main Street Chester, Connecticut United States |
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Coordinates | 41°24′19″N72°27′12″W / 41.4054°N 72.4533°W |
Owner | Goodspeed Musicals |
Type | Regional theatre |
Opened | 1984 |
Website | |
www |
The Norma Terris Theatre is a theatre in Chester, Connecticut, and the second stage of Goodspeed Musicals. The theatre is dedicated to developing and presenting new musicals.
Dedicated in 1984, [1] the theatre is named in honor of the actress Norma Terris, star of Jerome Kern’s Show Boat and a patron and trustee of the Goodspeed Opera House during her later years. She presided over the dedication of the Norma Terris Theatre, and in 1987 she established The Norma Terris Fund to develop the careers of new actors and to promote musical theatre.
The Norma Terris Theatre was built as a knitting needle factory in the early 1900s for Susan Bates, Inc. In 1982, after locating to a larger facility, Susan Bates, Inc. donated its abandoned factory in Chester, Connecticut to Goodspeed Musicals. A 200-seat performing space, it opened on July 10, 1984 with the new musical Harrigan ’N Hart. [2]
Anastasia Love Sagorsky, also known as Staci Keanan, is an American lawyer, law professor and former actress. Keanan is best known for portraying the role of Nicole Bradford on the NBC sitcom My Two Dads, from 1987 to 1990, and as Dana Foster on the ABC/CBS sitcom Step by Step, from 1991 to 1998. She has not performed as an actress since about 2010, making a transition to working as a prosecutor and law school professor.
Goodspeed Musicals is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and advancement of musical theater and the creation of new works, located in East Haddam, Connecticut. Its landmark Goodspeed Opera House is a distinctive feature of the view from the Connecticut River and is the birthplace of some of the world's most famous musicals, including Annie, Man of La Mancha, and Shenandoah. Goodspeed Musicals also includes the Norma Terris Theatre in Chester as well as several writing and performing seminars. Goodspeed Musicals is considered one of the foremost regional theaters in the United States to date producing 250 musicals, over 70 world premieres, and sending 21 productions to Broadway. Goodspeed Musicals is the first regional theatre in America to earn two special Tony Awards, one in 1980 for outstanding contributions to the American musical and a second in 1995 for distinguished achievement for a regional theatre.
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Norma Terris was an American performer in musical theatre and vaudeville.
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Michael P. Price is the longest serving artistic director of a professional theatre in the United States. As the Executive Director of Goodspeed Musicals from 1968 to 2014, he produced more than 235 musicals, including 75 world premiers and transferred 19 productions to Broadway, including the world premieres of Shenandoah, Man of La Mancha and Annie. His productions have won 13 Tony Awards and 33 nominations. He has also accepted two special Tony Awards on Goodspeed's behalf. In 2019, he was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame.
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