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Empowering Theatre Arts Professionals through Performance, Edcuation, Networking, Service, and Outreach in Southern California | |
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Michael & Carol Kiernan Convey
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 The Colony Theatre Company was founded in 1975 by a group of young Los Angeles television actors eager to return to their theatre roots. It was to remain in residence at the 99-seat Studio Theatre Playhouse in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles for the next 25 years. During that time, through steadfast commitment to professional quality in its productions, as well as smart marketing, the company built the largest subscriber base of any small theatre in the area. By the early 90s, Colony shows were virtually sold out before they opened, and the company began looking for a larger home. After several years of searching, they came upon a vacant building owned by the City of Burbank. Formerly a museum, the building contained a large lobby, an exhibit hall with high ceilings, and – a miracle – no columns. It was a perfect space to be converted to a mid-size theatre. In 1995, along with a number of other organizations vying for the building, The Colony submitted its proposal to the Burbank City Council. In January of 1996, the Council awarded the building to The Colony, and allocated city funds to convert it to a state-of-the-art performance space. After four years devoted to design and construction, the company moved into its new Burbank home in 2000, and became a fully operating Equity-contract theatre. The spacious yet intimate facility features stadium seating with a clear view of the thrust stage from every seat, an elegant but comfortable lobby, many restaurants within walking distance, and plenty of safe, free parking. Thus, over the years, the theatre has evolved from a small local ensemble into a well-established, award-winning, nationally recognized company, renowned for the extremely high quality of its productions. It has received countless awards for excellence, and has been listed for the past 7 years in the Encyclopedia Britannica Almanac as one of “25 Notable US Theater Companies.” |