From 1955-1990, Broadway, film and television stars were part of the summer scenery in Traverse City, thanks to the Cherry County Playhouse.
The professional theater company, which moved to Muskegon in 1991 and closed in 2003, was an entertainment staple downtown for 36 years. A new multi-media exhibit at the Grand Traverse Heritage Center celebrates the Cherry County Playhouse, delving into history plus the famous, soon-to-be famous and locals who worked under the big blue tent.
The exhibit opened Friday with a VIP party and will run at the Heritage Center through October 14. A $13,000 grant from the Michigan Humanities Council helped fund the program, which includes photographs, video, audio interviews and a stunning cherry red gown worn in a 1950s production of "Cinderella".
Summer stock theater stems from the seasonal cycle of stage and screen that freed up actors and actresses for stints around the country in professional shows. These productions provided relatively good pay and the Cherry County Playhouse, thanks to founder Ruth Bailey's extensive connections from her show business career, drew many top names.
"Broadway used to shut down in the summer because of the air conditioning, that's why these things wound up in tents," said Phil Murphy, executive director of the Old Town Playhouse and a former employee of the Cherry County Playhouse. "That's how these theaters got started, they would close a show in New York and take in on the road for the summer, go from one place to the next. So you used to see the top Broadway stars."
Television seasons also used to follow a September to April schedule so by the 1960s television stars were available during summers.
The list of stars who graced a summer stage in Traverse City begins with Veronica Lake in 1955 and travels through Robert Reed, Leonard Nimoy, John Carradine, Orson Bean, William Shatner, Phyllis Diller, Florence Henderson, Don Knotts, the Smothers Brothers and Pat Paulson.
Meredith Baxter began her career by interning at the playhouse in 1965 while Traverse City's own Dave Fortin began his career as an intern ten years previously.
Fortin, a reporter with TV7&4 since 1964, got his start the first season of the Cherry County Playhouse. Working as a bus boy at the Park Place Hotel, he watched the goings on across the street at what is now the Hardy Parking Deck but was then the playhouse's home. His friends laughed at his ambition but he was determined to break in.
"I went over and took a guitar and was the first local person to be a part of the Cherry County Playhouse," recalled Fortin, who had parts in productions such as "Solid Gold Cadillac" and "The Cane Mutiny".
A connection forged at the playhouse with actress Eleanor Cody Gould helped him land a role fresh off the bus in New York City a few years later. When his big break never materialized and with family responsibilities looming large, Fortin eventually returned to Traverse City and began his reporting career.
"The Cherry County Playhouse was probably one of the most fabulous things as far as an attraction for local people that has ever existed in Traverse City," said Fortin.
Barbara Davis Berry worked as an intern at the Cherry County Playhouse during the 1957, 1959 and 1961 seasons. She auditioned for "Cinderella" while vacationing with family at a cottage in Northport. Working with and learning from stars at the playhouse was an "outstanding experience."
"It was just a fun time," recalled Berry, who said most of the stars were real, wonderful and helpful. "I loved it, the stars coming in every week, later for longer stints."
"Sometimes we didn't have time to learn our lines," she added.
The Summer Stock Theater and Cherry County Playhouse exhibition will run at the Grand Traverse Heritage Center, 322 Sixth St., through October 14. For more information, call the center at 995-0313.