Hill Theater
From KCpedia
The Hill Theater is located south of Peirce Hall, and east of Leonard Hall. Today, Bolton Theater stands beside it, and is used for most major productions, but the Hill Theater was, for many years, the only theater on campus.
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Construction and Development
Opened in 1941, the Hill Theater is housed in what was originally called the Shaffer Speech Building, and was known only as the Speech Building Theater. Pre-construction, the dance and drama departments were forced to improvise; for years, Nu Pi Kappa Reading Room in Ascension served as a makeshift production area. The Puff and Powder Club made good use of the space available and, throughout the twenties and thirties, performed original musical comedies which were popular with the student body. But even the best performances could not disguise the need for a formal performance area; when a small fire, caused by an electrical short, disrupted a show in Philomathesian Hall, an alumnus in attendance, Charles B. Shaffer '83, decided to give a $50,000 gift to the college for construction of a theater.
Constructed of local sandstone in a tudor style, the building was designed by Charles Bacon Rowley Associates of Cleveland. Much of the delegating and decision making were spearheaaded by the head of the Speech Department, Dr. John Black, under President Chalmers. Lighting, seating, drapes, beams, and other considerations were provided by the Theatrical Equipment and Rental Company of Cleveland.
The Shaffer Speech Building was dedicated November 3, 1941, and the student body eagerly embraced their new quarters. The winter 1978-79 issue of the Alumni Bulletin quotes alumnus Arthur M. Cox Jr. '42 as saying: "We were simply overwhelmed with what we thought was the height of luxury when the Shaffer Speech Building opened...". In 1949, the Speech Department came to be called the Department of Speech and Dramatics, and shortly afterward, in 1956, it became the Department of Drama. In 1953, the theater began to be called the Hill. On April 16, 1977, ground was broken for construction of the Bolton building, south of the Hill, and since its construction, many of the more major events have been performed there. In 1981, the Shaffer Swimming Pool became the Shaffer Dance Studio, and in 1986, as the dance department gained recognition and popularity, the Kenyon Department of Drama became the Department of Dance and Drama.
Uses
Prior to the fall of 1978, the Hill Theater was used for all theatrical events. Plays performed during the 1960s and 70s included Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth, Servant of Two Masters, Romeo and Juliet, Lysistrata, The Importance of Being Earnest, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, The Crucible, and many others. Three or four different shows were put on in a typical academic year. Today, smaller events like 1994's "Play-by-Play", a reading of student plays on a Saturday evening, are common.
Additions
In 1951, the college received a 9' x 16' tapestry from the wife of Samuel William Peck, in his memory. The tapestry, officially named "The Kermesse, or the Village Fete," is also known as the "Tenier Tapestry" because it is woven from designs created by David Teniers, a seventeenth century cartoonist. While the artist is unknown, it was most likely the work of Le Clerc or Jacques van der Borght, both renowned Flemish weavers. The tapestry was hung in the Hill Theate, on May 9 of that year. Its estimated value at that time was $7,000. In 1980, the children of Robert Weaver, '12, gave the Hill and Bolton Theaters a new garden, complete with terraces and dogwood trees. Robert Weaver Jr. '43, Peter Weaver '50, and Charlotte Weaver Jones presided over a dedication ceremony after which the garden area became known as Weaver Courtyard.
Resources in the Kenyon Archives
- Shaffer Speech Building -- collected materials (oversize)
- Drama at Kenyon-- collected materials
- Drama: Chronology and History at Kenyon -- collected materials
- Tapestry in the Hill Theater -- collected materials
