The History of RCP

    The Music Study Club in Rushville, Indiana had adopted for their theme in 1974-1975, "Broadway Musicals." They presented music from nine different popular musicals at several locations, starting off with Fiddler on the Roof, at Main Street Christian Church. These performances were so well attended that the forming of a community theater group was thought to be a good idea.

      On September 17, 1975, a group of approximately 60 people gathered at the First Presbyterian Church to discuss the organization of a theater group in Rush County. The following Ad Hoc committee was formed to establish by-laws and a constitution: Wilmer Cameron, Chr., Al Hodge, Mike Woods, David Malson, Marcia Blair, Janet Malson, Connie Barada, Sue Taylor, Murial Moore, Rex Lanning, Jeff Hufford and Teri Lanning.

      In November 1975, a second meeting was held at the Production Credit building. At this meeting Officers and a Board of Directors were elected. By-Laws and a Constitution were established. Also it was voted to name the group "Rush County Players." As the first play, an ill-fated attempt was made to produce Niel Simon's The Last of the Red Hot Lovers. At a later meeting the group voted to produce You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown with Mike Woods as director.

     The founding members decided to open membership to the public, and were very surprised when membership soon topped 100. Meetings, auditions and rehearsals usually took place at members homes. The first play produced was You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, directed by Mike Woods, and featuring David Malson, Jr., Annie Miller, Nick Gulde and Rob Hendrix. Since RCP did not yet have a home of their own, shows were presented at various sites around the county. This show debuted at Rushville Elementary School. Other venues used in the early years include the Wilkinson Building (particularly for musicales), Milroy School, the Graham Annex (most commonly known as the junior high), and the Durbin Hotel and Restaurant.

      By RCP's five year mark, membership was up to 250.   They generally performed two plays and one musicale per year, only attempting a musical show every other year, due to cost and number of people required to produce them. This was also the year that the Whitewater Valley Presbytery sold the old Milroy Presbyterian Church to the Players for the cost of $1, to be used as their meeting place and playhouse. Renovations began with $1200 given to RCP by the Presbytery to repair the roof, since the building had been empty for two years. This was to be RCP's home for nearly the next two decades. It required a great deal of upkeep, and is remembered fondly, with a healthy dose of irony, by those who participated in and attended shows there.

     In 1999, Rush County Players purchased the facility on the corner of 2nd and Morgan, in the heart of downtown Rushville, from the Rush County Boys and Girls Club to be used as an audition and rehersal hall. RCP continues to renovate the facility "on the fly" between shows, thanks to various grants.

     Rush County Players has never shied away from doing shows that are thought provoking or different, or to present them in a different fashion. The Night of January 16th, which dealt with a trial, was presented in the Rush County Circuit Court room. Members of the audience were selected each night to serve on the jury involved in the case, and to render a verdict at the conclusion of the performance. Last season, RCP presented a parody of January 16th with Sandbag, Stage Left or... One Dead Dolly. The show was once again held in the Circuit Court room and the jury was chosen from the audience. Nunsense, a musical comedy about a group of nuns putting on a fund raiser in their school gym, was presented in the gymnasium of St. Mary's Catholic school as a dinner theater. Other shows throughout the years have also been presented as dinner theater in various locations. More recent examples of thought-provoking theatre include Jesus Christ Superstar, Twelve Angry Men (Jurors), Jekyll and Hyde, Diary of Anne Frank, Evita, and The Miracle Worker.

     While such dramatic plays have been a critical favorite, comedies are always fun for both cast and audience. Some of the humorous selections presented in the past have been Arsenic and Old Lace, Rumors, Harvey, Barefoot in the Park, M*A*S*H, The Odd Couple and The Foreigner. For our 33st season RCP revisits God's Favorite, first presented in 1986.

      Rush County Players has also enjoyed producing "whodunits" for the sleuth in all of us. These productions include Much Ado About Murder, Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians and The Mousetrap, and Rope.

     Overall, the audiences's favorite type of show is the musical. RCP has done both musicales, comprised of different selections of music based on a common theme, and the better known Broadway-type musical. Popular musical plays produced by the Players have included Carousel, The King and I, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Crazy For You and South Pacific. For our 33nd season, RCP presents Little Shop of Horrors.

   Rush County Players is for people of all ages. Since 1996, one show each season has been presented with a large number of young people, or even all-children casts. Some of these are Kids Just Wanna Have Fun, The Homecoming, Peter Pan, Cinderella, and The Wizard of Oz. RCP continues this tradition with last season's Disney's 101 Dalmations Kids, and this season's A Disney Kids Musicale.

The History of the
Rush County Players

Show History

History of the Playhouse