Anna Maria's Island Players Celebrate 61st Anniversary Season...
It's true!
The Island Players are celebrating their 61st anniversary during the 2009-2010 season and are the oldest community theater in all Manatee County.
The Island Players Playhouse, a building of great historical significance to Anna Maria Island, was originally the home of the William H. Gillett family of Parrish and was floated down the Manatee River by barge in the early 1900's to be set up on Anna Maria Island.
The structure first served as the Anna Maria Tourist Center greeting day-trippers to Anna Maria Island. Most of these visitors came from Tampa and St. Petersburg on excursion steamboats and then heading west on Pine Avenue to the Gulf of Mexico waters.
In 1923, when the City of Anna Maria incorporated, it soon became a center of activity as all the cities business was conducted from there.
It also functioned as a community hall and was used for social gatherings, club meetings, church services, a schoolroom and eventually... an Island community theater.
In the early 1970s the playhouse underwent major renovations.
- The stage was raised
- 137 seats were installed in seven tiered rows
- It was carpeted
- Ticket sales moved when a small booth was constructed
The ticket sales operation moved to the theater from volunteer's homes when a small booth was constructed on the west side of the auditorium.
Preservation of the theater has been maintained throughout the years by the Island Players. In April of 2009, the Anna Maria Island Historical Society awarded the theater with a preservation plaque of distinction and thanked the Island Players for maintaining such an important Island landmark.
To this day, five live stage shows are presented each year, October through May, and tickets can be purchased for individual plays or for the whole season.
The box office is open from 9 AM until 1 PM during their season.
For more information, please visit our website: www.theislandplayers.org.
The current performance information can be obtained by calling 941-778-5755.
The answering machine message is informational only.
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