​Country Theatre Workshop

Who would ever think about sticking a theatre in the middle of the fields of Iroquois County? Well, fortunately for us, that's just what Wilma Dryden, Dick Baier, and Dick Reutter decided to do. In the spring of 1982, the CTW building was purchased at auction by Dick Reutter for use as a permanent home for the Cissna Acting and Singing Troupe, which up to that time had been presenting their shows "on the road." With the aid of borrowed funds and many local volunteers, the building was quickly transformed into a theatre complete with a homemade stage lighting system and tables made from telephone cable drums and large drainage tiles. The name "Country Theatre Workshop" was selected and a not-for-profit charter was obtained from the State of Illinois. The first show, "I Remember Mama," was staged on July 2, 1982 under the direction of Wilma Dryden, who served as Resident Director for the first several years that CTW was in existence. CTW continues to run as a summer theatre company. The shows range from popular musicals to hilarious comedies to slightly more serious dramas to outlandish melodramas. In addition, a children's theatre program was added to the theatre bill in 1991 and that program continues to be very successful. Many other changes have occurred since 1982 including a insulated roof to deaden the sound of pouring rain and a more advanced lighting and sound system. Due to increasing audiences and decreasing storage space, an addition was added to the original building in 1991. This started a remodeling process that reconstructed the auditorium, restrooms, and kitchen. New dressing rooms and a prop storage area were also constructed in the new addition. In 1996, a new building was constructed behind the theatre to serve as a rehearsal hall and storage space. The Fall of 2007 began another major building project to be completed by the 2008 Summer Season.  This time, a new pole building was constructed over what was the original theatre building.  This new building, being about 20 feet wider than the original, does several things for CTW.  First, it provides space for hallways beside the auditorium where ramps were built to all be the uppermost level of the newly remodeled seating tiers...allowing the majority of our auditorium seating to now be handicap-accessible.  Second, it provides a larger lobby area as well as more storage above the hallways for costumes and props.  Third, it offers improved insulation to the heat of summer and cold of winter and with two actual roofs covering the auditorium, rain is not near the sound disruption that it had occasionally been in the past.  The Country Theatre Workshop has been a very successful venture thanks to many dedicated volunteers. We thank all of you who have been involved in that success.