Elgin Theatre Company

The Elgin Theatre Company (ETC), known until July 1, 2005, as the Elgin Community Theatre, was founded in the spring of 1952 as an evening adult education class at Elgin Community College. Its first production was The Male Animal on April 4th and 5th, 1952, and its first full season of plays started that fall. For over 50 seasons, ETC has continuously produced high quality entertainment for Elgin Illinois and the northwest suburbs of Chicago. From its founding until the late 1960's ETC was supported by and closely associated with ECC, but with its own governing body. Later it became a fully independent group. ETC was incorporated as a tax exempt, not for profit corporation, in 1970. Since its first production, ETC has been financially self supporting. ETC gratefully accepts grants and donations from both private and public bodies at any time. The major functions of the group are: production of plays and education in the theatre arts The group draws actors, singers, dancers, carpenters, and a host of others from Elgin, nearby communities, and from as far away as Chicago. It draws its audience from the same area with most of the people living in and around Elgin. The groups artistic direction has emphasized a mixture of popular musicals, comedies, dramas, and mysteries. ETC has attempted to meet the needs of a range of people with such offerings as Bus Stop, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Cane Mutiny Court Martial, South Pacific, Dracula, The Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Cinderella, On Golden Pond, Steambath, The Fantasticks, Arsenic and Old Lace, Nunsense, Cabaret, and Marvin's Room. The group tends not to produce many experimental, children's, or classic plays. Other notable parts of ETC's history: * Produced the Elgin Summer Youth Theatre for the City of Elgin during the 1970's and early 1980's * Held numerous training classes and field trips for its members to improve their skills, both on stage and off stage. * Received numerous awards. It has been rated by drama critics for many years as one of the best community theatres in the western suburbs. * Held two play writing contests for Elgin authors. Its first play writing contest in 1975-6 was held to celebrate the history of Elgin as part of the Bicentennial of the American Revolution. * Produced its first musical, The Fantasticks, at the end of the 1965-1966 season. * Fox River Anthology, produced in 1976 as part of the Bicentennial of the American Revolution, was its first production of an original play.