Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship
In the heart of the woods in Dorset sits a small gray building, known to community members and theater lovers as the Dorset Playhouse.
Throughout the year, the volunteer-based Dorset Players use the space, and in summers, the Playhouse is home to the Dorset Theatre Festival, a professional theater.
The festival, which runs from May to September, is currently in its 49th season,and has been a large part of regional and national theater since its inception in 1976.
With a large number of actors coming in for the summer from as close as New York City and some as far as Los Angeles, the theater draws nationwide crowds every summer.
On Saturday, the venue will be home to the 5th annual Dance Party Ball, the theater’s biggest fundraiser.
Elizabeth Thornton, the festival’s marketing and development manager, is one of the group’s full-time staff. Her main project this summer is the Dance Party Ball.
After wanting to move away from a traditional gala-style fundraiser, Ryan Koss, the festival’s managing creative director, pitched the dance party as a way to celebrate the theater in a different format, Thornton said.
“I just think it is a great excuse for people to come and celebrate art in our rural community,” Thornton said.
This year’s event will feature raffles, auctions, games, dinner and a headlining Broadway performer. Desi Oakley has starred in “Chicago,” “Waitress” and more in her time on the Broadway stage.
The dance party starts at 6 p.m. Tickets are sold out, but theater supporters can still contribute through an online auction and donations.
There will be two more shows that run throughout the summer this season. The upcoming show “Advice” stars husband and wife duo Adam Shapiro and Katie Lowes, best known for their respective roles in “The Bear” and “Scandal.”
“Advice” is a comedy that just finished its National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere. It highlights Gary, a newly divorced, self-proclaimed life coach with a very messy life of his own.
On August 21, “Lobby Hero,” the final play of the season comes to the Dorset Theater Festival. The Tony award-winning play is a murder mystery and comedy-drama wrapped into one, set in the lobby of a Manhattan apartment. It runs through September 5.
More information about tickets, the Dorset Theatre Festival, and the upcoming Dance Party Ball can be found at dorsettheatrefestival.org.