“Rehearsals had to be held in the Boiling Springs High school gymnasium until dress rehearsal which was held on stage to the tune of carpenters’ hammers and saws. The week before opening the roof was not yet on the building and the seats were not installed. Both these activities took place on Thursday and Friday for the Saturday opening. The side walls had not yet been installed so I purchased tarpaulins and placed them, but left them rolled up. The evening was beautiful and our “house” loved the open air effect — in fact, they looked forward to a permanent open air situation. Opening night was a huge success! “Life with Father” was well cast, sufficiently rehearsed, and proved to be a real hit to open a brilliant career of professional theatre on the Yellow Breeches. Clem Fowler got excellent notices as “Father” of the Day family, but five-year-old Jere Heinze was credited with upstaging everyone and stealing the show. His mother, Mary Lu, carefully dyed Jere’s hair red and saw that he was properly dressed for each performance.”

“This is the new Allenberry Playhouse. All of us who have had a part in its planning and construction feel proud. The weeks of work that went into the erecting and outfitting of this building now seem worthwhile. But there is still much to do. We’ve been working under pressure. Delayed shipments of material, rainy weather when there was concrete to pour, and misplaced actors have had us biting our nails and tearing our hair. Within the next several weeks the temporary canvas sides will be replaced by wooden slabs; walks will lead from the other Allenberry buildings to the theatre; and the matter of decorating our theatre will receive attention. We sincerely hope that our audiences will share our enthusiasm as each new improvement is made.”

“I felt I had a good cast. The play was a natural, but until opening I wasn’t sure about anything. Rehearsals were a shambles, what with carpenters, plumbers and roofers hammering and pounding all over the place. There was so much noise and confusion I couldn’t hear the actors’ lines at dress rehearsal. On top of this, we didn’t even have a roof over the stage on opening night! Somehow, we muddled through.”