about us: who we are, what we do

Lost Nation Theater prides itself on being a professional theater committed to community.

Lost Nation Theater’s Mission Statement

First, to create theater which is an effective force and catalyst for personal transformation, providing opportunities for empathetic interaction with others, development of self-discipline, and mastery of specific skills;

Second, to create and produce stimulating drama in original and innovative ways for the community and to provide support for a year-round professional performing arts ensemble, for quality-oriented theater training programs, and for the theater’s physical plant for the benefit of local artists, school age youth, public and private school, colleges, and universities, and for special events;

Third, to contribute to the vitality of the community by emphasizing audience development and the educational components in all programs, and thus to educate the public in the knowledge and skills that make theater possible.

Objectives

Performing:  To support a year-round resident company, augmented by guest artists, that produces dramas, comedies and musicals, and that supports new works.

Management:  To develop and maintain an adequate management and support structure to achieve the Theater’s goals and objectives.

Access:  To meet or exceed the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act so that our facilities, and the programs, performances, and office functions offered there, are fully accessible to all.

The following is a sampling of the many things we do within and for our community.

Performance Programs: Annual Theater Series—An Integrated Performance, Education, and Community Outreach program.

• 6 Mainstage Shows per year
• Children’s Shows - theater FOR kids, BY kids
• Winter’Fest
• It’s a Wonderful Life
• An Edgar Allan Poe & Fiends Spooktacular
• Vermont Performers Showcase
• Vermont Playwrights’ Circle
• Special School Matinees
• Matinees for Seniors
• Late Nite Cabarets
• Special Events

Education Programs:

• Youth Theater Labs Day Camps (for ages 8-11 & 12-15)
• Professional Theater Training
• Head Start Arts Program
• Independent Studies and Mentorships
• Residencies (elementary-college level)
• Master Classes in specific theater arts skills

Outreach Programs:

• Ticket Give-a-Ways to non-profits
• Subsidized Ticket Initiatives
• Benefit Events
• Management and rental of The City Hall Arts Center
• Custodial Services—City Hall Arts Center
• Technical Support for City Hall Renters
• Free Referral & Information Services
• Resource Sharing Services
• Collection Site for Vermont Food Bank (with discounted admission as incentive)
• Outreach to Underserved Populations
• Creative Partnerships & Accessibility Initiatives including Audio-Described and ASL-interpreted performances (CV Access Task Force, Vermont Foodbank, Adult Basic Ed, VCIL, VATTA, Barre Granite Museum, CVCAC)
• Membership in area civic, business, & arts groups—such as Montpelier Alive, CV Chamber, Sugarbush Chamber, CV Community Partnership
• Community Celebration Sponsor/Participant

And Much More…

Lost Nation Theater Artistic Center—Focus

• Innovative, High Quality Productions of Classic and Contemporary Plays
• Professional Theater Training Programs
• Connections with Community
• Audience Development and Education
• New Play Development

Aesthetic Characterizations of Productions & Programs

Statement of Belief:
Theater is an effective force and catalyst for Personal and Community Transformation. It provides opportunities for empathetic interaction with others, development of self-discipline, and mastery of specific skills.

LNT Productions and Programs are Characterized by:

• Intimate, human-scale events
• Poetic texts, rich and heightened language
• Integrated use of original music with text
• Hopeful, positive statements about the possibilities of human interaction
• Relevance to Community, social or political issues

Criteria for Play Selection:

• Challenging
• Well-crafted, poetic language or images
• Fitting and feasible to available resources — technical and artistic
• Sensitive to gender-issues (or able to be done in a revisionist way)
• Offers more than just an indictment of people and situations
• It excites us!

LNT’s typical annual season will include one original production, a small cast (cabaret-style) musical, a balanced mix of lighter and darker dramas and comedies.

Please call us at 802.229.0492 or email us at info@lostnationtheater.org  for more information