History:

Hawthorne Players is one of the oldest theatre companies in the St. Louis area.  Today, the group produces three plays a year in the Florissant Civic Center Theatre, frequently selling out the 567-seat auditorium.           

In the fall of 1945 a small group of parents and teachers at Central School in Ferguson, Mo., settled on the idea of presenting a mystery play entitled Hobgoblin House as a fund-raising activity for the PTA, The production was immensely successful and the participants so thoroughly enjoyed the undertaking. that a theatre organization was quickly formed. Thus were sown the seeds for Hawthorne Players, North St. Louis County's oldest theatre group, with a membership of over 100 adults and young people drawn from throughout the metropolitan area.

The origins of Hawthorne are firmly fixed in community service: in the early years,  profits  were donated to the local schools and parks.  Beginning in 1992, Hawthorne Players began presenting annual Duckie DeMere Scholarships to graduating seniors in the performing arts.  Over $46,000 has been awarded to North County students!

Over the years, Hawthorne has undergone many changes. Beginning in 1958, the organization turned in a new and challenging direction.  The Glass Menagerie was the vehicle for their first production to be presented without affiliation with any civic group, and it was a critical success (without being a financial disaster!). Thus encouraged, Hawthorne began the process of establishing themselves as one of the most adventuresome and dramatically conscientious theatre organizations in the Greater St. Louis area.

Hawthorne Players presented the first local community theatre productions of many shows, including: Oh Dad, Poor Dad,  Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? and Rhinoceros.         Hawthorne introduced its audiences to the wonders of Frank Loesser's The Most Happy Fella five years before it was rediscovered  on Broadway.  The company has garnered fine reviews for its revivals of neglected musicals, including The Red Mill, The Desert Song and Kismet and is known for the excellent quality of its full orchestras and choruses.  Each season mixes comedy (Rumors, Social Security), musical theatre (Crazy for You, Kiss Me, Kate, Man of La Mancha) and drama (Arcadia, Proof, A Doll's House, plus the highly popular annual Best of Hawthorne musical revues featuring stars of Hawthorne musical productions.  Hawthorne shows often receive glowing reviews.  Several critics said that Hawthorne's 2010 production of The Producers was the best community theatre musical they had ever seen.

Hawthorne has changed its venues over the year, of course, starting  in Ferguson in 1945. Many shows were presented at January-Wabash Park. In the 1960s, Hawthorne productions were staged in Famous-Barr's auditorium at the thriving Northland Shopping Center. The group presented its first musical in 1968.  In 1973 Hawthorne moved to its current home, the Florissant Civic Center Theatre.