Hedgerow quickly became a haven for cutting edge artists of the early 20th century, and it gained a national and international reputation as a proving ground for era-defining artists such as Eugene O’Neill, Henrik Ibsen, George Bernard Shaw, Theodore Dreiser, Bertolt Brecht, and Wharton Esherick.

A look back:

1922   Jasper Deeter presents three plays at Guild Hall: TIME by Susan Glaspell and George Cram Cook, FAME AND THE POET by Lord Dunsay and TRIFLES by Susan Glaspell.

1923   Jasper Deeter returns from New York, bringing with him seven actors, blue cheesecloth, 16 light bulbs, some wood paneling, nine dollars, and the idea of an independent repertory theatre...Sydney Matchet, Grete Mylecraine, Herbert Walton, Eleanor Abbot, Dorothy Kite, Takashe Otha, Judge L. Stauffer, Will Price Jr. and Margaret Scott Oliver help make Hedgerow a reality... The early core company consists of Leni Stengel, (the wife of a famed Hungarian actor), Ann Harding, Virginia Farmer, Allyn Josyln and Alexander Kirkland, all who were major actors starting out in New York… Dorothy Kite thinks up the name Hedgerow in her Rose Valley kitchen, although later legend will credit future movie star Ann Harding with having thought up the name... First performance: George Bernard Shaw’s, CANDIDA on April 21... Deeter believes that theater is “man’s companion, mirror, critic, teacher and source of amusement.”

1924   Eva LeGallienne directs and performs in THE MASTER BUILDER. ..Jasper Deeter directs Ann Harding in The Master Builder and the productions play in repertory... In November, the Hedgerow Company performs THE EMPEROR JONES with Paul Robeson at the Walnut Street Theatre. Miriam Phillips plays one of the native women, her first role with Hedgerow Company... Tennis star Bill Tilden acts in CLARENCE with the Hedgerow Company.

1926   Philadelphia’s Sesquicentennial and an engagement at the Broad Street Theatre...a summer of record heat, discouragement and the acquiring of a $19,000 debt...the residents dine mainly on turnips...A Sheriffs sale forces the company to disband to earn money as they can in chorus lines, as directors, actors and technicians... Jasper returns to the Provincetown Playhouse and directs ABRAHAM’S BOSOM by Paul Green.

1927    Hedgerow reopens in Rose Valley with the New York African-American cast playing IN ABRAHAM’S BOSOM, directed by Jasper Deeter. (The play won a Pulitzer Prize for Best Play of 1926).

1928    Hedgerow presents the world premiere of RANCOUR. Langston Hughes writes his play MULATTO at Hedgerow.

1929   Most every theatre in Philadelphia closes as the Great Depression begins, but Hedgerow continues with the company growing their own food and even raising sheep. 12 plays are added to the repertory this year... Some members leave as the struggle becomes too great - others take their places and the work goes on.

1930    OTHELLO opens on April 21 with famed African-American actor Wayland Rudd playing Othello. Rudd will go on to become a major actor in the Soviet Union... Wharton Esherick designs a mountain set for WHEN WE DEAD AWAKE... THE PLAYBOY OF THE WESTERN WORLD is added to the repertory…Libby Holman (known today as a Broadway actress and torch singer of the 1920s-30s), gains dramatic experience at Hedgerow Theatre during the early-mid 1930s.

1931    Hedgerow performs TEN NIGHTS IN A BARROOM, NELLIE THE BEAUTIFUL CLOAK MODEL, QUEEN OF CHINATOWN and CAST UP BY THE SEA at Philadelphia’s Lyric. The engagement is a financial success and the $19,000 debt dwindles...Ann Harding, now a stage and screen celebrity returns to make an unpublicized anniversary appearance as Madeline in THE INHERITORS.

1932   The $19,000 debt is paid off...Ann Harding, now one of Hollywood’s top stars, purchases the theatre building for Jasper for $5,000. She often returned to Hedgerow without notice and appeared on stage in THE INHERITORS, the role she originated at the Provincetown in the premiere Jasper directed...The world premiere of The Cherokee Night is presented

1934   Hedgerow takes to the road with 12 people and equipment for four full productions - through 15 states in two automobiles and a truck - 8000 miles. The tour gives many their first theatre experience and inspires others to pursue their careers. Among these are Dolores Tanner, Kenneth Graham (of Cleveland Children’s Theatre and chair of the University of Minnesota Theatre Dept.) and Zelma Weisfeld (costumer at the University of Michigan)... Shakespeare’s TWELFTH NIGHT and Shaw’s SAINT JOAN added to the repertory... Thanks to actress Frances Torchiana, who found the old farmhouse at 146 W. Rose Valley Road, the resident company now has a home, and Rose Schulman moves in as a resident. (Except for short periods of teaching in New York, as guest professor at Brandeis and Boston Universities and summers at Tanglewood, she will go on to dedicate her life to Hedgerow). The world premiere of WINESBURG, OHIO by Sherwood Anderson begins the playwright’s close association with the theatre.

1935   Seventeen people tour half-way across the country with a repertory of nine plays.... Rose Schulman directs her first production, ENGAGED by W.S. Gilbert...The American premiere of AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY by Theodore Dreiser and Erwin Piscator is staged on April 20th. This production will move to Broadway with Hedgerow actors...Henry Jones joins the company this year. He will go one to have a distinguished career on stage, film and T.V. His career highlights will include  (1946) Portraying the Dauphin opposite Ingrid Berman's "Joan of Lorraine" on Broadway; (1954) Portraying the suspicious handyman Leroy in "The Bad Seed" on Broadway a role he reprised in the 1956 film version; (1958) playing the coroner in Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo"; (1958) on Broadway to portray aide Louis Howe in the biographical play "Sunrise at Campobello" he will later receive a  Tony Award for his performance; (1969) Portraying the bicycle salesman in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"; (1990) Made last film appearances in small roles in "The Grifters", "Dick Tracy", "Enid Is Sleeping" and "Aracnophobia"; Portrayed retired judge Jonathan Dexter on the CBS sitcom "Phyllis", starring Cloris Leachman.

1936   The world-premiere of Countee Cullen’s ONE WAY TO HEAVEN is given. The play was written for Rose McClendon to act in, but she died before the opening.

1937 TIME Magazine notes in an article entitled "Straw Hat Season" in their July 5 edition that "Well above average [summer theatre] is Jasper Deeter's Hedgerow Theatre at Moylan, Pa., ten miles out of Philadelphia. Jasper Deeter is a disorderly looking individualist who prefers that his actors remain as anonymous as possible. An oldtime Provincetown Player, he was the original Smithers in The Emperor Jones. Fourteen years ago he took over an old stone mill near Moylan. His troupe gets no reward besides its board and lodging; their names do not appear in the program. Under these circumstances, Ann Harding is almost the only Hedgerow alumna who has attracted much attention. However, Producer Deeter's year-long repertory (30 plays) is appreciated by Philadelphia playgoers and this summer he will give his fourth and greatest Shaw Festival. From July 19 to Aug. 14, Hedgerow will present eleven Shavian works from Arms and the Man to Too True to Be Good. It is billed as the first time any theatre has ever presented 40 years of a living playwright's work."

1938   For the first time in America Shaw’s MAN AND SUPERMAN is performed in its entirety - from 7:30 to 12:30 with coffee and sandwiches at 11:00. For many years, Hedgerow held America’s only Shaw festivals, producing 19 of his plays...The 200th performance of THE EMPEROR JONES is staged. Actor Richard Basehart joins the company; he will be a company member through 1942, playing over 25 different roles in repertory.

1940 In February, Richard Basehart plays Prince Hal in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1. Logan Ramsey also makes his stage debut as Bardolph in Henry IV, Part 1. He will go on to have a distinguished career as an actor and director in stage, television and film...

1941 Among the audience members attending Hedgerow Theatre shows this year are Stan and his future wife Jan Berenstain (the cartoonist team who would later make famous The Berenstain Bears).  They meet on the first day of art school, spend after-school time together at art museums and Philadelphia Orchestra concerts, and, as they note on their website “attended Hedgerow Theater whose repertory consisted of the plays of George Bernard Shaw and William Shakespeare."

1942   Hedgerow Theatre becomes a partnership - 14 members equally own the theatre and its physical properties: a 156-seat theatre, a large farmhouse with several acres, two station wagons, a truck and several thousand dollars worth of theatrical equipment... The Board of Governors established as the executive body of the Partnership... A non-resident company with its own political organization and representation is present and there is more democratic function throughout...The Hedgerow Theatre School of Expression is founded in Philadelphia by Deeter and Rose Schulman. The famous philosopher Scott Nearing, a protégé of Deeter, taught at the school.

1943   Hedgerow loses half its personnel due to World War II. Gas rationing is responsible for the lack of audiences, and as a result, the play schedule is cut to two nights a week for only a few months of the year... All this leads to another financial crisis with box office income cut to one-sixth...The members vote to take jobs of any kind - theatrical, secretarial, factory work, milk delivery, selling, school teaching, any job that will permit them to earn money to save the physical assets, stay together and rehearse.

1944   With the men gone from the company due to the war, Miriam Phillips directs GIRLS IN UNIFORM, an all-female cast play… Torch singer and Broadway actress Libby Holman, along with Josh White return to Hedgerow for their first formal concert appearance for a show that they would tour in New York and Chicago.

1945   Hedgerow plays its first engagement in New York -four weeks at the Cherry Lane Theatre with 4 plays from the Hedgerow repertory.

1946   Familiar faces return to both sides of the footlights and familiar names to the active repertory... UNCLE VANYA, the first new production in two years, and Hedgerow’s 156th, takes its place in repertory with THE SEAGULL and shows that not only is Chekhov one of the great poets of the theatre but a “box office success”.

1947   Ralph Roseman joins the company as a non-resident actor... Two premieres by American playwrights are staged: AMONG OURSELVES by Joanna Roos and CANDENZA by Holland Dills along with plays by O’Casey, Shakespeare, Chekhov, Shaw, O’Neill and Glaspell.

1948   Hedgerow’s 25th anniversary. Eric Bentley is invited to direct Brecht’s THE CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE... The State Department films THE HEDGEROW STORY to represent American theatre oversees.  The first professional production of THE CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE was performed by the Hedgerow Theatre in Philadelphia in 1948, directed by Eric Bentley. Soon after, THE CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE became Brecht's most popular play in the United States

1950   Linton Martin’s feature article on Hedgerow appears on Sunday, April 16 in the The Philadelphia Inquirer in honor of the theatre’s 27th birthday. The article states: “...unique applies to Hedgerow’s position as a theater which is suburban in its setting and urban in its significance... nine dollars and a notion constituted Hedgerow’s financial and footlight start. And perhaps for some skeptics, at the outset the name Hedgerow might have seemed synonymous with hodge-podge and haphazard, for it was candidly confessed that there was no planning in the early days. Things got done, according to Miss Ward, more or less without anybody knowing quite how or by whom. But from the first, one thing was certain. It was that Jasper Deeter ran the show... As of April 21st, its 27th birthday, Hedgerow Theatre will have performed the works of 107 different playwrights and SKIPPER NEXT TO GOD on that night will be performance 5012. The season is from Easter Sunday through November with a special Christmas festival through New Year’s night. Performances are from Tuesday through Sunday. This season there are 40 Hedgerow Company members, 26 of whom work full-time in the activities of the theatre and 14 of whom work part-time. Of these 40 actors, four have been with Hedgerow for 20 or more years, four between 15 and 20, eight between 10 and 15 and four between five and 10 years.”

1951    Hedgerow Theatre plays its 25th consecutive year of repertory...Lou Lippa begins his theatre career as an apprentice with the Hedgerow Theatre Repertory Company. ..Ralph Roseman joins the resident company. His first two roles in repertory are as the soldier stage right in ANDROCLES & THE LION and as the lead in THE MAN WHO CORRUPTED HADLEYBURG. During his career as a Hedgerow resident, Ralph will go on to play 67 roles; one of his final roles being that of the soldier stage left in ANDROCLES & THE LION...Also this year IN THE SUMMER HOUSE by Jane Bowles premieres. Ms. Bowles, a novelist and short story writer, Ms. Bowles makes her playwriting debut with this script which opens with a 10-minute monologue. The play will eventually move to Broadway (in 1953) and will feature Judith Anderson. It will be revived at the Lincoln Center in New York City in 1993.

1952 Blues singer Libby Holman performs a special concert on Jan. 3. In February, the theater stages the world premiere of CYCLE FOR CONCERN by Roland Edwards. Jasper Deeter directs. In May, Shaw's HEARTBREAK HOUSE is staged. Tickets are $1.88 per person. The summer season includes Pirandello's SIX CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR, Shaw's HEARTBREAK HOUSE, Gertrude Stein's YES IS FOR A YOUNG MAN, Christopher Fry's A PHOENIX TOO FREQUENT and Shaw's MAN AND SUPERMAN. In June, the theater acquires air conditioning! Dolores Tanner designs the set for July's production of MAN AND SUPERMAN. Albert Camus's CROSS PURPOSES premieres in August, with Miriam Phillips playing the Mother.

1953   Although Jasper is against the idea, Hedgerow votes to perform in Philadelphia. Hedgerow actually builds a theatre in the foyer of Philadelphia’s Academy of Music (today it is the ballroom). The company is forced to hire union stagehands. Performances are given October 16-March 27, 1954.

1954   Yvonne Vincic, a recruit from Carnegie Mellon, becomes a member of the resident company. Performances are given in Academy of Music from October 30, 1954-March 26, 1955 and again in November.

1956   After 33 years of continuous operation, Hedgerow ceases as a repertory company. There were only about four repertory theatres in 20th century America, though true repertory was always done in the 1800’s. True repertory is a library of plays, and there were 210 plays in the Hedgerow repertory in the 33 years between 1923-1956, making Hedgerow America’s longest—lived true repertory theatre. Repertory means actors are prepared to go into a role at anytime, and audiences can come any year to see their favorite play. What ended the repertory system according to many were the overhead expenses, and as, Jasper had warned, taking away the stability of the core theatre by moving uptown and being on tour--plus the repertory idea was not in place at the Philadelphia theatre. There were over 28 African-American actors involved with the Hedgerow repertory before 1956. These included Rose MeClendon, Abbie Mitchell, Frank Wilson, Stanley Green, Jules Bledsoe, Arthur Rich, Amos Chew and Paul Robeson... The Hedgerow Theatre School of Expression founded by Deeter and Rose Schulman moves to Rose Valley. Brochures listing the classes carry Deeter’s quote: “I believe that learning how to act is the best way for us to increase our ability to express ourselves and to improve our ability to communicate with others. I believe that the classes will be useful for anyone who wishes to improve his capacity for expression and communication in any field of work.”

1958       Jasper Deeter makes a cameo appearance in the horror film The Blob  (he plays the old man who doesn't know whether to wear his volunteer fireman's helmet or his civil defense helmet) Other members of the Hedgerow acting company play many of the parts in this film and in the producers' follow-up film, 4D Man (1959).

1959   Hedgerow reforms to run productions 3 weeks, mixing in children’s plays, concerts and scenes of classic plays for students... Three performances of WINNIE THE POOH are staged at 2 p.m. on May 9, 16 and 23. Tickets are $1.50.

1960   In August, Hedgerow produces a double bill: Beckett’s KRAPP’S LAST TAPE and THE ZOO STORY. Performances are Thursday through Friday at 8:30 p.m.; Saturday at 6 and 9 p.m. Tickets are $2-$2.50... The mayor of Philadelphia and Governor of Pennsylvania honor Hedgerow on its 37th birthday. Governor Lawrence proclaims “Hedgerow Theatre Week” and states “As citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania we can be justly proud of the cultural advantages of Hedgerow Theatre and should encourage the continuation of this worthy project.”... In the early 1960s, Philadelphia's Theatre of the Living Arts (TLA) is founded by former Hedgerow students Celia Silverman and Jean Goldman. For 5 years it will produce experimental theater under the direction of Andre Gregory of "My Dinner with Andre" fame.

1961    David Wheeler and his wife, actress Bronia Wheeler, rent Hedgerow Theatre and do a summer of plays. (Wheeler is a major director and directs at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge.) Among the performers is Grayson Hall, who would later gain fame as Dr. Julia Hoffman in the television soap opera, DARK SHADOWS 1969-71. She performs at Hedgerow during the summer  in T.S. Eliot’s THE COCKTAIL PARTY (Celia); Shaw’s MISALLIANCE (Lina Szczepanowska); Chekhov’s THE SEAGULL; MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING; TAMING OF THE SHREW and Thomas Middleton’s THE CHANGELING (Isabella). Her appearance in Jean Cocteau's classic one-act tragedy, THE HUMAN VOICE earns rave reviews for her extraordinary artistry in this one-woman show.

1962    Janet Kelsey and her daughter, Penelope Reed, begin to study with Jasper Deeter.

1963    An Off-Broadway series is staged at Hedgerow. Equity actors are featured including Thompson, Buck Henry, Michael Higgins and Marian Seldes. Another performer is Esther Rolle who is featured in PURLIE VICTORIUS. ..The Hedgerow Studio Players stage the U.S. premiere of a British play BILLY LIAR, which plays to good houses. In the fall, they stage the first Philadelphia area revival of THE ICEMAN COMETH. Lou Lippa directs the production. ...Ticket prices are $2.50 to $3.50… Janet Kelsey makes her debut on the Hedgerow stage in WHAT SHALL WE TELL CAROLINE?

1964   Rose Schulman directs the world premiere of PRELUDE TO FRANCE. Her bio in the program concludes with: “her qualifications and abilities as a teacher are perhaps best defined by a statement of her teacher, Jasper Deeter — ‘She has the great genius of extreme patience and the capacity for straight talk of the kind which turns mountains of conceit into molehills of ability’.” Costumes for this show were created by Janet Kelsey. The curtain was at 8:30 p.m. except on opening night, and tickets were $2-$3.50.

1966   ALL MY SONS, 2 one-acts by Pinter, ANGEL STREET, AH, WILDERNESS! and WRONG MOTHER GOOSE are among the productions staged... In 1966, Hedgerow alumnus John Allen founds the Freedom Theatre, the region’s principal African-American theatre. 

1967   The theatre struggles but the school thrives. Frank Brookhauser, in an article in The Philadelphia Bulletin calls Hedgerow’s Theatre School “Philadelphia area’s most famous stage school.” Summer classes are taught every day in morning and afternoon sessions July 10-August 18. Subjects and teachers are: Movement For The Stage by Mary Elaine Tinus; Speech For The Theatre by Yvonne Vincic and Acting by Rose Schulman and Richard Brewer. The school requires of its students: Humility, Industry and an Aptitude for Learning... Cele Silverman, a student of Jasper Deeter, rents Hedgerow Theatre for the summer season. (She founded the Theatre of Living Arts with Hedgerow actors in 1964). She asks Rose Schulman to direct the first play, but Rose declines and Andre Gregory directs... In the summer, future theatre historian Gail Cohen first comes to Hedgerow. THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH, THE GLASS MENAGERIE, THIEVES CARNIVAL, MRS. WARREN’S PROFESSION, and THE BALCONY are staged.

1968   Dolores Tanner, a member of the Hedgerow Repertory Company from 1938 to 1953, returns to help run Hedgerow. She and David Ralphe will build a strong theatre company.

1969 Actor Stephen Lang, who would go on to a career in theater, stage and film, makes his stage debut in OTHELLO at the Hedgerow Theatre.

1970 .Stephen Lang begins his professional career at Hedgerow while still a student at Swarthmore College.  A half-decade of off-Broadway and regional theater would follow at such prestigious venues as the New York Shakespeare Festival, Chicago's Goodman Theatre, The Guthrie Theatre, Yale Repertory and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. He would make his Broadway debut in Joseph Papp's 1975 Hamlet. On Broadway, Lang would go on to play opposite Dustin Hoffman as Willie Loman's lecherous son, Happy, in Arthur Miller's DEATH OF A SALESMAN, winning a Drama Desk nomination for his performance. He originated the commanding role of Lt. General Nathan Jessep in Aaron Sorkin's A FEW GOOD MEN walking off with the Helen Hayes Award for his work. Many other notable theater and film roles would follow.

1971 Actress, director, writer Marian Seldes performs as Constance in THE CELEBRATION

1972   On May 31, 1972, Jasper Deeter dies at the age of 78. The theatre he founded touched the lives of many. Shows staged this year include: CURIOUS SAVAGE, UNHOLY TRINITY, DANGEROUS CORNER, Bruce Graham’s ONE ACTS, RECKLESS, AN INSPECTOR CALLS and a musical revue - THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN.

The Jasper Deeter Corporation is formed to manage the theatre’s administration.

1973   Hedgerow celebrates its 50th Birthday. CANDIDA, the first show ever produced at Hedgerow is staged... Rose Schulman directs THE INHERITORS by Susan Glaspell in memory of Jasper Deeter. Cast members include Lynn Maclaren, Janet Kelsey, Carl Latcham, Charlie Walnut and Moira Rankin. (This play was performed every year at Hedgerow until 1954.)... Other shows staged this year include: WHITE CLOUDS, BLACK DREAMS, WHERE’S DADDY, ECHOES, A TOUCH OF THE POET, DRACULA, SEEING SHAKESPEARE and THE MISANTHROPE.

1974   Shows staged this year include: THREE STORIES HIGH, BIRDBATH, GLORY IN THE FLOWER, IT’S CALLED THE SUGAR PLUM, SEEING SHAKESPEARE, WINNIE THE POOH, TANGO, THE MISANTHROPE, A PHOENIX TOO FREQUENT, A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE, THE LAST OF THE RED HOT LOVERS, SIX CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR, GASLIGHT and THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE...

People’s Light and Theatre Company is founded by a group of young artists who break away from the Hedgerow Theatre and set up an improvised theatre in another old grist mill, Strode’s Mill, in Chester County. 

1975   A “Music at Hedgerow” program features a variety of programs: piano recitals, vocal programs and concerts... Yvonne Vincic directs her first show at Hedgerow: THE PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE. The cast includes Helen Alexander, Rose Schulman, Dolores Tanner and Ralph Roseman… Other shows staged include: THE PHYSICIAN IN SPITE OF HIMSELF, THE LAST OF THE RED HOT LOVERS, NO EXIT, MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, U.S.A, LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, WOMEN, SEX, AND MARRIAGE, DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY and THE SEA HORSE.

1976   During this Bicentennial year, Hedgerow receives a grant towards historic preservation and restoration. The money is applied towards repairing the crumbling exterior mortar and stone... Gail Cohen is awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities grant to organize and preserve the Hedgerow archives. Shows staged include: LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, THE GLASS MENAGERIE, PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE, THE SEA HORSE, THE DEVIL’S DISCIPLE, A PHYSICIAN IN SPITE OF HIMSELF, GHOSTS and CHARLIE’S AUNT.

1977 Shows staged this year include: A PHOENIX TOO FREQUENT, THE RIMERS OF ELDRITCH, NO EXIT, WOMEN, SEX, AND MARRIAGE, FROM OUR LIVES, PYGMALION, THE LAST CHRISTOPHER BEAN, SPOON ANTHOLOGY, FRANKENSTEIN and LILIOM.

1978   Susan Wefel, a Boston University recruit, arrives at Hedgerow... Hedgerow celebrates its 55th anniversary. On stage is Burton Russell’s play LOW ON HIGH, directed by Dolores Tanner... Other shows staged are: SCHOOL FOR WIVES, DAY AFTER THE FAIR, FRANKENSTEIN, MISS JULIE, SPOON RIVER ANTHOLOGY, MURDER AFTER HOURS, TARTUFFE, ARSENIC AND OLD LACE, and MY THREE ANGELS.

1979   Even the famous came to work for Dolores Tanner. Hedgerow alumnus and film veteran Richard Basehart appeared as Macbeth with Janet Kelsey as his Lady. The subsequent production was Agatha Christie’s THE MOUSETRAP, directed by Ralph Roseman who also directed the following show, LYSISTRATA... Despite constant financial struggles, Hedgerow managed to survive, with Tanner skillfully managing the day-to-day routine of running shows, Kelsey handling the business affairs, and Schulman keeping the school steady on its feet... Other shows staged this year include: UNDER MILKWOOD, HEDDA GABLER, VANITIES, EQUUS and SAME TIME NEXT YEAR.

 In the early 80s Actor Keanu Reeves spends the summer as an apprentice, receiving room and board, while working with the company and taking acting classes.  Susan Wefel remembers Keanu as a teen who went everywhere on his skateboard...

1980   Some of the shows staged this year include: THE SHADOW OF A GUNMAN, EQUUS, THE WATERS OF BABYLON, HAY FEVER, BLACK COFFEE, A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED, THE GOOD DOCTOR, FRANKENSTEIN, THE PHYSICIAN IN SPITE OF HIMSELF and TWELFH NIGHT.

1981  Some of the shows staged this year include: MURDER ON THE NILE, MURDER AT THE VICARAGE, THE SEAGULL, THE GOOD DOCTOR, ANDROCLES AND THE LION, GINGERBREAD LADY, ROMANTIC COMEDY, SUMMER OF THE SEVENTEENTH DOLL, COUNT DRACULA AND A KISS FOR CINDERELLA… Janet Kelsey directs her first show at Hedgerow: COUNT DRACULA.

1982   Dolores Tanner dies on Thanksgiving Eve. She had directed at Hedgerow for 13 years and had left an impressive mark on the theatre both in terms of direction and management. She took part in virtually every area of Hedgerow life -- cooking, laundry, teaching, directing, designing sets and costumes, supervising Hedgerow’s printing department and running lights -- she was a truly holistic theatre artist. Dolores was able to balance the practical with the extraordinary, keeping faith in the middle of chaos. Her major accomplishments were holding the theatre together, keeping the tradition of doing fine plays from all theatres, and imbuing the company with a passion for excellence through a strong work ethic. During her years at Hedgerow many talented theater artists studied and worked at Hedgerow including Danny Fruchter, Ken Marini, Tom Teti (all three of whom became involved with People’s Light & Theatre Co.), Greg Wood, Paul Nolan, John Barrett, Tom McCarthy and Jack Wade. In Los Angeles Gail Cohen produces THE INHERITORS by Susan Glaspell with a cast of Hedgerow repertory actors. Hedgerow actor Logan Ramsey directs a cast which includes Mary Grace Canfield, Frances Torchiana, Richard Basehart and Henry Jones. Hedgerow actors Virginia Farmer, Ruth Oliver and Rowena Jelliffe, co-founder of Cleveland’s Karamu House were guests of honor… Janet Kelsey takes over the running of the theatre after Dolores’ death… Shows staged include: THE UNEXPECTED GUEST, ANTIGONE, LU ANN HAMPTON LAVERTY OBERLANDER, THE BELLE OF AMHERST, THE HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES, BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE, SPOON RIVER ANTHOLOGY, DOCTOR JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE, ALL MY SONS and THE LION IN WINTER.

1983 DEATH TRAP, LIGHT UP THE SKY, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, ROADSIDE, LADYHOUSE BLUES, THE RUNNER STUMBLES, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, TOWARDS ZERO and COME BLOW YOUR HORN are staged.

1984 June Prager assumes artistic control of the theatre...Shows staged include: TABLE MANNERS, NIGHT MUST FALL, BLOOD TIES, FIFTH OF JULY, COME BLOW YOUR HORN, EVERYTHING IN THE GARDEN, ARMS AND THE MAN, WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION, BLYTHE SPIRIT, AN ACTOR’S NIGHTMARE, ROCKABYE, MR. HUNTER and IMPROMPTU.

1985   On November 30th an arson fire destroys the theatre during the last week of the run of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF. The building is gutted. The plaster dome, which was built to give the small stage scope for the jungle scene in THE EMPEROR JONES, is destroyed. The dome was the second to be built in America, based on a concept from the German stage. The Hedgerow dome was modeled after the one built at the Provincetown Playhouse for THE EMPEROR JONES. It was an art to light the dome and Hedgerow lighting designers were unique in their field. Also destroyed is the stairway leading to the stage built by Wharton Esherick (pictured in a woodblock print designed by Esherick). Only the front stairs and second floor office remain intact. Hedgerow is now faced with the task of raising between $300,000—$400,000 to rebuild (it will ultimately cost $600,000). Letters and donations from all over the county began pouring in... Prior to the fire these shows were staged: THE CHERRY ORCHARD, CHAPTER TWO, ROMEO AND JULIET, THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH, SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM, GETTING OUT and BUS STOP.

1986   In January, the first fundraising dinner is held... In order to meet operating costs, Hedgerow goes “on the road” by accepting an offer of theatre space at Widener University. Before the 1986 season ends, a fire occurs at the university theatre. At the college’s Black Box Theatre, the company stages MUSEUM, GIN GAME, THE MOUSETRAP, LAST OF THE RED HOT LOVERS and NUDE WITH VIOLIN.

1987    June Prager resigns in February. A committee of three: Janet Kelsey, Yvonne Vincic and Susan Wefel (“The Troika”) take over immediate responsibilities of running Hedgerow... Moira Rankin continues the enormous task of raising money to rebuild the theatre... In September David Zum Brunnen begins to manage the theater... THE BELLE OF AMHERST (a benefit performance with Penelope Reed), DAMIEN, UNHOLY TRINITY and TABLE MANNERS are staged.

1988    Ralph Roseman suggests there is no reason the company can’t “turn the big (class/rehearsal) room into a studio theater” at the Hedgerow House. Work is done in the “Big Room” to make it a small 25—30 seat theater. In January of 1988, the studio theater opens under the imaginative design of Paul Kuhn... Shows staged this year include: THE BOOR AND A PHOENIX, TOO FREQUENT, THE REAL INSPECTOR HOUND, SHAKESPEARE’S WOMEN and THE DINING ROOM.

1989   In July, Rose Schulman, age 79, dies. Schulman co-founded The Hedgerow Theater School of Expression with Hedgerow founder Jasper Deeter in 1942. Her teaching credits also included Brandeis, Drexel, Boston University and private classes in New York and Philadelphia. Craig Lucas was one of her students. Ms. Schulman also acted with Zero Mostel on Broadway. Ms. Schulman believed, as she learned from Deeter and as quoted from a lecture she gave at Brandeis University, that an acting student “must have humility, industry and an aptitude for learning:  the courage to help himself to become an open individual; the ability to discipline his mind to enable him to wonder and plan; the discovery of a deep, inner energy in the body; the ability to let the energy flow through the body into movement; the ability to see fully; to listen wholly (the most important behavior of all); to become aware and to be able to use his sense; - taste, touch, sound, sight and smell; to speak from his most central self; to have contact with others and to execute all this with easy, NOT HARD, not effortful, but EASY self-control, Which should, if well-learned, result in some of the “musts” of theatre: - believability, and serenity PLUS passion.”

1990   Thanks to the work of Moira Rankin (who did an outstanding job in fund-raising), Janet Kelsey, Susan Wefel, Paul Kuhn, Robert Toczek and many others - including the support and generosity of Tug McGraw, the legendary Phillies’ icon, on December 2nd the doors reopen on the newly restored Hedgerow Theatre. Folding chairs serve as seats for the theatre opening benefit performance by Penelope Reed of WOMEN OF HEART... Jared Reed, son of Penelope, joins the company in January.  Prior to this, shows staged in the Studio include: DON JUAN IN HELL, SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER, CLOUD NINE, DELICATE BALANCE, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, ANDROCLES AND THE LION and PHYSICIAN IN SPITE OF HIMSELF.

1991    Appointed by the Board of Directors, Penelope Reed assumes artistic control of the Theatre. During the next five years the interior of the Theatre slowly begins to transform: first risers appear in place of the black folding chairs; later benches will replace the folding chairs. Children’s Theatre begins to be performed year-round on Saturday mornings... Shows staged this year include: DAUGHTER OF THE LEFT HAND, BEYOND THERAPY, DINING ROOM, THE GOOD DOCTOR, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, and THE FANTASTICKS.

1992    The Board of Directors names Penelope Reed Artistic Director. Sunday performances at 2 p.m. are added to the Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. schedule. At the end of the year the audience seating area is rebuilt so that one can enter from the lobby... THE FANTASTICKS continues playing into the new year. Also staged are: THE CRUCIBLE, THE MISANTHROPE, WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF, THE FOREIGNER, HOW HE LIED TO HER HUSBAND & FAR FETCHED FABLES, HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES and NOISES OFF.

1993   NOISES OFF continues into the New Year...the Hedgerow Horizons program is instituted to compliment the mainstage plays by presenting staged readings, music at Hedgerow productions, workshops and limited-run productions of new plays and experimental dramas in repertory with mainstage productions. This year Horizons features five readings of new plays... Also staged are ARMS AND THE MAN, SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER, BLACK COFFEE, CAT AMONG THE PIGEONS, MURDER IN GREEN MEADOWS, and COME BLOW YOUR HORN.

1994   Prior to the opening of CAMINO REAL, the lighting booth in the rebuilt theatre moves from stage left to the center of the back of the house... The year-round children’s theatre thrives... COME BLOW YOUR HORN, directed by Ralph Roseman, concludes an 11-week run, and is followed by A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE, CAMINO REAL, THE LADY’S NOT FOR BURNING, LYSISTRATA, DANGEROUS CORNER, TEN LITTLE INDIANS, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, THE MEDIEVAL MYSTERY PLAYS and a musical revue COLE AND NOEL.

1995   In June, Hedgerow Horizons presents a three performance workshop of THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL, a new musical written by Margie Royal & E.A. Alexander... The lighting booth moves again into what was formerly a stairwell with a filing cabinet. Another row of benching can now be added, increasing the seating capacity to 144... George Spillane portrays King Lear in October and November and Scrooge in December... Staged this year are: Go BACK FOR MURDER, GOOD WOMAN OF SETZUAN, LEARNED LADIES, AH, WILDERNESS!, BORN YESTERDAY, KING LEAR, THE NATIVITY SCENE and A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

1996   The “phone booth” size box office vanishes and is replaced by a wooden counter prior to the opening of the world premiere musical, THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL, developed through the Horizons programs and directed by Penelope Reed... THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL cast goes into the Chill Factor recording studio in Ardmore and records the songs... Shows staged this year include: THE BELLE OF AMHERST, POST MORTEM, AS YOU LIKE IT, ANDROCLES, BEDROOM FARCE, YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU, THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL and A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

1997   Three actors who began their careers at Hedgerow are featured on the Hedgerow Stage this year: Greg Wood in Pinter's THE HOMECOMING, Tom McCarthy in AN INSPECTOR CALLS, and Paul Nolan in BILOXI BLUES... In October, Janet Kelsey comes out of retirement and appears on stage as Martha Brewster in ARSENIC & OLD LACE. Her daughter, Penelope Reed, plays Abbie Brewster. Other shows staged include: SCENES FROM AMERICAN LIFE, LOVE LETTERS, THE BOOR & A PHOENIX TOO FREQUENT, TWELFTH NIGHT, THE NORMAN CONQUESTS and A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

1998  The Hedgerow partnership (consisting of Ralph Roseman, Yvonne Vincic, Janet Kelsey and Miriam Phillips) make a gift to the Jasper Deeter Corporation of the Hedgerow House and properties... In April, the Theatre begins its 75th year celebration with a cocktail party; then, on the following day, a video and slide presentation on the Theatre’s history and a memorial tribute to actress Miriam Phillips is given at the theatre. Many alumni attend. A brunch at The Old Mill on Sunday concludes the kick-off weekend. Onstage, at the time is AMADEUS by Peter Shalfer, featuring Hedgerow alumni, Tom Teti, who plays Salieri, and Ken Marini, Tom Teti prior to the opening who directs the production. A red curtain is installed prior to the show’s  opening. Volunteers begin to play a key factor in the operation of the theatre this year. Lorraine Berger formalizes the volunteer program; Arlene Callahan and Donna Walsh carry it forward... In October, Zoran Kovcic becomes the theatre’s General Manager... A Halloween Gala is performed... Gay Carducci directs THE ELVES AND THE SHOEMAKER for the children’s theatre... Also staged are: A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED, TARTUFFE, EDUCATING RITA, THE MUSICAL COMEDY MURDERS OF 1940, THE PASSION OF DRACULA, and A CHRISTMAS CAROL. In addition, MARAT SADE, THE FLESH ADDICT (the American premiere of a new Irish play), LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST, SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM are staged on Sunday and Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons.

1999   The year begins with Janet Kelsey directing Tim Kelly’s THE UNINVITED... A Valentine’s Gala and Wednesday matinee prove successful... MOON OVER BUFFALO by Ken Ludwig runs March 5-April 10 featuring Penelope Reed and Janet Kelsey and directed by Ralph Roseman... On April 23 HAMLET opens featuring Paul Kuhn in the title role and directed by Yvonne Vincic. Many alumni are involved in the production including Jona Harvey as Gertrude, Greg Wood as Fight Director, Aetna Kuhn as Costume Designer and John Gallagher as Technical Director... In June Penelope Reed & Hazel Bowers take the stage with LETTICE & LOVAGE. Hazel will later be nominated for a Barrymore award for her work as a supporting actress in this production... in July Hedgerow is showcased in Philadelphia, bringing the world premiere of Richard Wilbur’s new translation of Moliere’s DON JUAN to Plays & Players Theatre with Wilbur in attendance. (The production plays in Rose Valley in August.) While the show plays in the city a skeleton crew successfully stages Agatha Christie’s VERDICT at home... Hedgerow receives a Barrymore Nomination - Best Actress (Hazel Bowers in LETTICE & LOVAGE).  Tony Braithwaite and Leonard Haas are featured guest artists in RUMORS, Sept - Oct... Janet Kelsey directs her third production of the year, LADIES IN RETIREMENT, Oct-Nov… A CHRISTMAS CAROL closes out the year with Tom Teti & George Spillane playing Scrooge.

2000 Shows staged include Maltby & Shire's musical revue, STARTING HERE, STARTING NOW Dec. 31-Feb. 19; Moliere's THE SCHOOL FOR WIVES March 2-April 15. This will be the last show Ralph Roseman directs for Hedgerow. Bristol Riverside's Keith Baker directs Brian Friel's DANCING AT LUGHNASA April 27-June 3. Summer begins with Marc Camoletti's DON'T DRESS FOR DINNER, playing in repertory with Agatha Christie's TOWARDS ZERO. Tom Teti directs Thornton Wilder's OUR TOWN Aug. 24-Sept. 30. For this show, the seating area is configured "in the round" with the audience seated on three sides of the playing area and a vom entrance leading onto the playing area. Agatha Christie's THE UNEXPECTED GUEST plays Oct. 12-Nov. 25 also in the round… Hedgerow receives a Barrymore Nomination for Best Actress for Jo Twiss in DANCING AT LUGHNASA... Dickens’s A CHRISTMAS CAROL closes out the year. Horizons shows are also successful this year, with January sell-outs of a workshop of a new musical, STAND BY THE RIVER, by Mark Sutton-Smith and workshops of Margie Royal's TALES FROM POE which will be staged for daytime school tours for the next several years.

2001 The year opens with Jared Reed's adaptation of Dickens' GREAT EXPECTATIONS Jan. 18-Feb. 24. Susan Wefel plays the lead in THE GINGERBREAD LADY March 1-April 7, directed by Agatha Carducci-Kuhn. After this show, the stage is configured back to the traditional proscenium stage, shifting from the "in-the-round" seating. Penelope Reed joins Jared Reed, Noah Brody, and Sara Pauley in Tennessee Williams’ THE GLASS MENAGERIE. Michael Frayne’s NOISES OFF plays June 14-Aug. 11, followed by Zoran Kovcic as Hercule Poirot in an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s ALIBI Sept. 13-Nov. 17.  Dickens's A CHRISTMAS CAROL closes the year.

2002 THE FANTASTICKS with Brad Little and Jeffery Coon sells out shows weeks in advance…A new play festival features by Craig Eisendrath and Roberta Spivek’s ANGEL OF HISTORY March 28-April 14 and Richard La Monte Pierce’s SOJOURNER April 18-May 5…SCENES FROM AMERICAN LIFE by A.R. Gurney PLAYS May 16-June 29…A farce by British playwright Ray Cooney, RUN FOR YOUR WIFE, is chosen for the summer. Janet Kelsey directs. Hedgerow receives a 2002 Barrymore Nomination - Best Actress for Zuhairah's performance in SOJOURNER... In the summer, Alan Biehl begins to design Hedgerow's future website. Other shows include THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST, MURDER IN THE VICARAGE and A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

2003 I DO! I DO! is followed by a new play, THE RIDING CLUB, then THE ROYAL FAMILY and SCENES FROM AMERICAN LIFE .The sequel to last summer's Ray Cooney play, CAUGHT IN THE NET is staged during the summer. Agatha Christie's THE MOUSETRAP plays in repertory with A PARTY TO MURDER in the fall, followed by A CHRISTMAS CAROL

2004 THE COMPLEAT WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (ABRIDGED) begins the year…HAY FEVER  is staged…In the spring, Meg O'Brian plays Helen Keller in THE MIRACLE WORKER; she will receive a Barrymore nomination for Outstanding Leading Actress in a Play for this role. Nagle Jackson's THIS DAY AND AGE, Ray Cooney's FUNNY MONEY are staged, followed by the world premiere of THE LIVES OF  BOSIE, by John Wolfson (Aug.20-Sept.5) brings stage and film actor Austin Pendleton as Lord Alfred Douglas and Tobias Segal as his younger self, Bosie, to the stage. The project is supported by a grant from the Philadelphia Theatre Initiative… and later transfers to the Arts Bank as part of the Fringe Festival... Janet Kelsey directs the classic GASLIGHT in the fall and A CHRISTMAS CAROL closes out the season.

2005 THE DINNER PARTY by Neil Simon is staged Feb. 3-27…Ralph Roseman dies on March 16 and a moving tribute to him is held on a Saturday afternoon inside the theater... Playbill Magazine, at the end of the year will note that "Ralph Roseman, 80, a longtime Broadway general manager and producer had worked for many years to support the resident Hedgerow Theatre in Philadelphia"... Spring features Nagle Jackson's IN THE FAMILY ROOM, and a new play festival May 26-June 19 features two world-premieres; Donald Drake's GORKED! and Susan Cain McQuilkin's ACCORDING TO PLAN. Ray Cooney's MOVE OVER MRS. MARKHAM is also staged in the summer... Hedgerow receives a 2005 Barrymore Award - Best New Play for The Lives of Bosie by John Wolfson... Janet Kelsey directs THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES in the fall with Tom Teti as Sherlock Holmes... A CHRISTMAS CAROL closes out the year.

2006  This year's theme is "A Season To Lighten, Laugh and Live Life Fully" and shows include THE LION IN WINTER Jan.-Feb. featuring Penelope Reed as Queen Eleanor. A June production of Mike Craver and Mark Hardwick's musical RADIO GALS is staged with alumnae Micki Sharpe. The show goes on tour to New Jersey's Open Air Theatre in August. The summer is devoted to fifth annual Ray Cooney farce OUT OF ORDER. Susan Wefel and Zoran Kovcic mark their fifth summers performing a Cooney farce.  Philadelphia Magazine's awards a “Best of Philly - Funky Find, Delaware County” to Hedgerow Theatre's Children's Series... Agatha Christie's SPIDER'S WEB, Dickens's A CHRISTMAS CAROL close the year.

2007 RADIO GALS returns for a run Jan. 4-28. The regional premiere of Nagle Jackson's A HOTEL ON MARVIN GARDENS follows Feb. 2-March 11...Alan Ayckbourn's TAKING STEPS March 23-April 29...Thanks to a grant from the William Penn Foundation, the theater acquires 3 state-of-the-art computers, graphic software and upgrades its digital camera… Administrative offices are moved up to the Hedgerow Farmhouse into what were once bedrooms along the downstairs annex... Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST is staged May 4-June 9, in repertory with A RAZZLE DAZZLE CABARET. Ray Cooney's IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY FOLLOWS.

2008 Hedgerow begins its 85th season, launching the Signature Series and a Small Professional Theatre contract with Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) along with a Heritage Series designed to showcase the full talents of the entire company.

Dorothy Parker & Friends written by Penelope Reed & David O’Connor takes the stage. Susan Wefel celebrates her 30th year performing as Dorothy Parker Jan.8-27…Ethel Waters: His Eye is on the Sparrow, staged a year before at Bristol Riverside Theatre brings Demetria Joyce Bailey to play the lead in this musical bio as Chester-born Ethel Waters Jan. 31-Feb. 24. The reviews are outstanding…Smoke on the Mountain March 6-April 13…Kafka in the Hedgerows April 24-May 18 is a world-premiere show based on Hedgerow Theatre’s founding…There Goes the Bride marks the 7th summer of staging a Ray Cooney show…Driving Miss Daisy plays Sept. 12-Oct. 5; Sherlock Holmes: the Final Adventure makes its area premiere Oct. 14-Nov. 16 and A Christmas Carol closes out the year.

2009 Looking Over the President’s Shoulder by James Still opens the year Jan. 9-Feb. 8, 2009. Thanks to board member Bruce Momjian, whose father, Set Momjian, has extensive White House connections, Penelope Reed, Zoran Kovcic, Susan Wefel, actor Brian Anthony Wilson, director Connie Norwood and assistant stage manager Melitta McKethan are treated to a private White House tour on Jan. 9. Actor Wilson who portrays Chief Butler Alzono Fields, meets the current Chief Butler, Ron Wood…the show transfers to the United State Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. for performances Feb. 18 & 20….Shaw’s Arms and the Man receives excellent reviews for its March 3-April 5 run…Nagle Jackson’s world premiere, The White Room is staged April 17-May 10. Summer brings The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 May 21-June 7, Nunsense June 11-28 and the 8th annual Ray Cooney, his first play, co-written with Tony Hilton, One For the Pot July 10-Aug. 30. There are August play readings of The Matchmaker by Thornton Wilder (featuring Marcia Saunders); Autumn’s End by Andrew Kozak and Fanny and Edward by Margie Royal. United We Sing plays Sept. 4-13 followed by Dial M For Murder Sept. 24-Nov. 1. A Workshop  of Autumn’s End by Andrew Kozak is held Sundays Oct. 11, 18 & 25. Tales From Poe is presented for schools and public performances Oct. 14-Nov. 15 in repertory with Dial M For Murder; A Christmas Carol plays Dec. 1-27. along with a concert, Fezziwig’s Ball Dec. 6 & 13….Nunsense returns Dec. 30 with special New Year’s Eve show, for a run through Jan. 17.

2010   Nunsense returns Dec. 30 with special New Year’s Eve show, for a run through Jan. 17. …Visiting Mr. Green plays Jan. 28-Feb. 14…Susan Wefel performs Shirley Valentine Feb. 2-18…Tony Braitwaite performs his one-person show, Look Mom, I’m Swell Feb. 25-March 14…Nagle Jackson’s fifth annual show is staged March 25-April 18 – At This Evening’s Performance. ..

2011 Two Into One, Good Doctor August 25-September 18, 2011, Black Coffee September 29-November 13, 2011, A Christmas Carol December 1-24, 2011, A Dickens Christmas December 8-24, 2011, First Impressions by Tony Braithwaite March 10-26, 2012, Poste Haste May 4-22,2012. Children’s Theatre continues with Peter Pan, Through the Looking Glass, Emperor’s New Clothes

2012 Jared Reed is named Associate Artistic Director. MainStage season includes. Not Now Darling July 25-August 12, Deathtrap August 23-September 23, Crucifer of Blood October 1-November 18, A Christmas Carol November 27-December 23, Meshuggah Nuns December 27-January 27, Strictly Platonic February 7-March 3, A Flea in Her Ear March 14-April 28, Love Letters April, Belle of Amhearst May, Pride and Prejudice May 9-June 17, Women of Heart.

2013 Run For Your Wife July 11-August 18, Corpse August 29-October 6, MacBeth October 23-November 17, A Christmas Carol December 23-December 31, Vanities January 5-February 9, The Mystery of Irma Vep February 27-August 6, Sense & Sensibility April 24-June 1

2014 The 39 Steps July 10-August 17, Communicating Doors October 13-November 23,Hamlet October 23-November 23, 2014 ,On the Verge January 8-February 8, 2015,A Murder has Been Arranged February 19-March 29, 2015 ,Under the Lintel April 20-26, 2015 ,Don Quixote May 7-June 7, 2015; Post Haste June 8-28, 2015; Tales From Poe for schools. Theatre School performances: Music Man, Wizard of Oz, Charlotte’s WEb, Little Princess, Mulan and Narnia

2015 No Sex Plase We’re British July 9-August 23, Bullshot Crummond September 3-October 11, Dracula October 22-November 22, A Christmas Carol December 4-28, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy January 8-17, OR, January 28-February 28, A Mysterious Affair at Styles March 19-May 8, Servant of Two Masters

2016 Boeing Boeing July 7-August 21, Storyboard: Hound of the Baskervilles September 9-18, Angel Street September 29-October 30, A Christmas Carol November 24-December 24, Uncle Vanya February 9-March 5, Prisoner of Zenda

2017 MAIN STAGE PRODUCTIONS include: Treasure Island, Blithe Spirit, A Christmas Carol, Boogie-Woogie Radio Hour, Wait Until Dark, The Hobbit, The Importance of Being Earnest. SCHOOL PERFORMANCE CLASSES feature Beauty and the Beast, The Tempest, Honk, Jr., Our Town, Alice in Wonderland, Shrek

2018 MAIN STAGE PRODUCTIONS include: His Girl Friday July 1-July 29, 2018, Hound of the Baskerville August 9-August 26, 2018, the world premiere of Dishman Springs by Jane McNeil September 13-September 30, 2018, Medea October 18-November 11, 2018; A Christmas Carol December 1-December 24, 2018,Musical Adventure January 11-January 27, 2019; critically acclaimed productions of Three Sisters directed by Harriet Power, featuring Jared Reed (then Artistic Director), Jessica Dal Canton, Adam Altman, Susan Wefel, Jennifer Summerfield, Carl Granieri, David Pica, Owen Corey, Ray Sareceni, and Marcie Bramucci (future Executive Artistic Director) February 9-March 3, 2019; and Moby Dick directed by Kittson O’Neill featuring Robert Smythe, Adam Altman, Bob Weick, Eli Lynn, Kevin Aoussou March 13- April 14, 2019. The season rounded out with Three Musketeers May 2-May 26, 2019

2019 Jared Reed collaborates alongside fellow actors, Jessica Dal Canton, Adam Altman and Jennifer Summerfield - known as the “core four” - for several Mainstage productions. Hedgerow produces Private Lives July 10-August 4, Dracula The Bloody Truth August 14-September 15, Tartuffe October 8-November 3, A Christmas Carol November 29-December 24, Nunsense January 3-19, The Haunting February 5-March 1; One night specials: Blackbird Orchestra July 31, Marx in Soho September 21, You Dunnit November 9; Education: Tales From Poe, Macbeth.

2020 The pandemic closes the theatre and the company focuses on facility improvements and restoration. Company members produce radio plays while in quarantine. Hedgerow leverages the campus and produces a “promenade” style A Christmas Carol, inviting audiences on a scene-by-scene walk-around the Theatre grounds.

2021 Hedgerow company members Thane Madsen, Melody Ladd, Michael McInerney, Adam Altman, Susan Wefel, and Amanda Coffin produced a series of outdoor Children’s Theatre Productions including Cinderella, Robin Hood, Hansel & Gretel on the grounds of the Hedgerow Farmhouse, and an outdoor production of Two Gentlemen of Verona staged by Lisa VillaMil in front of the Theatre. welcoming patrons back to campus. Marcie Bramucci is hired as Executive Artistic Director and reopens the Theatre for indoor performances once again with Conor MacPherson’s The Weir featuring Stephen Patrick Smith, Pete Pryor, Nik Menotiades, Tyler Elliott and Bramucci, under the direction of Claire Moyer. Penelope Reed returned to direct A Christmas Carol featuring Brian McCann as Scrooge.

2022 Hedgerow produced the regional premiere of Cowboy Versus Samurai by Michael Golamco collaborating with Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists (PAPA), including director Cat Ramirez. The production ran in February and featured Arthur Robinson, Tyler Elliott, Stephanie Kyung Sun Walters, and David Pica. The spring welcomed an exciting co-production with the Drama Department of Delaware County Community College of Jewel Walker’s Tuesday - a movement-based piece performed with no spoken dialogue. The production was directed by Stephen Patrick Smith and featured student performers, all making their professional debut. In May, Hedgerow welcomed back director Harriet Power for Sarah Ruhl’s In the Next Room, or the vibrator play reuniting Hedgerow artists Jessican Dal Canton, Jennifer Summerfield, Sophia Barrett, Adam Altman, Carl Granieri, and David Pica - and introducing Hallie Harmon. The production was stage managed by Alondra Santos-Castillo. Marcie Bramucci, dramaturg Adrena Williams, and Harriet Power collaborated with playwright Sarah Ruhl for script updates. Summer productions included the Barrymore Recommended production of The World According to Snoopy which was directed by Peter Reynolds and featured an explosively talented young cast of current students and recent graduates; and Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, a co-production with DCCC, which was performed outdoors on Hedgerow’s Farmhouse campus, as well as on the DCCC campus - both productions enjoyed a special night under the stars performing at the Rose Tree Park amphitheater. The Fall welcomed Martin McDonagh’s chilling The Pillowman, co-directed by Megan Bellwoar & Marcie Bramucci - featuring James Kern, Pete Pryor, Daniel Romano, Stephen Patrick Smith, Sarah Stryker and the professional debut of three youth performers Keira Connor, Molly Lloyd, and Alice Webber (who each performed in Hedgerow summer camp productions earlier). The production enjoyed positive critical and patron reviews’ s well as Barrymore Recommendation status. A shadow performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show took the stage on mischief night. The holidays brought a twist on Dickens’ holiday classic in the form of A Christmas Carol Comedy by Katie Leamen, which was also Barrymore Recommended. This US Premiere was directed by Pete Pryor and featured Christopher Patrick Mullen playing “everyone else” and the role of Scrooge was performed by Benjamin Brown, Mike Thurstlic and Sarah Stryker. A daytime cast included Sarah Mackus in the role of “everyone else” and Mike Thurstlic as Scrooge. Katie Leamen ventured down from Canada to meet Hedgerow audiences and to enjoy the production.

2023 Hedgerow leaps into its 100th Season first producing the regional premiere of Ngozi Anyanwu’s Good Grief, a semi-autobiographical play set in the Philly suburbs. The production was co-directed by Zuhairah McGill and Phillip Brown (who both also performed in the roles of PaPa and NeNe), featuring Morgan Charéce Hall, Ronnie Riggles, Dell Jackson, Susan Wefel and James Offalt. Playwright Ngozi Anyanwu attended a performance with her parents and siblings and met the cast and creative team. Good Grief was Barrymore Recommended.