Some places really come alive in the offseason.
Such is true for Hampton Theatre Company (125 Jessup Ave., 631-653-8955) in Quogue which, for the better part of 40 years, has filled a uniquely rich role on the East End’s live performing-arts front.
For decades, the regional theater troupe’s makeup has run the gamut of professional thespians, seasoned producers and directors, plus a slew of behind-the-scenes crew members churning out an impressive number of shows. Since its debut, the company, which operates from September through June each year at Quogue Community Hall, has produced about 60 classic and contemporary plays.
From what some may call humble beginnings, HTC originated as the brainchild of three Westhampton Beach residents in 1984. Today, “We are now compared favorably to a Broadway production,” says Andrew Botsford, a Quogue resident who is secretary for the theater’s board of directors.
Uniquely, Hampton Theatre Company sits directly between community theater and what is known as Equity theater, in which actors can pay dues and fees to be members of an actors union. Several local professional theaters strictly use Equity actors, like Bay Street Theater and Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. While HTC uses some Equity members, they also hold open auditions for up to three roles in each of their productions for non-Equity performers.
“We started out as a community theater,” says Botsford, “and a lot of us had other jobs, jobs we were actually making our money at, but we quickly realized that among our group we had people with serious professional training … and a lot of our local community members have some serious theater chops.”
The group’s first performance was at Westhampton Beach Middle School in the early ’80s, with a production from locals of The Diary of Anne Frank. The theater troupe moved to its present home, which was built around 1920 and can hold up to 180 people, over 35 years ago. During the summer months, the theater is occupied by the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe.
To welcome the upcoming holiday season, Hampton Theatre Company will present its live radio play of “A Christmas Carol” for the second year in a row. Adapted for the stage by Joe Landry with music by Kevin Connors, the Charles Dickens novella is performed as a live radio broadcast set in the 1940s.
For those not in the know, a radio play is a theatrical performance that is almost completely auditory and depends heavily on dramatized dialogue, with very few visual components. Major reliance rests on the actors’ acoustic vocal performances, along with carefully crafted sound effects that help bring the story to life.
For Hampton Theatre Company’s interpretation, the actors will up the ante slightly by dressing in ‘40s-style garb and assuming multiple roles, as the show includes vintage commercials promoting products from the period. Sound effects were created by HTC actor and board member George Loizides. Landry’s radio play comes with a complete score by Connors.
Botsford says deciding to perform the Dickens classic again this year was an “experiment.” With a simple set made to look like the inside of a radio station circa 1946, Botsford says the play is “a lot of fun for us because we get to play a lot of different characters. It really takes you back.”
Hampton Theatre Company’s live radio play of “A Christmas Carol” debuts Friday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. and continues Saturday, Dec. 14, and Sunday, Dec. 15, at 2:30 p.m. Tickets, $18, are available at hamptontheatre.org.
