Venue: Bakersfield Community Theatre
Town: Bakersfield, US

Bakersfield Community Theatre (BCT) in Bakersfield, California is the oldest continuing community theatre in California; and the second oldest amateur community theatre in the Western United States: the Tacoma Little Theatre, est. 1918 in Tacoma, Washington, is the oldest. Officially established in 1927, BCT has been putting on a full season of plays and musicals starting when Albert Johnson directed the beginning of a continuous string of productions. The theatre has been remodeled a few times, and is currently capable of holding an audience of 181. Bakersfield Community Theatre was founded in May 1927. Prior to this date, community theatre productions were frequently produced in Bakersfield by various clubs. The Bakersfield Woman's Club presented theatre productions, as well as the Elks, DeMolay, and the Plymouth Guild. Albert Johnson worked to make community theatre part of Bakersfield culture. In November 1926, Gilmor Brown of the Pasadena Playhouse gave a speech before the Bakersfield Woman's Club outlining possible procedures for organizing a local community theatre. "Call a mass meeting," he advised. "Do not depend too much on the names always associated with important community activities. Sincere workers and promising talent will be found in unexpected places if the proposition is presented as a real community project." In early May 1927, a group of women met one night at the Woman's Club building to found a community theatre. They included Alma Campbell, Ethel Robinson, Mrs. George Shearer, and Helen T. Peairs. Using telephones and the newspaper, they announced a public meeting to be held a few days later on May 16, 1927 at the clubhouse. More than fifty people attended and the founding group expanded to include Mrs. Ross C. Miller, Evelyn Derby, Dwight Clark, Thomas McManus and Laurence Taylor. Ten days later the founders had finished writing the constitution and bylaws and had taken on 98 paid season members. The name Bakersfield Community Theatre (BCT)