Mission Statement: To enrich, educate and entertain Summit County residents and visitors of all ages through high-quality professional theatre, community theatre and meaningful learning through the arts.
The oldest year-round theatRE COMPANY on Colorado's Western Slope
Breckenridge Backstage Theatre was once ... Rockpile Productions?
At least that's what Shirley Martin called her production company back in 1974 when she got the idea to stage the melodrama Poor Pitiful Pearl in Singin' Sadie's Saloon, a Breckenridge bar. She cast a young newcomer to the area, Allyn Mosher, in the role of the villain. Neither performer was sure if anyone would show up to see the result of all their hard work and effort, but they needn't have worried. Locals and visitors alike flocked to the production which was a riotous, raucous affair with audience members hoisting beer mugs, booing, hissing, and offering otherwise appropriate melodramatic comments to the troupe performing at the end of the bar. It was the last (and only) year of business for Singin' Sadie, but it was the beginning of a notable cultural tradition in Breckenridge!
Shirley owned a boutique called the Backdoor. The name "Backstage" was a natural derivation for the new year-round company she decided to form with Allyn. That first year, the newly christened Backstage Theatre produced three melodramas, a bedtime comedy "for mature audiences only", and a Noel Coward play - all at the Breckenridge Inn (now the Breckenridge Mountain Lodge).
In 1976, the Backstage Theatre was incorporated as Summit County's first non-profit and, with the help of local artisan Dan Milner, moved into a permanent, 74-seat theatre on the second floor of the Sterling Building (still located on the corner of Ski Hill Road and Main Street). According to The Rocky Mountain News, the stage had "barely enough room to fit a Volkswagen", but the group nevertheless produced a year-round schedule of large-cast musicals, mysteries, and melodramas. They soon added a classic film series and invited Dr. Kenneth Evans (who later founded the Breckenridge Music Institute) to host a chamber music series.
The performing arts had come to Breckenridge
The early Backstage years were a time of innovation and growth. In 1976, Backstage initiated the first fund-raising auction in Summit County. Backstage also acquired the first Arts Liquor License in the state! In 1979, Joyce Mosher (who had met Allyn while he was stumping for Backstage support - and married him a few short months later) began a ten-year series of children's theatre workshops and productions, designed to encourage imagination, self-confidence, and a sense of showmanship by offering Summit County children, aged 9-14, an opportunity to learn the basics of stage technique. The program was recognized as one of the best in the state, and was funded by the Colorado Council on the the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.
It was during this time that the Backstage Theatre began to garner attention from the Front Range, including favorable reviews from pleased Denver theatre reviewers. Word was out that a trip to Breckenridge was not complete without a visit to the Backstage!
Challenges in the early years
Still, despite the accolades and achievements, those initial productions proved to be a challenge to create. For instance, when Summit county's population was less than one-tenth of what it is today, casting shows proved a formidable feat. Once, during a typical dearth of actors, a department store dummy was recruited to play the role of Higgs in The Real Inspector Hound! It was not unusual for the director, costume mistress, or props runner to pick up a script and take the place of a non-showing cast member. Everyone pitched in to make the productions possible. Allyn once had to bail an actress out of jail so she could make the curtain for a performance. Even one of Breckenridge's former mayors, Dr. John Warner, DDS, came to the aid of the Backstage. He was enlisted to improve the smile of one local actor whose appearance was less than, uhm, stageworthy.
The kindhearted (some would say fearless) locals who were drafted to take part in the early shows were often young, hard-working entrepreneurs in search of new ways to sow some wild oats. However, their enthusiasm sometimes led to the inability to recognize the difference between stage play and the real thing. In fact after a particularly rousing stage fight in the 1978 production of The Fantasticks, one unfortunate actor went home with several cracked ribs! Happily, many of the reluctant actors survived their thespian days and become leading citizens, successful art gallery owners, real estate agents, politicians, and restaurateurs.
Solidifying the Backstage: 1980-2000
In 1980, Nick Marsch offered Backstage Theatre space in his new development - Village at Breckenridge. Supported by grants from the Gates and Coors Foundation, as well as donations of money and services from hundreds of patrons, Allyn Mosher once more picked up the hammer and created a new space for the Backstage. This beautiful and spacious (98 seats!) venue at the base of Maggie Pond was home to many delightful productions which charmed audiences who discovered this Rocky Mountain treasure, riveted them with stunning drama and suspense, and provided the kind of belly laughs you couldn't find anywhere else. In the following decade, twenty-eight stellar productions were mounted as the quality and professionalism of the Theatre continued to grow along with the town of Breckenridge itself.
In 1990, after 15 years assuming any and all roles in the Theatre, Joyce and Allyn Mosher invited Wendy and Bob Moore to assume the direction of the Backstage Theatre. Under Wendy and Bob's leadership, Backstage undertook an increased performance schedule and initiated both the KidsPlay series and the Backstage at the Riverwalk series - which was created to fund scholarships for Summit County youth interested in exploring the performing arts.
The Backstage began to compete in the Colorado Community Theatre Coalition, consistently winning high honors in all categories and advancing to the American Association of Community Theatre’s regional, national, and international levels of competition. Our production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) even journeyed to Thun, Switzerland to participate in the International Amateur-Theater Festival!
During their nine-year tenure, the Moores - who had been a part of the Backstage since the early days - made invaluable contributions to the Theatre's growth both in statewide recognition and as a vital element of the community.
On the Move
In 2001, the Backstage Theatre lost its space at the Village of Breckenridge, but then-artistic director Jeremy Cole kept the Theatre alive by staging shows in restaurants and bars across Summit County - performing from Copper to Keystone, Dillon to Breckenridge (no fewer than twelve shows were presented that nomadic year).
A Backstage for the Backstage
With an enormous amount of help from The Town of Breckenridge and architect Matt Stais, we opened the new Breckenridge Theater (occupying the old Shamus O'Toole's Roadhouse) in December of 2002.
In 2004, an extension was completed to the structure which provided dressing rooms and storage space for the company.
In 2005, Christopher Willard came onboard as artistic director and created the critically-acclaimed Backstage Children's Theatre program. He was instrumental in creating new plays which have since had their world premieres on our stage.
Regional Awards and Continued Growth
The artistic vision of the Theatre continued to develop and was awarded numerous Colorado Theatre Guild and True West awards. In 2010, the Backstage Theatre received the prestigious Colorado Theatre Guild - Outstanding Regional Theatre Award.
In 2012, the Backstage Theatre officially changed its name to the Breckenridge Backstage Theatre (BBT). Soon after, Breckenridge Town Council approved a $2.55 million renovation of the Breckenridge Theater. Construction on the building began in Spring 2015 and the Backstage once again traveled around Breckenridge and Summit County.
As BBT eagerly awaited its newly improved venue, it focused on developing the Student Theatrical Enrichment Program (STEP), an opportunity for young performing artists to perform their own Broadway musical. The program debuted in 2015 with 44 students, 3 shows, and 900 patrons.
In June 2016, the BBT launched the newly renovated Breckenridge Theater with expanded seating capacity to 137, a brand new bar and lounge, a stage house, and new dressing rooms. The Breckenridge Backstage Theatre is honored to be the resident company of such a beautiful venue built by the Town of Breckenridge.
Like all theaters, BBT closed its doors to the public March of 2020 as a result of the pandemic. BBT re-opened its doors on July 8, 2021 with The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged). Our 2021 production of It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio play received six Colorado Theatre Guild “Henry Award” nominations, winning three Henry Awards for: sound design, acting and set design. Our 2024 season saw a record 7 CTG Henry nominations - wins for Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor in a play for Inventing Van Gogh went to performers Felix Mayes and Kent-Jameson Ehrman, and Keith J. Warren won for Best Actor in a Musical for his role in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.
The Next Chapter
Under the leadership of a new Producing Artistic Director Jacqueline Stone and Creative Producer Branden Smith, the theatre is now in our 50th Season! We hope to see you at the Theatre- join us on the journey ahead!