Welcome to the Rock River Players!
Our community theater group launched in August 2015 with a production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town. Since then we’ve produced quite a few more, and put lots of moxie into growing. We are fortunate to be able to call the historic Williamsville Hall our home.
Just as villagers came together for the first time in 1910 to entertain neighbors and travelers in this acoustical gem, so the Rock River Players do today.
Formed for the love of theatre, RRP has enjoyed participation of enthusiasts ages 10 to 87 from this village and surrounding villages and towns. We come together not just as theatre junkies, but also as revivalists. In the early 1900s, the Williamsville Hall was the happening place for all kinds of live entertainment, but by the mid-20th century, players and audiences opted to stay home as televised offerings became easier to access. Since the tech craze has yielded an even more intimate relationship with the screen—often to the exclusion of people and things in our surroundings—the founding members of RRP affirm that the lively arts are essential to the preservation of culture, development of new art and artists, and the livelihood of our village.
The Rock River Players started with hopes and dreams—and now we have plans. Plan to give actors, directors, playwrights, designers, and craftsmen, seasoned or green, the chance to join together with the common goal of collective creation through camaraderie.
RRP aims to produce a variety of shows each season, along with intermittent opportunities to learn more about and/or be involved in the joyful work of theater. All who wish to be involved in the RRP may be, in one way or another—our aim is to broaden the tent and access to the arts. The work we do is far too gratifying, challenging, thought-provoking—and fun—to hoard!
If you value this work, we need you. As audience members, volunteers, or as part of the performance—all skills are valued and talents welcome.
– Annie Landenberger, Founder