![]() That summer, the national convention of The Drama League of America convened in Tacoma from June 27th through July 2nd. It was typical for the plays presented at TLT to appear within 2-4 years after their debut productions in New York. It was reported at the time to be the "greatest single accomplishment of the Tacoma Drama League to date, a milestone." Local critics lavished praise the four performances in the 400-seat Little Theatre (the highest number for a single production at that time) quickly sold out and a fifth performance had to be added. ![]() Based on the tale from 13th C Italy, the play further interpreted the story treated in Dante's Inferno, and rendered in paint by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1855). First came a production of Stephen Phillip's tragic drama Paolo and Francesca which opened on February 12, 1927. The first performances in the new space were held on Decemwith a program featuring Booth Tarkington's The Trysting Place, John Millington Synge's Riders to the Sea, and Kenneth Raisbeck's Torches.ฤก927 was a banner year for the young company. The 1920s saw TLT moving into its first permanent home in the "new gymnasium" at the Annie Wright Seminary, located at North First and Division Avenue, in the area now at the heart of the Stadium Business District. While some gaps may be found - for example due to the Great Depression and World War II, organizational activity has never ceased since those early days. Persistent commitment to the pursuit of artistry and quality community involvement has been the hallmark of the TLT story. While TLT's first fully-realized production was not until December 1919, a production of George Bernard Shaw's You Never Can Tell, the time from 1918 to 1919 was filled with classes, play reading and study. ![]() ![]() The Tacoma Chapter comprised the Civic Drama School and Tacoma Little Theatre (TLT) the Drama League providing oversight and governance. Many chapters were started across the United States during the years surrounding the first World War. The Drama League of America sought to promote theater, the study of theatrical literature and culture as a means of community building and individual enrichment. In October of 1918, a group of civic-minded community members founded the Tacoma Chapter of the Drama League of America (known as the "Tacoma Drama League" or sometimes as the "Civic Drama League"). HISTORY - A Concise Summary of a Century by Judith Cullen ![]()
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