A Royall celebration: UVM marks 50th anniversary of theater with weekend of events

It’s rare for a university to convert a space designed for athletics into a home for the arts. That’s what the University of Vermont did 50 years ago when it turned an old gymnasium into Royall Tyler Theatre.

UVM alumni celebrate the theater’s half-century with events Thursday, April 11-Saturday, April 13. The highlight is “50 Years of Royall Tyler Theatre: A Musical Revue,” featuring performances from alumni and current students paying tribute to some of the shows UVM theater students have performed in that time.

Royall Tyler Theatre is named for Royall Tyler, a Vermont Supreme Court justice and professor of law at UVM in the early 1800s. In 1787, Tyler created “The Contrast,” regarded as the first comedy play written in the U.S.

How the Royall Tyler came to be

The building now named for Tyler initially seated 1,200 and served as a site for indoor sports and recreation, and hosted concerts by groups including the Boston Symphony Orchestra. UVM’s physical-education program outgrew the space – Patrick Gym opened across campus in 1963 – so the building was used for offices and classrooms until what’s now the 291-seat Royall Tyler Theatre opened March 14, 1974, with a musical adaptation of “The Contrast.”

Michael Garfield Levine was a theater student at UVM before Royall Tyler Theatre opened. The 1971 graduate told the Burlington Free Press in an email that remembers performing in a theater in the basement of the Fleming Museum.

The film and television actor is returning to campus for the 50^th anniversary celebration to join a panel discussion that includes other UVM alumni working in film, TV and theater. The night before the celebration begins, Levine will appear at Royall Tyler Theatre to present his one-man show, “Spinning My Wheels,” which details his battles with mental illness and addiction and how acting and bicycle racing helped him get back on track.

“It was at UVM that I began my studies in acting and theater by playing Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet,” according to Levine, who called it a “great honor” to be invited back to UVM to perform his show.

If you go

The schedule of activities at Royall Tyler Theatre includes:

Thursday, April 11

Friday, April 12

• 10-10:50 a.m., an improv workshop will be led by Zeina Salame, assistant professor and resident director in UVM’s program in theatre and dance.
• 11 a.m.-11:50 a.m., Julie Peoples-Clark, a lecturer in dance at UVM, leads a musical theater dance workshop.
• 2-4 p.m., a distinguished alumni panel has Rob Shimko, UVM theatre and dance department head, leading a discussion with alumni Shannon K. Hall, director of postproduction at HBO; Michael Garfield Levine, who has performed on TV shows including “The Sopranos” and “Law & Order”; Broadway music director and conductor Steve Freeman; and Dawn Wagner, a former Broadway stage manager; as well as Jeffrey DeMunn, whose list of acting credits includes “The Walking Dead,” “The Shawshank Redemption” and “Billions.” A reception follows from 4-5 p.m.
• 5:30-9:30 p.m., an open rehearsal will be held for “50 Years of Royall Tyler Theatre: A Musical Revue” featuring alumni and current students. Pizza and soda will be provided.

Saturday, April 13

• 3:30 p.m., alumni, staff and students are invited to take part in a photo that will document the theater’s 50^th anniversary.
• 4-5:15 p.m., “50 Years of Royall Tyler Theatre: A Musical Revue,” featuring songs from the history of musical theater at UVM, precedes a celebration from 5:15-6:30 p.m.

All weekend

• 11 a.m.-8 p.m., all spaces in the theater building, including the scene and costume shops, will be open for guests to visit.

All events are free. To register visit www.alumni.uvm.edu

Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com.