Oregon Cabaret Theatre
Originally built as Ashland’s first Baptist church in 1911, the Oregon Cabaret Theatre is now a popular attraction for visitors and locals alike. The theatre presents over 270 shows each annual season.
THEATER
TAKE TO THE STAGE
PHOTO BRYON DEVORE
Southern Oregon is home to a variety of theaters, all boasting unique venues and on-stage productions. With so many to pick from, you might think everyone here is a thespian. Ashland’s Oregon Shakespeare Festival is the granddaddy, but the greater region abounds with theater productions and the performing arts. It takes a passionate, talented and truly dedicated community to keep every independent theater running, and talent you will find, from local to national, musical to dramatic, to entertain, educate and inspire. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland runs March through October on three stages. This rotating repertory company showcases plays written by William Shakespeare, as well as other playwrights who’ve penned plays from classics to contemporaries. The festival’s reach is international and brings the town of Ashland to vibrant life each season with thousands of visitors. In addition to the Shakespearian Festival, Ashland is home to the Oregon Cabaret Theatre, where dinner comes with the show. Musicals and music acts are served along with delicious meals at
this entertainment hub in the heart of town just steps from the Shakespeare festival campus. Medford rallied around a historic community theater, not wanting to let go of a unique part of the town’s legacy. Today, the Craterian Theater presents dozens of plays, musicals and performances each year. Also in Medford is the Holly Theatre, a historic Spanish Colonial Revival theater built in 1930. Currently undergoing a renovation, the Holly will host national music acts, classic films and more for years to come. You might not think of an old feed store as a potential theater location, but the Camelot Theater proves otherwise. They took up residence in an old feed store in Talent in 1990, and the rest is history. This 104-seat theater hosts musicals and plays year-round, now in the new state-of-the-art, Art Deco-style James Morrison Collier Theatre building. Rogue Theatre in downtown Grants Pass is another historic art deco gem, built in 1938. Today, the venue is host to local and national music, dance, film and plays. Downtown Klamath Falls has the Art Deco beauty and community hub the Ross Ragland Theater. In Gold Beach, it’s the Ellensburg Theatre in the historic Rogue Playhouse that entertains guests.
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