Can tiny Northfield be home to professional theater? Dirt Road Theater, with a number of successful productions under its belt, thinks it’s time and has made its move.
The Gray Space, the fledgling professional company’s new home, will open next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 16 and 17, with two fundraising performances each evening, at 6 and 8 p.m., geared to all audiences.
The new performance and community space is located in Northfield’s historic “Gray Building,” the former school building built in 1877. It is home to a Waldorf school and several other artists, 10 miles south of Montpelier on Route 12.
The 6 p.m. show, “Dear World,” showcases Dirt Road Theater students in Shakespeare, humor and music, with a fresh new spin on scenes and songs from past three years of their performances. It’s appropriate for all ages.
The 8 p.m. show, “Customer Service 2.0,” is an updated version of Dirt Road Theater’s sketch comedy show, last performed in March at the Savoy Theater in Montpelier, featuring new material. It stars Jesse Cooper, Rebecca Pearish, Maya Grace Reddington, Maren Langdon Spillane and Dominic Spillane. It’s for ages 14-plus.
Maren Langdon Spillane and Dominic Spillane, trained theater professionals, founded Dirt Road Theater in 2020. But like other theater artists in central Vermont, they are constantly looking for space — to rehearse, to teach, to gather, and to perform, space that is friendly to groups of all sizes who are looking to create.
“We believe that creating physical space for people to come together as community members and as artists is deeply important,” says Dominic Spillane. “We live in a world of binaries and known quantities. Art and performance offers us a unique and critical opportunity to explore the unknown, the space between … the gray space.
“In this space, things can be unknown and undefined, exist without labels and explored without judgment. This is the spirit in which we offer this space to our community. In it, we hope you find the freedom to create, explore and connect!”
Still, The Gray Space is bare bones and needs work to become the theater space it needs to be.
“We are hoping to raise $20,000 in the next few months to support renovations, lighting, sound equipment, seating and more,” Spillane said.
Dominic Spillane grew up in Colorado and spent many years acting, directing, teaching, and producing in Los Angeles, New York City, and now Vermont. A Vermont native, Maren Langdon Spillane, after earning a graduate degree in education, lived and worked as an actor in New York City, where she met Dominic. They returned to Vermont to raise their family, becoming integral members of the region’s professional theater community.
Both Maren and Dominic have been teaching and performing throughout the area, including with Green Room Productions, Unadilla Theatre, Stowe Theater Guild, Lost Nation Theater, Pushcart Productions, Middlebury Acting Company and, of course, Dirt Road Theater. Dominic is currently developing the online platform for the performing arts TheaterEngine.
Throughout the year Dirt Road Theater offers camps, classes, and other educational opportunities for kids and adults. The company produced the world premiere of Vermont playwright Tamar Cole’s “The Ties That Bind,” performed at the Barre Universalist Church in the fall of 2022, and “Customer Service,” the sketch comedy show. Dirt Road Theater is also creator of the fantasy-adventure podcast for kids and families “Fairies and Dragons, Ponies and Knights” currently in its third season.
If Dirt Road Theater’s track record so far is any indication, the company and its Gray Space are not only welcome but needed to augment Vermont’s aging theater world. Let’s give them all the support we can.
Jim Lowe is theater critic and arts editor of The Barre-Montpelier Times Argus and Rutland Herald, and can be reached at jim.lowe@rutlandherald.com or jim.lowe@timesargus.com.
Dirt Road Theater Dirt Road Theater presents the inaugural fundraising performances at The Gray Space, its new performance home, at 6 and 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 16 and 17, at the Gray Building, 168 N. Main St. #7 in Northfield. (6 p.m. is student performances, 8 p.m. for adults over 14). Tickets are $15-$50; for tickets, go online to theaterengine.com/productions/2442 online. Go to www.dirtroadtheater.com for information.
