ABOUT US

What is PACT?

The Pennsylvania Association of Community Theatres (PACT) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the productivity and promotion of community theatre in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As an all volunteer organization, PACT's governing body is comprised of representatives from community theatre companies from all regions of the Commonwealth who meet in various locales to incorporate the diverse needs of its members into the mission of the organization. PACT is an organization for ALL community theatre companies producing and creating within Pennsylvania.
 

Our Mission

The purpose of the Pennsylvania Association of Community Theatres (PACT) shall be to cultivate a broad and general interest in the theatre arts throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and to identify community theatres within it and foster their general welfare. The objectives shall be to develop services, publications and activities that will foster the artistic and administrative growth of these theatres and to encourage communication among them so they may benefit from a mutual exchange of knowledge and resources.
 

Our Members

Our membership is comprised of individuals, organizations and corporations in the Commonwealth who have an interest in the promotion and conservation of community theatre. Our Board of Directors is comprised entirely of volunteers from individual community theatre organizations housed within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
 

Our Activities

Pennsylvania Association of Community Theatres sponsors the annual PACT-Fest, which provides a presentation vehicle for community theatres within the Commonwealth to showcase their particular talents in performances of published or original works up to one-hour in length. Professional adjudicators provide evaluation of the productions. Also included within the festival are workshop sessions on performance, technical and business aspects of theatre, a broad range of networking opportunities and a source of encouragement and problem solving. The festival follows the organizational guidelines of the Eastern States Theatre Association (ESTA) and the American Association of Community Theatre (AACT) and serves as the state predecessor to their regional and national gatherings.
 

Our Future Goals

In addition to sponsoring the state festival, future projects include the publication of an informational newsletter - PACT Houses - and the development of a webpage through which we can network and promote Pennsylvania community theatres and assist them with production "sharing," rentals and problem solving. PACT also is working in conjunction with ESTA to develop a format for hosting a venue to develop original works. We welcome your suggestions regarding the needs of your community theatre.

 





PACT BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Walter S. Mitchell -Wilkes-Barre

Marsha Amato-Greenspan  -Ridley Park

Chad-Alan Carr -Gettysburg


​Janelle Lockard -Altoona


Jacquie Engel -Pottsville


Shawn Clerkin -Franklin


Laurie Mufson -Mercersburg


Seth Sponhouse -Williamsport

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