Hello – I have decided to write about the adventures of the Hamner Theater here, in case anyone wants to know what’s really going on! There is no truth to the rumor that the Hamner has closed – we have simply given up our lease at the RVCC where our tenant/landlord relationship had become increasingly tense and hostile. Additionally, after 8 years, we had not been entirely successful in developing an audience that came for the sake of coming to the theater. I will stop short of saying that Nelson County doesn’t want a theater – they just may not realize that they do! So the combination of needing to guarantee rent payment and no guarantee of audience for our productions led to our considered decision to leave the RVCC. The move has opened up possibilities for collaboration that have proven very happy indeed, with PVCC, with PlayOn!, with the Bridge, PAI, with the Wayne Theater. And the VPSI, the heart and soul of the Hamner mission to foster new work, has never stopped. We are working with 4 playwrights at the moment and there are several waiting in the wings. And we are focusing closely on the coming Shakespeare tour and planning to expand our destinations to include breweries and cideries.
All of this takes time and we are taking our time – we are always on the lookout for a good venue, looking ideally to find a permanent home. We have a mailbox and a phone and I will attempt to keep the website as up-to-date as possible but feel free to email me if you have questions or concerns and by all means, come see what we’re doing!