About
The Rogue Playhouse
‘Bullhide Theater’…
…was one of the suggested names in our ‘Name the Theater’ contest for what is now The Rogue Playhouse. The Playhouse started out as the People’s Store in 1918, owned and operated by “Bullhide” Moore, and located where the Courthouse now resides. From there it moved to the Gray Whales site and various lodges met upstairs (the original ‘Rainbow Room’ remains our costume room). This second story was moved to its present location in about 1952 when many Masonic volunteers built the basement foundation for it (original photographs of these workmen and buildings are still on display in the Theater lobby). For decades this was the Masonic Lodge, which ETC occasionally rented for theater productions. In 2004 we were allowed to move in, but with the property being for sale, theater clutter was deemed to be blocking that occurrence, so we were Gypsies once again. Then in 2006, a meeting between a few hardy ETC members and Charles Heuser and Dale Giottonini of the Masons resulted in a 5-year lease for ETC. A perfect marriage of two organizations that both strive to benefit the community. Three years later, the building was gifted to ETC.
Historical Landmark
The conversation between Laurel and Sandy had been about possible grants, and Laurel’s input was on the importance of the historical aspect of our Theater home in that endeavor. Even though Ellensburg Theater has been gifted the actual building by the Masons (to enable us to pursue grants to upgrade the building), ETC does not yet own the actual land. That sales contract starts at the end of the lease – an ominous deadline, so to speak. A major grant looms somewhere just over the horizon hopefully to bring about ownership of the entire property – a true Theater home of our own.
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Ellensburg Theatre Company
Ellensburg Theatre Company, formerly Gold Beach Summer Theatre and incorporated as a non profit since 1986 sits at the nose of the adventurous Gold Beach, Oregon. With views of the Pacific ocean and the mighty Rogue river, this company takes up residence in The Rogue Playhouse.
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ETC is committed to bring the Southern Oregon Coast alive with all forms of entertainment to our historic stage. Whether you catch a drama, comedy, your favorite band, or a classic movie-- you are sure to be delighted by our small town charm!
Meet the Board
Miranda Plagge - President
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Miranda swooped into Gold Beach nearly 4 years ago after marrying a local and visiting the beautiful Southern Oregon Coast. Miranda originally from Colorado by way of New Mexico, has a degree in Creative Media in Digital Filmmaking and her passion is directing and editing. Her career has always involved the arts in some way, and she is grateful on her new passion with the Ellensburg Theater Company and The Rogue Playhouse. She is entering her third year on the board and has recently been elected President. Miranda's goal is to involve more youth in the Theater, as she knows first hand what an influence children's theater played in her life all the way through University. When not at the Playhouse Miranda has found new hobbies on the coast, including rock hunting, hiking coastal trails, forging for wild berries, mushrooms, and edible plants! She loves her new life as an Oregonian and is thrilled to lead such a distinguished board of directors!
Cindy Ricks Myers - Executive Board Assistant
Cindy is grateful to have had a varied career in the sciences, ranging from inspecting dams to identifying wetland plants. She settled in Gold Beach in 1984, enticed by the wild rocky coast and diverse ecosystems. Her work experience involved writing grants to fund monitoring programs for nearly two decades. Using these skills, she has served in the positions of ETC Board Secretary and Treasurer. Having believed that she had not inherited any “creativity genes” and rather minimal performance skills, she has enjoyed exploring the arts with Ellensburg Theatre Company. You can too! So many memories…let us count the ways: prompting, reading poetry, hanging posters, thrifting for props, costume pieces & sets, moving furniture, making coffee, making popcorn, pouring wine, baking, sewing, singing, acting drunk, acting like a child, and acting so angry that she would beat a cat!
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Valerie MacGillivary - Vice President
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Valerie has been active with Ellensburg Theater Company since she moved to Gold Beach in 2009. She has directed a number of full-length plays including "Social Security", "Art of Murder", and "The Uninvited". There have also been several radio productions and a couple of Christmas shows over the years. She has acted as well as directed. Most recently she appeared in Red Velvet Cake Wars. You may remember a lively octogenarian. Valerie is a past board member and a current one, serving as Vice-president.
She began in theater in grade school and went on to receive a BA in Theater Arts from Pacific University. She has been directing shows, beginning in Pacific for over 50 years and still enjoys every moment. She is currently preparing a summer production.
Susan Swan – Secretary
Upon moving to Gold Beach in 1987, Sue discovered a new love in live theater, first with Willamette University’s “The Quilters”, then with Gold Beach Summer Theater’s (GBST) “Who’s on First.” Owning a hardware and pet store with her then husband, there wasn’t time or money for theater. Finding herself on her own, she ventured out to meet these local theater people, meeting her future husband who was already knee deep in tech involvement, and found herself on the board of GBST in 1993, where she’s been ever since, having served as secretary, V.P. treasurer (for nearly 20 years), president for one brief year, and now back to secretary.
It took 23 years to get her on stage in a speaking role, being eternally shy. She has now had roles in 4 plays and a radio show in addition to background parts in numerous Christmas shows, “Wizard of Oz” and “Willy Wonka,”
Being like the tall, shy person ala Garrison Keelers’s Lake Wobegon, Sue’s career path involved solitary endeavors like accounting and payroll, and hobbies involved needlecrafts and quilting, gardening, horses, and somewhere in there – writing. Years later she finally realized her passion was writing and began doing the weekly theater column in the Reporter in 2007. She hopes to write a stage play about her funny memories from Sue’s Café before moving here in 1987. If she can make people laugh, she feels her work is done.
Michael Hall - Boardmember
I moved to Gold Beach in 1981, where I started working as a waiter and bartender, and have met some wonderful people. In 1988 I auditioned for a part in a local theater group -- Gold Beach Summer Theater and The Gull Players. Catching "the theater bug," I've been actor, producer, high school teacher, and director.