Finding Aid for the Kent Acting and Touring Company records

Repository: Kent State University. Special Collections and Archives.
Title: Kent Acting and Touring Company records
Inclusive Dates: 1975-1979
Author: Finding aid prepared by Amanda Faehnel, September 2026
Origination: Kent Acting and Touring Company
Extent: .33 cubic feet (1 box = 1 document case)
Physical Location: 11th floor
Abstract: This collection documents the activities of the Kent Acting and Touring Company, a regional theater group that was active in the late 1970s. 
Language: English
Descriptive Rules: DACS 2nd Edition

History of the Kent Acting and Touring Company

The Kent Acting and Touring Company (KATC) was a regional theater group based in Kent, Ohio that was active between 1975 and 1979. In their first newsletter of 1975, they described themselves as a company aspiring "to create a professional resident theatre providing the best of regional theatre for the people of Kent and the surrounding area." Started by director and actor James Thornton and designer and actor David Prittie, KATC's first production of "Godspell" was met with outstanding reviews in 1975. The Company went on to perform various productions, workshops, and special series throughout the area. Productions were held in numerous locations including Fred Fuller Park, the Rusty Nail restaurant, Kent Roosevelt High School, and the Kent Railway Station, among many other locations in Kent, Twin Lakes, and Ravenna. Although they announced that they had finally found a permanent home on Day Street in 1979, the Kent Acting and Touring Company disbanded shortly thereafter. 

Scope and Content

This collection is separated into two series: Season Productions and Subject Files. The Season Productions series includes flyers, programs, and newsclippings related to KATC's productions, and is organized first by date and then by production title. The Subject Files series is organized alphabetically by topic. 

Statement of Arrangement 

• Series 1: Season Productions, 1976-1979
• Series 2: Subject Files, 1975-1979

Preferred Citation

Kent Acting and Touring Company records. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.

Restrictions on Use

Special Collections and Archives does not own the copyright to the materials in this collection.

Controlled Access Headings
The following are found in this collection:

Subjects:

Box 1
Folder -- Contents

Series 1: Season Productions, 1976-1979

1. 1976 Season: Programs and Flyers
2. 1976 Season: "Arsenic and Old Lace"
3. 1976 Season: "Christmas Carol, A"
4. 1976 Season: "Dracula"
5. 1976 Season: "Glass Menagerie, The" 
6. 1976 Season: "Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris"
7. 1976 Season: "Oh, Coward"
8. 1976 Season: "The Wizard of Oz"
9. 1977 Season: Programs and Flyers 
10. 1977 Season: "I Do! I Do!"
11. 1977 Season: "Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, The"
12. 1977 Season: "Oh, Coward"
13. 1977 Season: "Mark Twain in Person"
14. 1977-1978 Season: Programs and Flyers
15. 1978 Season: Programs and Flyers
16. 1978 Season: "Bus Stop"
17. 1978 Season: "Christmas Carol, A"
18. 1978 Season: "Fantasticks, The"
19. 1978 Season: "Mark Twain in Person"
20. 1979 Season: "Songs to Aging Children"

Series 2: Subject Files, 1975-1979

21. Locations, 1978-1979
22. Mailings, 1978-1979
         Scope and Content: Mailings to "KATC Board Members and Friends" 
23. Newsletters, 1975
24. Newsletters, 1976
25. Newsletters, undated
26. Photographs, undated
         Scope and Content: Two holiday cards with group photographs. 
27. Press release, undated
28. Staff, 1978-1979
29. Subscriptions, undated