History of the Providence Players

The Glass Mendacity Julie Janson Ian Wade Craig Geoffrion and Michael Donahue
The cast of The Glass Mendacity, June 2013. (l-r) Julie Janson, Ian Wade, Craig Geoffrion, Elizabeth Lloyd, and Michael Donahue

None of the parents who first banded together in 1998 to mount the Kaufman and Hart comedy classic You Can’t take It With You could have imagined that after a decade, Providence Players of Fairfax would emerge as one of the region’s leading community theater companies with 180 member artists serving over 450 season ticket holders and 4,500 theater patrons each year.

An award-winning company, Providence Players is proud to be a member of the Washington Area Theater Community Honors (WATCH) organization that presents annual awards recognizing artistic and technical excellence in Community Theater. Since becoming a member in 2004, Providence Players has been recognized with numerous WATCH nominations for quality theatrical performance and technical production, including several outstanding Play nominations.

Providence Players has also been honored by the British Players’ Ruby Griffith Awards program, including The Ruby Griffith Award for Outstanding Achievement in a Play in 2016 for Amadeus, in 2014 for Of Mice and Men, and in 2011 for The Shadow Box.  Providence Players won the All Round Production Excellence (the organization’s top honor) in 2009 for All My Sons. 

Providence Players also became a member and grant recipient of the ARTSFAIRFAX, and has been honored by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors (sponsored by retired Supervisor Linda Smyth and then Chairman, now Congressman Gerry Connolly) for artistic excellence and community involvement.

Providence Players is also committed to the diverse community it serves. It launched the Theater Community Inclusion Project, a community outreach initiative that strives to increase participation among new audiences, particularly youth and underserved populations by providing free tickets to those who cannot afford the price of admission, a special free teacher and student preview performance for each production, theater workshops for youth, and scholarships to college-bound students who wish to pursue theater as a degree or profession.

Providence Players is a group of committed, member artists. It’s a “big tent” – big enough to include first timers to theatrical endeavors and those with significant theater experience. This includes you! Please join us as a member of the company on-stage, backstage, behind the scenes, or as an ongoing member of our audience. We sincerely welcome you!