Upstater Destinations: The Open Eye Theatre, Margaretville

  |  March 14, 2013
open eye theatre

Open Eye Theatre in Margaretville

Theatre nerds in the Catskills have a lot to be excited about these days. Performance opportunities abound for both those who love to tread the boards and those who prefer to remain in the audience. In Woodstock, there’s the Woodstock Playhouse and Bird-on-a-Cliff, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the Roxbury Arts Group, the Catskill Mountain Foundation in Hunter, and the Open Eye Theatre, located in the Delaware County town of Margaretville.

The Open Eye Theatre sprung from the not-for-profit organization Foundation for the Open Eye founded by Jean Erdman and Joseph Campbell (yes, THAT Joseph Campbell). The theatre itself opened in 1991.

Open Eye presents original live theatrical works geared toward “young and multi-generational audiences”, according to their website. Not only do they present performances for general audiences, Open Eye also provides theatrical education to local school districts as part of their core curriculum. And if you grew up bitten by the theatre bug, as we have, you’re incredibly jealous right now that your school didn’t have a program like that. Right now, Open Eye is providing this program to the Margaretville School District, but a partnership with the Andes School District is in the offing.

Additionally, the theatre holds a movie night a few times a month. Check the theatre’s schedule for what’s playing and when.

Open Eye was hit hard after Irene. You can see the damage on this page.

steel magnolias at open eye theatre

Steel Magnolias at the Open Eye Theatre.
Photo: Open Eye Theatre website

About Kandy Harris

Kandy is a writer and musician/music teacher living in Saugerties, NY.

Read more from Kandy Harris

Read On, Reader...