East Lynne Theater Company

My husband is acting in an ELTC play.
I usher and assist at ELTC activities.
We atend a wide variety of offerings by ELTC including Victorian Tales, readings, galas and productions.
We contribute auction items for benefit events.
We publicize events.
We are subscribers each season.

Thank you East Lynne Theater Company for your excellent work: great selections of the most interesting American drama, presented by stellar actors with creative directing and staging. 'The Rainmaker' was fun and emotionally satisfying; I can't wait for 'Arsenic and Old Lace'.

As a volunteer usher for ELTC I have not only gained knowledge of early Twentieth Century plays but also gained respect for the company and their efforts to bring new actors and experienced actors together each season and their outreach to schools in the area with programs encouraging youngsters to participate in plays and learn about theater.

East Lynne Theater Company is one of only 2 live theaters in our town of Cape May! This Theater located in a local church is ultimately amazingly successful in its performances. From the use of a basic set opportunity to make the viewer truly feel 'in the scene' to lighting and overall hospitality! The choice of venues generally coming from the early 1900's and up rather than current, shows the good ole humor so easily displayed! Costuming and dialect so well put together. A great place to see a very great and memorable stage play!!

East Lynne provides a wealth of wonderful American theater pieces with superb equity actors. My experience attending their performances has always been outstanding. Always excellent casting and acting, always a delight. I recently began serving as a board member but I have been attending ELTC for many years with no affiliation whatsoever and I have nothing but raves for the many productions that I have enjoyed. That is the reason that I agreed to serve the organization because it is worthy of thriving and growing in a time of difficult funding and limited grant awards. East Lynne always delivers superlative productions and expands the world of quality theater with every production.

Wow. We are very fortunate to have this amazing theater company, East Lynne Theater, right in our own backyard. My first interaction with the company was over 12 years ago when my son was in ELTC's West Cape Elementary school’s production of Robin Hood. The theater company almost every year partners with the community and exposes our children to the art. After seeing the performance and many more after that, my son and I loved this theater company and decided to give back to this wonderful organization by volunteering. The entire organization from the Artistic Director Gayle Stahlhuth, Lee O’Connor (Technical Director), Thomas Raniszewski (President of the Board), Frank Smith (previous President and now volunteer), actors, and to all the many volunteers are a delight to work with.

As a part time volunteer and a theater goer as well as a seasoned actor, this theater company consistently presents top notch theater that is seasoned but surprisingly realative to our society today. They work miracles with their sets as they bring the theater to life. The actors are superb and throw their hearts into their roles.
Always entertaining and informative, fun and thought provoking. All arounrd great entertainment and well worth the trip!

From my experiences both as a volunteer and part of the audience, I find East Lynne a vital contributor to South Jersey culture. I volunteered as an usher and fund raiser, so I saw this summer’s productions of the original musical review, “Sunny Side of the Street”, and the well-loved “Arsenic and Old Lace” multiple times and was thrilled every time. The wide scope of challenging theater and the consistent high quality are laudable. I speak on behalf of family and friends, who all look forward to an evening at East Lynne as a highlight of their visit.

My wife and I have made it a point to attend at least one ELTC production each year for the past eight years and we have never been disappointed. This season’s “The Poe Mysteries” was another extremely entertaining show uniquely conceived and excellently performed. Seeing an ELTC performance is one of our favorite annual “must do” events.

I had the pleasure of catching ELT's production of The Poe Mysteries this past summer and just loved it! After the show it took me quite some time to shake that eerie feeling that the show gave me. Overall the performance was gripping and the acting was fantastic. All the actors worked together in an impressively well-functioning manner, like clockwork. I can't wait to see more work by this extremely talented group of artists!

As both the pastor of the church in which East Lynne has residence and as a member of the board, I have been extremely pleased with the year in and year out performance quality of each production. This company takes seriously their mission of keeping classic theater in front of the public. The productions always take into account the fact that they are performed in a church and the artistic director takes great pains to maintain suitability. These are shows in which no one ever has to worry about language or content. What a joy for that in today's woprld. I would urge anyone looking for good quality and wholesome entertainment and great production values to check out the East Lynne company.

As a new board member of the East Lynne Theatre, I am delighted to be a part of this organization. The productions of classic American Theatre are both well directed and well performed. Educational outreach programs for students and adults offer workshops and acting classes as well as provide cultural enrichment programs to community schools. I particularly enjoy the "tales of Victorian" porch readings presented by actors weekly during the summer season in Cape May. The Press of Atlantic City described it best as "one of South Jersey's cultural treasures."

I have been on the Board for many years and each year it is a challenge but I am amazed each year with the outstanding quality of the shows. They get better each year, and the actors are all top notch and I would put them up against any notable actor today. The shows , though dated, do have relevance to things today and most are done with humor, which is never outdated. This company has had challenges in locating a permanent home, but its involvement in the community is unbelievable.I am proud to be a Board Member and associated with such talented and caring people, the staff and the volunteers. Once you see a show, you will come back again. I have met people who drive a hundred miles to come see a show, then return home.

I am a theater professional who has both seen productions and worked with the company, and am always impressed by the quality of the work. First, the "hidden gems" of American theater that the company unearths and gives new life; and second, the fine performances. These have included adaptations of Mark Twain, O. Henry and Poe, revivals of George S. Kaufman and Eugene O'Neill, along with vibrant new works celebrating Paul Robeson and Louisa May Alcott. East Lynne Theater is a wonderful resource for the community, young and old, who need more exposure to the great works of our past, in Cape May NJ and on tour.

I have been attending performances by this theater group for a decade. The productions are first rate, and the acting rivals any I've seen at The Kennedy Center or Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C. The best thing about East Lynne is how history is infused with comedy. They find vintage play material with all the raucous hilarity of today's sitcoms. It never ceases to amaze me how the popular topics of the 19th and early 20th centuries are still the same concerns and issues of today. East Lynne doesn't just perform comedies (though that is my favorite). You'll find the performance season spanning the gamut: thought-provoking dramas, whimsical radio show enactments with sound effects, simple readings or story telling -- all depicted by a variety of skilled professional actors for very reasonable ticket prices. East Lynne also runs workshops for area youth, making them a truly educational resource for the local community. I hope they continue to delight audiences for years to come.

East Lynne Theater Company (ELTC) performs early American plays not only in Cape May, NJ but take plays on the road. Some of these plays are world premiers and have not been seen in almost 100 years. ELTC has received grants including ones for educational programs. The acting and all aspects of presenting a play are great. Because of the fantastic plays and everyone being so friendly, ELTC is the only theater I attend. After the performances, the audience can meet the cast.

This is a Theater which has great American comedies and thought provoking plays,fun for the whole family. Some plays are 100 years old and are hilarious and still true today. You won't find this kind of theater anywhere else in the U.S. East Lynne also has an Educational Outreach program which is the equal to the mega theaters in the region.

East Lynne began for me as a theater company using my church for it's shows. I worked full time so didn't pay much attention to any theater. A few years ago, I listened to a friend and began to volunteer with East Lynne. Their shows are wonderful---American writing from the past that most of us ignore in favor of the newest. They also so entertaining and interesting. This company also gives acting classes, works with young people in the summer and at schools, and offers many other educational activities. The director and staff are so dedicated to this company---they deserve all of our support.

East Lynne Theater has a unique mission. This company presents early American plays from the Twentieth century. I was amazed and delighted to discover how timely and relevant this body of work is. The plays and the voices of these playwrights speak to our humanity, to our roots, to who we are. Not only for the artistic director, technical director, the board members, directors, actors, designers, interns, crew but most important for the audience, East Lynne offers a timely opportunity by inviting us all to immerse ourselves in the world of these early American gems only to discover how universal and how applicable these stories, these voices, these hearts are to our life experience today. East Lynne Theater truly puts the American Spirit on Stage. Not only can one experience this spirit in Cape May, New Jersey but throughout the country via their educational outreach programs and their touring productions.