get involved

We need you!

And you need us, but you might not know it yet.

You can change your life by donating a day, a week or a year. Many of our members have been with us for 20, 30, 40 years or more, working, playing and contributing to the community. Many of us have built lifelong friendships here, some have met and married their spouses at Elmwood, and quite a few have found employment on the great white way, film, and TV by using what they’ve learned here.

Change your Life
Contribute your time, talent, and energy.
Come to an open membership meeting.  Meet us.  Join.
Donate a day or a lifetime.
Discover talents
Learn new skills
Have fun and make new friends
Build professional networks

Are you retired, bored, or need something new in your life? You want to socialize more but don’t know where to start?  You’ve always dreamt of being in the theatre? We have the answer and no special skills are required. All you have to do is come by the theatre, we will find something interesting and fun you can do.  Join us and meet new people, learn new skills, see live theatre and above all, have FUN!

All you need is a little nerve to walk through the door.

but I cant act …

but you can cook, sew, paint, or serve on a committee.

There are many different ways to get involved in your community theatre. We all do some cooking, sewing, gardening, painting, light carpentry, or crafts. Do you like to read? You could serve on a committee like Play Selection.  Play selection is similar to a book club - you read plays and then meet to discuss, often in very passionate and loud voices, the viability of producing the play at our theatre. This important committee decides on the plays can be brought to life at our theatre. There are many more ways your skill sets can blossom.

Become an Elmwood Playhouse Member

Everyone is valued and needed.

Our member’s life energy is the key to our success as an award winning theatre. As a not-for-profit organization, Elmwood Playhouse relies completely on the hard work and energy of volunteers. Our volunteers are our family. Volunteering for the Playhouse gives you a thrilling, behind the scenes look at what it takes to get a production off the page and onto the stage. Of course we always need Actors, Directors, Designers, Producers and Running Crew, but here are just some of the other exciting things you could help us out with:

Board of Directors - Business background helpful but not mandatory. Requires one evening per month and chair liason to a committee. (Plus any other time we can steal from you. Say, could you spare some blood?)

Hospitality Ushers All you need is an hour or so and an occasional a quart of milk. You will help to seat the audience, hand out Playbills, collect tickets stubs and sell goodies at intermission. (And smile at the patrons!) If there's an empty seat in the house you don't have to peek through the curtain to see the action. We are always in need of additional ushers.

Lighting & Sound Operators –Lighting Board, Spotlight and Sound Operators are needed for every performance. No experience necessary, will train.

Make Up and Hair Specialists – some shows require a lot more transformation than others, if you have a talent working with hair and makeup, we’d love your assistance during a run (a run of performances.)

Special FX Artists - Must love blood and guts. Will train. Mwwah-ha-ha-ha.

Set Building & Painting -Designer always needs extra hands with set construction and painting. No experience necessary! Sometimes it just means holding the other end of a board and or painting the walls black. And lunch is served! At the end of the run there is a big demand to help "strike" the set to prepare for the next set. We build our sets in our own shop during the approximately four-week break between shows.

Building Maintenance- Building maintenance is a challenge when the building is prehistoric and in continuous use, Our Building Manager is constantly loaded with work and never has enough hands.  He is delighted with all volunteer help. 

Librarian – We’ve gathered a lot of history since 1947 and like everyone, we are digitally cataloging our lives. In addition to the lending library of scripts and technical books, there are pictures boards, newspaper articles and publicity materials to be maintained.

Box Office & Mailing Assistants – temporary light office help for envelope stuffing and label sticking, especially at the beginning of our annual Season Subscription and Membership Drive. Generally lots of good gossip to be had.

Marketing – We need salespeople to sell playbill advertising to local merchants, vendors and sponsors. Must love theatre.

Cooking – There are many master chefs at Elmwood who fill our bellies at work calls and parties with delicious eats, but your secret recipe might be our new favorite.

Gardener – Green thumb appreciated. 3 hours a month in spring, summer and fall would be a great help.

Newsletter Editors – “The Player”, our monthly Elmwood newsletter, needs copywriters, editorial contributions, photography and artwork. Are you the perfect addition to our news team?

Party Planning & Production – (for in house opening and closing night parties.)  Planning, menu selection, shopping, coordination of volunteer cooks, & clean up (which everybody usually helps with anyway.)

Play Selection Committee – Help nominate and select the next season’s shows.  Most like to read, have a sense of humor and be ready to argue for your nominees. 

Tour Guides – Conduct “back stage” theatre tours at our open membership meetings for all guests joining us for the first time. Must like to talk.

Audio Visual Guru Geek. Trouble shooting and problem solving sound, lighting, special effects issues, fixing mike cords, etc. Familiarity with a ladder preferred.

Rehearsal Musicians – Piano players for musical rehearsals.

Dresser - Actors frequently need lots of assistance with quick costume changes required during the course of a performance.  How did that actor come out in a completely different costume in 30 seconds later, the hero was the dresser!

Wardrobe Assistant – Inventory, pull, and categorize wardrobe items, work with costume designer. Sewing skills great, but not mandatory

Script Person – A person who holds the script during rehearsals and feeds lines to the actors when they “go up” (forget a line).

Fund Raiser – If you have experience at Fund raising, do we have an opening for you!  We need help in funding our theatre renovation.

Special Events – Nyack Street Fair Information and Welcome Booth Staff always needed. Nyack Halloween Parade float construction crew and costumed riders for event.

Photography – Photographers needed to shoot headshots, publicity, performances and activities. If you are looking to build a portfolio, this is an excellent opportunity.

Graphic Artists – We need fresh talent for all print and web publications. If you’ve got some basic digital desktop chops and want to expand your portfolio, there are many ways your talent can be showcased.

We always have immediate openings.
See if your ambitions meet some of our openings.

Meetings and workshops on the first Monday of each month at  7:30 pm. Everyone's invited.... come, enjoy, join us.

For More information: Call 845-353-1313 during office hours
Tuesday - Friday 9:00am - 3:00pm Saturday 10:00am - 2:00pm

ELMWOOD PLAYHOUSE • 10 PARK ST.• NYACK • NY • 10960 • (845) 353-1313