Ivoryton Playhouse
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Comstock-Cheney Hall
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| Location | Main and Summit Sts., Ivoryton, Connecticut |
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| Coordinates | 41°20′55″N 72°26′32″W / 41.34861°N 72.44222°WCoordinates: 41°20′55″N 72°26′32″W / 41.34861°N 72.44222°W |
| Area | 0.6 acres (0.24 ha) |
| Built | 1910 and 1938 |
| Architect | Unknown |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| NRHP reference # | 82003769 |
| Added to NRHP | April 15, 1982 |
The Ivoryton Playhouse is a small professional theater located in the village of Ivoryton in the town of Essex, Connecticut, USA. The theatre is believed to be the first self-supporting summer theatre in the United States and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It produces shows year round, March through December. As Comstock-Cheney Hall, it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Construction began in 1910 and was completed 1911 as a recreation hall for the Comstock-Cheney factory. The building includes Classical Revival architecture. When listed the property included three contributing buildings on an area of 0.6 acres (0.24 ha).
Milton Stiefel was an actor who eventually became the right hand and confidant of David Belasco, considered one of the greatest directors to emerge from American theatre. After Belasco's death in May 1931, Stiefel continued as manager and stage director for many extravagant shows which traveled nationally, playing in every major American city. At the end of one of these tours, Stiefel came to Essex in order to rest, saw the unused recreation hall and thought it would be well-suited to accommodate a resident stock company. A Broadway comedy play titled "Broken Dishes" had just closed in New York (reportedly with Bette Davis in her first Broadway role), and Stiefel opened it in Ivoryton during the week of June 17, 1930. Thus the Ivoryton Playhouse came to be.
Stiefel's actors lived in private homes in Ivoryton, from which most of the sets and props were borrowed. The company did not break even until the last week of summer, but that was enough to convince Stiefel that the theatre could be a success. Throughout the ensuring years, he continued to produce and direct in Ivoryton, and in 1938 he bought the building. Stiefel continued at Ivoryton until his retirement in 1973, when he sold the theatre to Ken Krezel.
The theatre is believed to be the first self-supporting summer theatre in the United States. The listing is described in its NRHP nomination document. Although there were older theatres in Dennis, MA and Skowhegan, ME, they were endowed by foundations of wealthy families and not self-supporting. The Westport Country Playhouse was established one year after the Ivoryton Playhouse.
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