Rock Valley College Starlight Theatre
Starlight Theatre is an outdoor theatre operated by Rock Valley College in Rockford, Illinois. Performances are held in the outdoor Bengt Sjostrom Theatre. Operations of Rock Valley College Studio Theatre, an indoor black box theatre, were suspended in 2016. Starlight Theatre also has an award-winning structure designed by Jeanne Gang and Studio Gang Architects that features a unique, one-of-a-kind movable roof, which was added in 2003. Starlight Theatre has transformed itself into a popular destination for the Northern Illinois region. The theatre is situated on 217 acres that were purchased by the college in 1965 from Dr. J.J. Rogers.
History
In the fall of 1966, a group of Rock Valley College students approached Rueben Johnson, the acting Dean of Community Services, with the idea of creating a theatre program. Their aim was to foster public appreciation for the college's scenic farm setting. The following year, they staged an outdoor musical near the farm pond, which had been purchased in 1965 from Dr. J.J. Rogers. They chose to perform "Finian’s Rainbow," a production that addresses overcoming racial barriers through hard work and a touch of magic. Community members enjoyed this inaugural performance from lawn chairs. Since its inception in 1967, Starlight Theatre has produced a total of 191 productions.List of Main Stage Performances and Directors
1967: Finian's Rainbow
1968: Patience & Waiting for Godot
1969: Oklahoma!
1970: Man of La Mancha
1971: Oliver! & Fiddler on the Roof
1972: 1776 & The King & I
1973: My Fair Lady & Promises, Promises
1974: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying & No, No, Nanette
1975: Godspell & Jesus Christ Superstar
1976: Of Thee I Sing, A Little Night Music, & Once Upon a Mattress
1977: The Sound of Music & The Music Man
1978: Camelot & Show Boat
1979: West Side Story & Hello, Dolly!
1980: Carnival & Funny Girl
1981: The Wizard of Oz & H.M.S. Pinafore
1982: Grease, Jacques Brel, & South Pacific
1983: Man of La Mancha, The Pirates of Penzance, & Guys & Dolls
1984: Carousel, My Fair Lady, & George M!
1985: Cabaret, Oklahoma!, & Evita
1986: Barnum, The Music Man, & Fiddler on the Roof
1987: Peter Pan, 1776, & Candide
1988: Camelot, Annie Get Your Gun, & 42nd Street
1989: Oliver!, Jesus Christ Superstar, & Anything Goes
1990: The King & I, The Student Prince, & My One and Only
1991: West Side Story, Shenandoah, & A Chorus Line
1992: Hello Dolly, Big River, & Into the Woods
1993: Kiss Me Kate, Rags, & City of Angels
1994: Meet Me in St. Louis, My Fair Lady, & Evita
1995: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, The New Pirates of Penzance, & Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
1996: Bye Bye Birdie, Pippin, Crazy For You, & Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
1997: Guys & Dolls, Children of Eden, & The Sound of Music
1998: The Secret Garden, Cinderella, & Western Star
1999: Annie, Once on this Island, & Fiddler on the Roof
2000: Godspell, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, & Hans Christian Andersen, The Storyteller's Story
2001: The Music Man, Grease, & Rebels
2002: South Pacific, Honk!, & 42nd Street
2003: Big River, Just So, & Children of Eden
2004: Show Boat, You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, The Hot Mikado, & Seussical
2005: Oklahoma!, Jesus Christ Superstar, Disney's Beauty & the Beast, & Chess
2006: Cats, State Fair, Miss Saigon, & Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
2007: Peter Pan, Disney's Geppetto & Son, Jekyll & Hyde, & Ragtime
2008: Jonah- An Old Testament Yarn, The Wiz, Little Shop of Horrors, & Thoroughly Modern Millie
2009: David the King, Evita, The King and I, & The Producers
2010: Chicago, Aida, Annie, & Rent
2011: The Phantom of the Opera, After Dark, The Drowsy Chaperone, & Hairspray
2012: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Little Women, Into the Woods, & 9 to 5: The Musical
2013: Starlight Express, Xanadu, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, & Les Misérables
2014: The Sound of Music, Tintypes, Honk!, Spamalot, & Angel
2015: Mary Poppins, The Last Five Years, Memphis, & Young Frankenstein
2016: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Phantom of the Opera, & Children of Eden
2017: Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Peter and the Starcatcher, Sister Act, & Godspell
2018: Shrek the Musical, Jane Eyre, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, & Anything Goes
2019: Mamma Mia!, West Side Story, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, & The Addams Family
2020: No season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021: A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, Once Upon a Mattress, & Little Shop of Horrors
2022: The Little Mermaid, Disaster!, Dreamgirls, & Hello Dolly!
2023: Footloose: The Musical, In The Heights, Oliver!, & Cinderella
2024: Legally Blonde, Guys & Dolls, The Color Purple, & Newsies
2025: SpongeBob: The Musical, Grease, Ragtime, The Wedding Singer
2026: The Wizard Of Oz, Once On This Island, Something Rotten, 9 To 5
Starlittle Series
In 2018, Starlight Theatre introduced the Starlittle series. This series contained shows aimed towards young children and families. These shows occurred at the end of the main Starlight season.List of Starlittle Performances and Directors
2018: Cinderella... After the Ball
2019: Madagascar
2020: No season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021: Pinkalicious
2022: How I Became A Pirate
2023: The Stinky Cheese Man & Other Fairly Stupid Tales
In November 2023, it was announced that the Starlittle series would be retired and replaced with the Starbright series which are shows that primarily cast from the ages of 8 to 18.
Starbright
In November 2023, Starlight Theatre announced that the Starlittle series would be retired. It has been replaced by the Starbright series which casts from the ages of 8 to 18. Unlike the Starlittle series, the Starbright series is not primarily for young children and families but is a series where young talent can get involved at Starlight. The Starbright series premiered in 2024.List of Starbright Performances and Directors
2024: Disney's Beauty and The Beast2025: Mary Poppins
2026: The Addams Family
Starlight Shakes
Starlight Theatre has done a number of Shakespeare performances. These performances are done on the Ray Castle Stage, which is rebuilt every year in the east lawn next to the Bengt Sjostrom Theatre.List of Shakespeare Performances and Directors
2018: The Taming of the Shrew
2019: Twelfth Night
2020: No Shakespeare due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021: Macbeth
2022: A Comedy of Errors
2023: Love's Labour's Lost
2024: Julius Ceaser
2025: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Starlight Traditions
Starlight Theatre has put on several productions in a black box theatre created on the stage of the Bengt Sjostrom Theatre. This black box theatre has come to be known as “The Cabin” and is reserved for productions performed in the fall and winter. The productions put on in the cabin have been mostly Christmas shows, with the exception of 2022. These productions are referred to as “traditions.”List of Tradition performances and directors
2018: A Charlie Brown Christmas
2019: A Christmas Story: The Musical
2020: No tradition due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
2022: The Rocky Horror Show