The Pineapple Playhouse
Our History
Community theatre was established in St. Lucie County in 1949 under the auspices of the Woman's Club of Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County's oldest civic and cultural organization. Under that sponsorship, the organization, called The Dolphin Players, flourished for several years, performing at the Woman's Club, at Fort Pierce Elementary School, and various other locations. Eventually, expenses overtook revenue and the theatre of would-be thespians regrouped as The Fort Pierce Little Theatre and was in business again. Rehearsing in garages, upstairs over Warren's Laundry, in the Historic Arcade Building where it survived a devastating fire, performing in Fort Pierce Central where vandalism was a problem, and in IRCC's Student Center on a home-made portable stage where the set had to be dismantled after each night's performance, the troupe never lost its spirit. In the meantime there was an influx of new talent melding with the old Ferrara Family came to town, there were Mike and Helen Armstrong, Bill and Jane Braun, John and Diane Procino, the Tabors, Joanne Carlton Humphries, Pete and Claudia McDonald, Audrey Zeitz, John and Gail Luchka and the Port St. Lucie Players - a few of them are still with us.
In 1973, the organization was re-incorporated as St. Lucie Community Theatre. The Board of Directors at that time included Fred Ferrara, John Procino, Wilma Cowles, Horty Selkin, Kathy Hammond, Rosalyn Savel, Floyd Bell, Benny Rhyant, Berniece Ribakoff, and Dr. Vincent Molina. We later adopted the name Pineapple Playhouse.
With renewed energy, we moved forward and launched our production of Bell, Book and Candle at the McAlpin Fine Arts Center at IRCC, hoping to establish it as our permanent home. However, that arrangement proved short-lived, as the college’s schedule ultimately required us to relocate. In hindsight, this was a blessing in disguise, prompting us to pursue—and ultimately secure—a permanent home of our own.
Today, Pineapple Playhouse stands as that home—a place we are proud to call our own. It is here that we present our annual season of six mainstage productions, along with a diverse array of specialty performances, including one-act plays, magicians, musicians, Reader's Theatre, and a holiday production.