The St. Cyril Theatre Guild was formally
founded in 1991 as a ministry.
The St. Cyril Singers, the contemporary choir made up of
members of the St. Cyril of Alexandria Catholic Church
in Houston, Texas, has provided the major source of
talent over the years; however, today the Guild draws
talent from throughout the Houston community.
The goal of the Guild is to bring together church and community
members who enjoy the various aspects of theatre. Then, working
as a group, they produce a musical
appealing to members of the Parish specifically
and the Houston community generally. It is true community theatre,
with everyone donating their time and efforts to make
the end product something special and an accomplishment
of which everyone can be proud. Singing, acting, dancing,
lights, sets, props, stage crew, publicity, tickets, costumes,
and concessions are all concerns of every member of the
Guild and every member contributes in as many areas as possible.
This is the ninth summer in which the St. Cyril Theatre
Guild has produced a musical. There is a production committee
which takes input from Guild members and a show is chosen
several months prior to the start of rehearsals, but
now, as in the beginning, the St. Cyril Singers, our
primary source of talent, provides the foundation for the
direction of the Guild and the musicals that are
chosen for production.
The St. Cyril Theatre Guild was originally conceived in 1989
as a way to allow young adults to "give back" to
their community. Urged by Father Ed Randall to
participate in a ministry, Kayleen Dahms and John
Clements, began looking into the various opportunities
available throughout St. Cyril ministries. They
felt that music provided a way to serve the community
and crossed all age barriers. Interested in
theatre, Kayleen and John decided to see if there
was sufficient interest among the congregation to
produce a show, preferably a musical, that would incorporate
the abundant talent among the St. Cyril parishioners.
However, with their engagement in early 1990, the idea was put on hold.
Then in early 1991, Kayleen mentioned her idea to a
friend, Wynne Kloskey, who "nearly fell out of her
chair, she was so excited!" Wynne had a theater minor,
as did her husband, and she was very interested in
directing the show. So the idea was given a "re-start"
and, with a loan from the Young Adults and a car wash
to raise money for royalty rights for Fiddler on the Roof,
the Guild's first show became a reality. From there
on, the Guild has succeeded in producing a musical
every summer. There were ups and downs, but
the Guild has persevered and is looking forward to its
tenth anniversary season next summer.
This is our second season performing at Rice University's
Hammon Hall in what we hope will become a lasting relationship. Our current
director is Jill Elizabeth Aufill, now in her fourth season as Director with
the Guild. Check out some of Jill's thoughts on directing and
community theatre on her "Director's Page".