Our History
In 2008, a group of homeschoolers wanted more theater opportunities, so a few moms banded together to help them with a performance of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, which was held at a local church.
They dreamed of a theater arts group, created a logo, and took the money they had left over from their performances to look for their next show opportunity. Unfortunately, it would be nine years before that money could be reinvested.
In 2017 there was an even larger group of families desiring theater opportunities, and so Homegrown Players (HGP) was revived using those original funds and logo. Within the year it was obvious we had the needed momentum and applied for our non-profit status with a commitment to, not just theater, but to all arts.
Since that time, we have presented 6 additional shows:
“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”
“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”
“The Murder Mystery at the Murder Mystery”
“The Wizard of Oz in the Wild West”
“Alice @ Wonderland”
and a double feature of “Fairytale Network” and “Complaint Department and Lemonade”.
We have been nomadic, performing these shows at various locations, storing our sets, props, and costumes wherever we could find a home for them at the time. During a production’s rehearsals, these were oftentimes toted back and forth by the directors.
We have also managed to implement a summer theater camp program for the homeschool community in which we cast, rehearse, and perform a show in 5 days, and this past summer we offered one in Licking County, as well.
We have also had the opportunity to add technical aspects to our shows over these few years including lighting and digital sound effects. Entering into our 5th season, we opened with record breaking attendance of about 290 over 2 shows and have a mystery dinner theater fundraiser, two spring shows for two different age groups, as well as summer camp on the schedule for 2022. Additionally, we will be giving our high schoolers the opportunity to reach out to the community by offering a camp for kids in the community who could benefit from the chance to try out the stage, utilizing our HGP teens as camp staff.