ABOUT
WE VALUE
INCLUSION
We welcome everyone regardless of what you look like, where you're from, how much you have, your ideology, or whom you love.
RESPECT
We are committed to being accepting, considerate, attentive, encouraging, and appreciative of every person who comes through our doors.
DISCOVERY
We revel in the marvel and wonder of human truths revealed, for the artists and the audience, through the art of live theatre.
COLLABORATION
We believe that the inherent value of individuals working together toward a collective vision creates something powerful that is far greater than the sum of its parts.
OUR VISION
Live theatre that entertains, enlightens, inspires, and unites our community.
OUR MISSION
To produce quality live shows, foster creative expression, and engage diverse community members in the art of theatre.
OUR HISTORY
The Hickory Community Theatre had its humble beginning in 1948 when the Hickory Recreation Department employed Kay Johnson to form a theatre group. Her first offering was a series of radio dramas aired on WIRC. In 1949, informal meetings, encouraged by the Kramer family, led to the formation of what was then known as The Hickory Little Theatre. The HLT first production was an evening of one-act plays, so successful that the company presented its first full-length production, YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU in October in the auditorium at City Hall. The building has been the home of HCT ever since.
The Theatre grew in popularity and community support through the ’50s and staged its first musical production, THE BOYFRIEND, in 1958 – the same year that Charles Jeffers started his life-long involvement with HCT.
A new city hall was built in 1976 and HCT slowly moved into more of the old building. Renovations in 1984 led to the two performance spaces known to modern audiences, the extremely popular Firemen’s Kitchen and the HCT Mainstage, which the City Council renamed The Charles E. Jeffers Theatre in 1988, when the City turned over the entire building to the use of the Theatre.
Renovations continued in the 1990s...
STAFF
Eric Seale
Artistic Director
Brittany Kosterlytzky
Scenic Carpenter/Charge Artist
John Rambo
Managing Director
Ethan Fite
Production Associate/Social Media Manager
Rochelle Walton
Administrative Manager
Julie Wright
House Manager
Kelsey Kott
Education Director
Christine Stinson
Bookkeeper
2026-2027 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OFFICERS
Alice McDonough, President Holley Dagenhardt, Vice President
Gina Shell, Treasurer Lisa Martinez Higgins, Secretary Anita Doran, Past President
MEMBERS AT LARGE
Anthony Alderman Steve Austin Dorothy Collier-Best Jackie Finley
Sherry Griffin Tom Lundy Mary Jo Morgan Jennifer Teague Fred Whalen
BOARD RECRUITMENT
Are you interested in joining the Board of Directors for HCT? Service on the HCT board is an opportunity to promote the Hickory Community Theatre and the arts in the Hickory region. The board is interested in diverse candidates with a passion for theatre and a love of the performing arts.