PHAMALY History

HISTORY TIMELINE

1989PHAMALY is founded by five graduates of The Boettcher School.

1992PHAMALY moves to the Space Theatre at the Denver Performing Arts Complex; Denver Center Media, a division of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, produces PHAMALY’s first short documentary, PHAMALY One by One.

1994PHAMALY presents Fiddler on the Roof for its fifth anniversary. It is the first year the company receives critical acclaim resulting in its first Denver Drama Critics Circle nominations.

1999PHAMALY’s tenth anniversary produces the regional premiere of Side Show. The story about real life conjoined twins startles audiences with the opening number “Come Look at the Freaks.” The production sets a new standard for PHAMALY and results in critical and audience acclaim for the company.

2000 • Steve Wilson joins the company as Grand Hotel director.

2002 • Once Upon a Mattress wins its first Denver Post Ovation Award for Best Choreography (Debbie Stark).

• Respected Colorado filmmakers, Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher (Just Media), produce the short documentary We Are PHAMALY. The film premieres at the Starz Denver International Film Festival before going on to other fi lm festivals around the country.

2004PHAMALY remounts Guys & Dolls in celebration of its fifteenth season. PHAMALY wins Ovation Awards for Best Actor (Leonard Barrett, Jr.) and Best Lighting (Dave Mazzeno).

• Steve Wilson is named the company’s Artistic Director.

2005PHAMALY stages a ground-breaking version of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, enjoying capacity crowds and receiving numerous awards.

• Co-founder Teri Westerman nominated Volvo Hero of the Year.

2006PHAMALY’s The Wiz opens to critical acclaim, running for ten sold out performances and receiving numerous awards.

• The company receives its first national exposure with a 12-minute feature on the respected PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.

2007PHAMALY explores new territory when it produces its first non-musical, Our Town, at the Aurora Fox Arts Center. The show positions PHAMALY as a respected theatre company that presents both musical and non-musical professionally produced shows.

PHAMALY presents the Tony Award winning musical satire Urinetown - The Musical, adding performances over four weekends instead of its traditional three.

PHAMALY presents one week of short plays by national playwright Suzan-Lori Parks. 365days 365plays is a national effort of 600 theatre companies to present a play a day for 365 days from November 2006 – November 2007. The project is led in Denver by the highly respected Curious Theatre Company in association with the Public Theatre in New York City.

2008PHAMALY mounts its second non-musical, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, earning actor Lucy Roucis, a Denver Post Ovation nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama.

PHAMALY remounts Side Show for its annual summer musical. Presented concurrently with the National Performing Arts Convention in Denver, PHAMALY is able to showcase its talents to a national audience. Side Show is nominated for seven Denver Post Ovation Awards.

PHAMALY’s original one-act musical Show Up For Democracy, is performed all over the Denver Metro area.

PHAMALY sings The National Anthem at the Democratic National Convention.

PHAMALY’s writing workshop creates VOX PHAMALIA:Tales from the Crips, an engaging piece written by members of PHAMALY highlighting their personal triumphs in life.

PHAMALY archives

What's on stage

The PHAMALY mission

Mission: To provide professional theatre opportunities and artistic development for performers with disabilities, and to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities in the performing arts community.

Core Values:

  • Artistic Excellence: Commitment to high quality theater artistry
  • Empowerment: Encouraging and supporting the development and full realization of professionalism for performers with disabilities
  • Awareness: Education that challenges perceptions about people with disabilities and their capabilities
  • Inclusion: Providing, advocating for and building a sense of community to ensure access and opportunities for performers with disabilities
  • As a not-for-profit 501c3 organization, PHAMALY is dedicated to producing traditional theater in nontraditional ways.
  • We strive to empower our actors as they acquire and improve their acting skills.
  • We educate theater professionals in methods of adapting their own productions to the needs of people with disabilities.
  • We develop, discover, and incorporate assistive technologies to improve the experience for actors and audiences alike.

PHAMALY | P.O. Box 44216 | Denver, CO 80201 | 303.575.0005 | info(insert 'at' symbol here)phamaly.org