Jersey Central Theatre Company was formed in 2001 by Founding Artistic Director, Ken Schwarz, to engage and entertain its surrounding communities with quality presentations.

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Originally housed on the stage of a historic neighborhood cinema, which opened in 1922 showing silent movies and vaudeville performances, JCTC's inaugural season had the misfortune of premiering only a couple of weeks after September 11, 2001 and the horrific attacks on our nation. It's always difficult for any arts organization to attract an audience, but it was especially challenging during that  dark period in our history. 

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But JCTC persevered. We ended up producing seven mainstage professional theatrical productions, benefit performances, readings, and a children's theatre program, that featured the participation of "One Life to Live" stars Kassie & James DePaiva, and Broadway vets Nathan Morgan ("Phantom of the Opera," "CATS"), and Keirsten Kupiec ("42nd Street"). Unfortunately, just as we were gaining momentum, we lost our performance venue.

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In recent years, JCTC has transitioned to developing new works for the stage and screen along with fiscal sponsorship. The Jersey Central Lines Railroad, which ran through many of the communities we served, inspired the name of our non-profit organization. With your generous tax-deductible support, we will make every effort to become a worthy addition to New Jersey's cultural arts landscape, and hopefully inspire you.

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We would love to welcome you aboard!