Founded in 1981, Touchstone Theatre is a professional not-for-profit theatre dedicated to the creation of original work. At its center is a resident ensemble of theatre artists rooted in the local community of Bethlehem, the Greater Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania and the international community of Ensemble Theatres.
The Ensemble:
1. Creates original theatre and re-imagines select texts through a heightened theatrical vocabulary.
2. Tours and presents original and ensemble-created works.
3. Offers educational programs that:
– Inspire students of any age to discover their unique creative voice.
– Provide high quality training to the next generation of theatre artists.
4. Transforms audiences through community-based theatrical productions and community-building projects.
MEET THE STAFF
MEET THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES & HONORARY COUNCIL
Board of Trustees
Ernie Thomas Stiegler, President
Michele Pappalardo, Vice President
Bekah Eichelberger, Secretary
Joe Connell, Treasurer
Diane Elliott, Esq.
John Fallock
Jennifer Jiménez
James Jordan
Lisa Jordan
Neal Koplin
Alison O’Connell
Honorary Council
Beall and Linny* Fowler
Ellen Baker-Ghelardi
Ruth Marcon
Mary Meilinger*
Joan Moran
Mrs. Katherine Merle-Smith Thomas*
Barbara Pearson*
Denise Stangl
Sharon Yoshida
* In Memoriam
ONCE UPON A TIME
It all started in the mid-1970’s…
Touchstone’s founding members were part of a series of improvisational bilingual street theatre troupes made up of professional artists, university students, local teachers and teens. These troupes brought an immediate and intimate form of theatre to area neighborhoods and parks in order to acknowledge, engage and celebrate low-income Latino and Anglo populations..
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