A sign at the edge of Hillsboro says it’s home to “600 happy people and a few old soreheads.” In a week, the Myers Dinner Theatre could host the entire town and send even the soreheads home smiling.
Since owners Richard and Donna Myers opened the doors in 2000, this year-round venue has presented a plethora of Broadway musicals, dramatic plays, song-studded revues, and much more. With seating for 150, sightlines are great, the space is cozy, and the performers need no microphones.
And if you leave hungry, that’s on you.
Each meal, cooked in-house, features at least one menu item tailored to the production – like pan-fried chicken (Johnny Cash’s favorite) for the Man in Black musical “Ring of Fire” or a turkey roll blue plate special for “Happy Days: The Musical.” Don’t skip the broccoli salad (a delicious spin on a slaw salad) or homemade rolls bigger than your fist. And if one dessert won’t do, Donna has you covered at intermission.
“We try to make it feel like you’re at Grandma and Grandpa’s house,” says Donna, who also greets every guest with a hug.
“Donna is awesome. She makes everybody feel like they’re family,” says George Borders of Crawfordsville, enjoying a Solo cup-sized sundae at intermission beside his wife, Judy.
And while restrooms may seem an odd selling point, they are here. Along with having plenty, each has its own unique theme and décor.
“I love to decorate, and this setup just gave me eight more little rooms to play with,” Donna says.
After starting with small-cast revues, Richard and Donna found their best-attended shows were bigger Broadway offerings and adapted accordingly. They’ve since staged everything from “The Sound of Music” to “Shrek: The Musical” and even “Titanic” (for which Richard sank a replica ship nightly).
“It made me a nervous wreck, but people loved it,” Donna laughs.
Each cast also blends professionally trained performers with community folks moonlighting on the side – leaving the Myers stage “open to all different shapes and sizes of people like real life,” as Donna prefers.
“I love seeing people discover a passion to perform,” Donna says. “They’re my family now, too, just like everybody is for the evening when they join us.”
IF YOU GO
Myers Dinner Theatre
108 Water St.
Hillsboro, IN
www.myersdt.com
(765) 798-4902
myersdt@myersdt.com
Ticket Prices
$38 (dinner and show); $21 (show only); children 3 and younger are free
Handicap-accessible; group rates available; dietary restrictions / food allergies addressed on advance request
General Showtimes
Wednesdays: Noon EDT meal, 1:30 p.m. show
Fridays: 6:30 p.m. meal, 8 p.m. show
Saturdays: Noon and 6:30 p.m. meals, 1:30 and 8 p.m. shows)
Box Office
Online at www.myersdt.com or onsite 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT Monday-Friday
