Doylestown Gains a Museum and Theatre Education Center

Doylestown, PA—On December 4th at noon, in the house where the songs and lyrics for some of the most famous musical theater shows were written: Oklahoma, Carousel, The King and I, South Pacific, and The Sound of Music, a press conference led by Greg Roth, President of The Oscar Hammerstein Museum & Theatre Education Center informed the community that the property was purchased earlier in the day and the nonprofit is now finally the owner of Highland Farm.

Present at the event was Pennsylvania State Senator Steve Santarsiero, Doylestown Township Supervisor Jenn Herring, Executive Director of the Bucks County Industrial Development Authority, TJ Lonergan, IDA Board member Mary Smithson, former Doylestown Mayor Ron Strouse, members of the Oscar Hammerstein Museum and Theatre Education Center Board and very special guests, family members Will and Mandee Hammerstein and Jenny Hammerstein.

The board worked tirelessly for years to raise enough funding, approximately two million dollars, and after purchasing the property yesterday, they will now embark on a new campaign to raise the funds necessary to renovate the entire property and build a theatre education center where the plan is to provide theatre, music, and performance programming for the community.

Greg thanked former and current board members Jamie Rogers, Vice President, Christine Junker, Secretary and Treasurer, Judy Abrams, Matt Britten, Amy Cinque, Van Dean, Sasha Eisenberg, Lori Kesilman, Vanessa Kirchner, Mike Peters, Grace Alfiero, Keith Fenimore and Meg Roth for their work in creating awareness and helping to raise the funds necessary for the purchase. Former board member Lori Kesilman commented, "I know that Oscar would be so proud of our mission to educate children of all backgrounds who are interested in all aspects of writing and musical theater arts. Today’s purchase is a result of the hard work of so many people. I am truly blessed to have been a small part of preserving the magic of Highland Farm."

Linda Leffingwell Paton, a current executive board member of the museum stated, "I am so excited I have had the chance to support this project through Covid and now I can continue to support musical theater in our community!" Will Hammerstein, grandson of Oscar Hammerstein said, "Today is one of the biggest days for the nonprofit so far, the first was getting approval for the property to become a museum and historical landmark, then purchasing the property this morning and the next will be the ribbon cutting, which I look forward to!" Jenny Hammerstein chimed in by saying, "It's all been very moving, I am always moved when I hear the impact my grandfather had, and the good he brought to the world, it is all very inspiring to remember who he was!"

President Greg Roth explained, "Our ultimate vision is two-fold, to 1.) Establish a museum at Highland Farm, the home where Hammerstein created some of the most successful musicals ever written and 2.) Develop a robust theatre education program for all ages that embodies and promotes Oscar's legacy and personal values. We need to raise an estimated $1.5 million to restore this historic property and create The Hammerstein Museum."

Last year, American songwriter, actor, filmmaker and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda and his family foundation provided a large donation which greatly contributed to closing the gap on funds needed to purchase the property. When asked if Lin-Manuel Miranda will continue to support the museum, Greg Roth stated, "We know the link and adoration of both Oscar Hammerstein and Steven Sondheim is huge for Lin-Manuel Miranda. We certainly hope he will continue to support our efforts." Many actors, musicians, and celebrities have joined in to support the museum and serve on the honorary board and include Christy Altomare, Ted Chapin, Darius de Haas, Gerald Charles Dickens, Jonathan Groff, Justin Guarini, Mariel Hemingway, Shirley Jones, Derek Klena, Morten Lauridsen, Kristine Lewis, Kassie Mundhenk, Chita Rivera, Sam von Trapp, and Melinda Mathias Walsh.

If you are interested in supporting the efforts of The Oscar Hammerstein Theatre & Education Center, please reach out to: hammersteinmuseum@gmail.com or visit the organization’s donation page on the Museum Website.