Our Mission
Shaker Bridge Theatre is dedicated to discovering and creating provocative, contemporary plays and to expanding the boundaries of theater by presenting work that is compelling and innovative. Our plays are gems that we’ve brought north from New York’s off-broadway theaters, from across the ocean from London’s fringe and from regional theaters across America.
Our Story
In 2006, Bill Coons had just finished up his work as a production director and head of the acting conservatory at the Dorset Theatre Festival and was looking forward to retirement. He had already picked out the sail boat he planned to live on (a Dickerson 37) and then he “met someone” and found himself moving to the Upper Valley. Soon after arriving he discovered a big, empty space in Enfield, NH that was being used as a storeroom for broken and discarded office furniture. Bill thought it could actually make a great theatre space and so Shaker Bridge Theatre was created. The sailboat disappeared along with the retirement funds and savings. SBT is now his sailboat.
Before SBT’s first season was chosen, the interior of the theatre had to be designed and built. Two things were important in designing the space: intimacy and adaptability. Because audience engagement with the actors increases in direct relationship to their distance from the stage, the design had to put everyone within 12 feet from the acting area. That meant that this would be either a thrust setup with audience on three sides of an acting area or an arena setup with the audience surrounding the acting area. The actual space of the room itself then determined that either arrangement could seat about 80 people. Seventeen years later, the same design concept still defines the new space but with double the seating capacity.
Bill wanted to create a theatre that would be seen as an alternative to the other theatre available in the area. SBT would feature not only well-known contemporary playwrights but would present the work of new, emerging writers. During season nine, it became apparent that only 25% of the plays being done at SBT were written by women. (The national average was closer to 12%.) For over decade, we have presented plays written by women and men in equal measure.
With over 80 plays under our belt, SBT remains an intimate theatre that presents great actors in compelling and provocative plays.
Powerful. Intimate. Contemporary.
Our Team
Bill Coons
Our Founder / Producing Artistic Director
Bill Coons has spent his adult life working in the theatre. In addition to his academic study (BA in English/Psychology; MA in Directing; MFA in Directing), he has learned his art through his work. He began as the founder and artistic director of a small theatre in New Jersey, spent several years as a college professor and head of a theatre program in Vermont, created and ran a touring children's theatre company in Illinois, created and ran a graduate level acting conservatory at the Dorset Theatre Festival, worked as a professional actor, and has directed over 150 productions.
Adrian Wattenmaker
Managing Director
Adrian Wattenmaker is SBT’s Managing Director with over 25 years experience as an arts leader and theatre producer. Growing up with one foot in the United States, and the other in Western Europe, he developed a deep passion for the dramatic arts and its ability to express the richness, the absurdity, and the diversity of human experience. As Associate Artistic Director of Hudson Theatre Works, he helped lead the organization through a successful time of strategic growth. During that time he directed and produced new work by both up-and-coming and established playwrights including John Patrick Shanley, Neil LaBute, Dan O'Brien, Richard Vetere, and Sarah T Schwab. From 2021 to 2023, Adrian served as Production Manager for LAByrinth Theater Company, where he helped oversee their transition into a long-term residency at 59E59 Theaters. As part of LAB’s 30th Anniversary Series he directed Margaret Ladd and Lyle Kessler in the premiere of Lyle's play Obituary. On Broadway, Adrian was the Associate Director for the Tony Award nominated production of Stephen Adly Guirgis’ Pulitzer Prize winning play Between Riverside and Crazy. As a member of Cooper Square Workshop, Adrian contributed to Off-Broadway productions of Rod Serling's Requiem For a Heavyweight and the award winning production of Sam Shepard's Seduced. Additionally, Adrian has worked with Atlantic Theater Company, Second Stage Theater, Baltimore's Center Stage, Baltimore Theatre Project, HB Playwrights Foundation, Theatre Row, Studio USA/Universal, NBC (Law & Order and SNL), and Greg Stump Productions/Delamo Films. He has taught at Brooklyn College, Lafayette College, Kean University, University of Nevada-Reno, American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts, and is former director of the School of Creative and Performing Arts (SOCAPA), Los Angeles campus. Adrian is a member of The Actors Studio Playwright/Directors Unit, Actors Equity Association (AEA), an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), and served on the Drama Desk Awards Nominating Committee. Adrian earned his BA in Theatre Arts from Towson University and his MFA in Directing from Brooklyn College.
Our Board of Directors
Joan Ecker, President
RoAnne Rogerson, Secretary
Nadia Gorman, Treasurer
Toni Egger
Margaret Hunton
William Koppenheffer
Mary Niles
Bill Coons, ex-officio
Adrian Wattenmaker, ex-officio