Legendary Cain Park Celebrates 75 Years

“I was 11 years old and had a small part in the musical Nine at the Alma Theatre. I sang in the high school choir, and at graduation I asked the choral director, Bill Thomas, if he knew about any summer jobs. He was also the Operations Manager at Cain Park and offered me a job right then and there as a maintenance assistant. Cleveland Heights is so connected.” Joseph worked five summers at Cain Park, which celebrates its 75th anniversary, gaining experience and working his way up along the way.

“Working at Cain Park is like a holistic experience,” he described. “The people become your family; you start your day with them and then go out after the shows with them.” Joseph said one of the big reasons why he is in theatre now is because of his experience at Cain Park. During those same summers, Vickie Bussert also used to work at Cain Park and has moved on to become the director of the Baldwin Wallace Musical Theatre. “I used to stay late and watch her shows,” said Joseph, “it was like being a student in a master class. I stored up that information, so that now in Dallas, my musical Fly is being successfully performed.”

Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Harry Belafonte, Johnny Mathis, Jerry Lewis, and Sammy Davis, Jr. have all performed here. Hal Holbrook, Dom DeLuise, Carol Kane, Jack Weston and Pernell Roberts have acted on stage here with sets designed by industrial artist Viktor Schreckengost. Growing up in this east side community, you and your children sled down the hills in winter, hit tennis balls in the summer, hung from the jungle gym, or splashed in the wading pool. Your buddies biked through the winding trails here. Cain Park, located at Lee and Superior Roads, has been home to many artists, performers, and musicians as well as local residents.

To celebrate its 75th season, combining bigger name talent with uniquely local performing artists, Cain Park has an exciting line-up of musicians, dancers, and performers. Some of the headliners include Amy Grant, Kris Kristofferson, Yes, Michael Stanley Band, Terrance Simien, Michael McDonald, and The DooWops. Local artists include Verb Ballets, The Lenny Russo Band, the Singing Angels, and more.

Back in the mid-1930s, Heights High School drama teacher Dina Reeves Evans, Ph.D., and Mayor Frank C. Cain got together and brainstormed Cain Park’s creation. Evans came to Cleveland Heights to research her doctoral thesis. She believed that theatre education could change attitudes and leave a lasting impact on students helping them to succeed. Evans proved her theory, earned her Ph.D., and continued teaching drama at Heights High School. Mayor Cain led a city devoted to the arts and believed Cain Park would visibly demonstrate an attractive community and the residents’ support.

The first outdoor presentation was staged in the summer of 1934 — A Midsummer Night’s Dream — with a collaboration of theatre-minded adults and high school drama students. With labor from WPA workers, funding from the Soldiers and Sailors Relief Fund, and the support of local philanthropists like John D. Rockefeller, the Evans Amphitheatre was completed in 1938 and the Alma Theatre was added in 1944.

In 1978, David Shaber, a Cain Park alumnus, scouted the Evans Amphitheatre location for his movie Those Lips, Those Eyes. The film’s production company invested $100,000 in Cain Park renovations. In 1987, Cleveland Heights voters passed a parks improvement bond issue resulting in a $5 million facelift. Over the years, Cain Park has been recognized with multiple awards for being a thriving, educational and eclectic entertainment center.

Renovation and restoration continues at Cain Park. The Colonnade, the stone-covered structure at the lawn’s back end of the Amphitheatre, received a new roof, upgraded lighting, and a new floor which was cleaned and repaired in 1998. Improvements were made to the Evans catwalks and rigging, and the seats were re-furbished in 2002-2003. Amphitheatre seating accommodates 3,000 guests.

Visit http://CainPark.com for the complete Summer 2013 schedule and ticket information.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Susan Schaul, who says the act of writing is like assembling a jigsaw puzzle. The challenge lies in getting the pieces to fit together and make sense.