City: Springfield, MO

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (417) 869-1334

Address: 311 East Walnut St.

Description: The historic Landers Theatre is home to Springfield Little Theatre, one of the Midwest’s finest community-theater organizations. Built in 1909, the Landers is a prime example of Baroque Renaissance/Napoleon-style decoration. Audiences have seen touring artists and vaudeville stars ranging from Lillian Russell to John Philip Sousa and Fanny Brice on the Landers stage, and more recently, Tess Harper, Kathleen Turner, and John Goodman have performed there. Springfield Little Theatre, founded in 1934, was bought by the Landers in 1970, who began to nurture it back to its original elegance. In the newly restored showcase theater, SLT brings a main-stage season of seven plays and musicals. Recent productions were Misery, Narnia, The Music Man, The Boys Next Door, and The Buddy Holly Story. There’s a variety of entertainment activities in the adjacent 200-seat Vandivort Center Theatre, including YES (for Young Entertainment Series), a performance series geared for young audiences, and the Studio Series, offering nontraditional theater works in an intimate setting. Call for current shows, ticket prices, and curtain times.