The Rock Valley College Studio Theatre was an indoor community theater located on the Rock Valley College campus in Rockford, Illinois; its operational status has been put on hold indefinitely, a casualty of the Illinois Budget crisis (see: Bruce Rauner#Governor of Illinois). It is often conflated with the Rock Valley College Starlight Theatre, which operates in the nearby Bengt Sjostrom Theatre, an award-winning outdoor complex known as Starlight Theatre by local residents. Confusion exists as both theatres are operated by the RVC Theatre Department and stand in close proximity to one another.
The 172-seat, three-quarter thrust theatre is housed in a converted barn, along with the RVC Theatre Department offices and costume storage facilities. The building and its accompanying 217 acres were purchased by the college in 1965 from Dr. J.J. Rogers. The structure has undergone several renovations and served multiple purposes since its initial purchase, at certain times housing the college cafeteria, library and admissions offices. As the campus grew, new buildings were assigned to serve these purposes. By 1985, an unnamed student theatre group had taken up residence in the building. This group would eventually be folded into the existing RVC Theatre Department. Plans to move from "the barn" to a new Arts Instructional Center with modern amenities has been tabled by the college's board of Trustees.
According to local newspaper records, more than 130 productions have taken place in Studio Theatre.
1985: Ah! Wilderness
1985: Christmas with the Conroys
1986: Ladyhouse Blues
1986: Wings
1986: End of the World
1986: Christmas with the Conroys
1987: Same Time Next Year
1987: Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda
1987: Prometheus Bound
1987: Hoosier Lore
1988: Two Gentlemen of Verona
1988: Dr. Franken's Consuming Obsession
1988: Death of a 2nd Husband
1988: Christmas with the Conroys
1989: The Tempest
1989: Smile of the Buddha
1989: Your Plays or Mine
1989: Christmas at Wits End
1990: Measure for Measure
1990: Danger:Memory
1990: King Lear
1990: Godspell
1991: Midsummer Nights Dream
1991: Verdict
1991: Richard III
1991: Fantasticks
1992: Wild Oats
1992: Runner Stumbles
1992: Macbeth
1992: Cotton Patch Gospel
1993: Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead
1993: Ten Little Indians
1993: Henry IV I
1993: She Loves Me
1994: Lend Me a Tenor
1994: Witness for the Prosecution
1994: Romeo & Juliet
1994: American Rock
1995: Kites Book
1995: The Hollow
1995: Hamlet
1995: 1940's Radio Hour
1996: Bad Manners
1996: Black Coffee
1996: Winter's Tale
1996: They're Playing Our Song
1997: Star Rover
1997: Towards Zero
1997: Much Ado About Nothing
1997: Nunsense
1998: Three Women Embracing
1998: Spider's Web
1998: Twelfth Night
1998: Dames at Sea
1999: Royal Hunt of the Sun
1999: The Mousetrap
1999: Julius Caesar
1999: Company
2000: Confused in Blimey
2000: Unexpected Guest
2000: As You Like It
2000: King Henry V
2000: Midsummer Nights Dream
2000: Titus Andronicus
2000: Nunsense
2001: The Lake
2001: Murder at the Vicarage
2001: Comedy of Errors
2001: Macbeth
2001: Richard II
2001: The Christmas Schooner
2002: Crossing Bridges
2002: Murder on the Nile
2002: Henry IV, Part II
2002: Taming of the Shrew
2002: Troilus & Cressida
2002: Cabaret
2003: Emily's Shadow
2003: Cards on the Table
2003: Othello
2003: Loves Labours Lost
2003: Into the Woods
2004: Pearl's Jam
2004: Alibi
2004: Merchant of Venice
2004: Timon of Athens
2004: Queen Margaret
2004: Victor/Victoria
2005: Scapino!
2005: Love From a Stranger
2005: Romeo & Juliet (also performed at the Bengt Sjostrom Theatre)
2005: The Christmas Schooner
2006: The Mayor of West Belvidere
2006: Appointment with Death
2006: Antony & Cleopatra
2006: All's Well that Ends Well
2006: Lent
2007: You Can't Take it With You
2007: A Murder is Announced
2007: Merry Wives of Windsor
2007: Pericles
2007: Faculty Lounge
2008: Last Easter
2008: A Daughter's A Daughter
2008: King John
2008: Cymbeline
2008: Caroline or Change
2009: American Buffalo
2009: Peril at End House
2009: Hamlet
2009: Coriolanus
2009: Christmas with the Conroys
2010: Cotton Patch Gospel
2010: And Then There Were None
2010: The Tempest
2010: King Henry VIII
2010: Hoosier Lore
2011: Grey Gardens
2011: Go Back for Murder
2011: King Lear
2011: A Christmas Carol
2012: Rocky Horror Show
2012: Murder is Easy
2012: A Midsummer Night's Dream
2012: Rocky Horror Show (Reprise)
2013: Avenue Q
2013: Fiddler's Three
2013: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
2013: The Wizard of Oz
Since before its official formation, Studio Theatre has performed original plays by local playwrights.
The Northwest Suburban Penny Ante Poker Club & Suicide League by T. Zack, 1983
Lazaretti or the Saber-Toothed Tiger by F. Hockwalder, 1984–85
Christmas with the Conroys by T. Zack, 1985–86
Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda by M. Swan, 1986–87
Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound (translated by the cast), 1987–88
Hoosier Lore by T. Zack, 1987–88
Dr. Franken's Consuming Obsession by G. Freek, 1987–88
Death of a Second Husband by R. Cline, 1988–89
The Smile of the Buddha by G. Freek, 1988–89
Your Plays or Mine by B. Wine, 1989–90
Christmas at Wits End by T. Zack, 1989–90
American Rock by J.E. Murray & R. Pauly, 1994–95
Kite's Book by R. Caisley, 1994–95
Bad Manners by R. Caisley, 1994–95
The Star Rover by M.P. Webb, 1996–97
Three Women Embracing by R. Caisley, 1997–98
Confused in Blimey by T. Hunter, 1999–2000
World Premiere of The Lake by R. Caisley, 2000–01
Crossing Bridges by C. Blatcher-Martin, 2001–02
Emily's Shadow by G. Quirk, 2002–03
Pearl's Jam by Tom Hunter, 2003–04
Shakespeare's Queen Margaret (adapted by R. Potter - Midwest Premiere), 2004–05
The Mayor of West Belvidere by T. Hunter, 2005–06
