Barnyard Theatres

The Barnyard Theatre , Knysna

The original theatre devised and built by the husband and wife team of architect Louis Moller and actress Sybel Coetzee, and run as a venue for visiting artists. Out of this developed the idea of a franchised series of theatres throughout the country. ***

The Barnyard Theatres franchise

A series of of franchised theatres, devised and built by the husband and wife team of architect Louis Moller and actress Sybel Coetzee, for mainly musical and dinner theatre. Starting with the original wooden Barnyard Theatre, Knysna in 1996, they franchised the idea and formed a company to build specialised dinner theatre venues across the country, in a variety of settings (schools, shopping malls, etc.), all called The Barnyard Theatre. There are such theatres in Durban, Hilton, Johannesburg, Somerset West, ***

Origins

In 1996 the first Barnyard Theatre was opened by the Möller family on a dairy farm just outside Plettenberg Bay. Louis and Sybel had both been involved in the performing arts most of their lives, Louis as co-founder and producer of, amongst others, Carte Blanche, and Sybel Coetzee as a freelance actress and TV presenter. In 1989 they took stock of their hectic lives with two young boys and decided that family comes first. As a result they decided to open a dairy farm close to Plettenberg Bay. After a few years of farming they longed for a way to combine their two loves – the footlights and the farm. Then 1996 saw the birth of The Barnyard Theatres. Why Barnyard? Louis had built a beautiful, rustic American-style wooden barn on the farm, which Sybel and Louis converted into a theatre with an old-world atmosphere, heavy wooden beams, a horseshoe gallery, big tables with welcoming lanterns and wood chips on the floor. In 2003 Louis joined forces with well known South African musician Duck Chowles and together they formed The Barnyard Theatre Production Company. Having produced, amongst others, the mega-hit Roll Over Beethoven, Louis instinctively knew Duck belonged in the Barnyard stable. Duck Chowles now directs and produces all Barnyard Theatre Productions. (http://www.barnyardtheatre.co.za/)

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