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Are you a creative looking to get involved in programs in your community?
Northern Kentucky is full of spaces to gather, create, audition, perform and more. From book clubs to open mic nights, there’s something for everyone.
For all those grown-up theater nerds looking for a place to take the stage, look no further than the Village Players of Fort Thomas.
Located in a historic building at 8 N. Fort Thomas Ave., this theater group has been putting on shows for over 60 years.
“We’re all volunteers,” said Village Players Publicity Chair Katie Jensen. “Nobody’s paid for what we do. It’s all for just the love of theater. And we really do welcome everybody. We strive to create a really safe and welcoming environment for all kinds of different people. So everybody is welcome to the Village Players.”
The Players put on four mainstage productions a season, including a family-friendly winter production and a summer production of original short plays through their New Works program.
The shows are performed on a unique three-quarter thrust stage, which Jenson said puts the audience member “right up there in the action.”
“It provides a fun challenge for the creative team and a really unique opportunity for the audience as well,” Jenson said.
Everyone is welcome to audition for any productions; audition times are posted on their website when they come out.
“You can be a professional actor,” Jenson said. “You can have zero experience anywhere in between.”
Other offerings include Next Gen, a theater program for teens in the summer, and New Works, a playwriting group that helps nurture new playwrights.
Typically, New Works runs in the summer; however, in 2024, the holiday production came out of the program.
Upcoming productions in 2025 include True West by Sam Shepard, which is running in February and March, and These Shining Lives by Melanie Marnich in April.
Learn more about the Village Players by visiting villageplayers.org or email them at info@villageplayers.org.
If theater isn’t your thing, maybe you’ve recently rediscovered your love of books, and you’re desperate to find someone to tell about your favorite recent read. Well, the Kenton County library has a great option for you.
Bookies Book Club meets once a month at the Erlanger Branch of the Kenton County Library. Program director Mary Burkey picks a book for the group to read and discuss each month.
“We generally read things that have some sort of critical acclaim,” Burkey said. The books range in genre from mysteries to memoirs to sci-fi, romance and more. Burkey said she also often tries to pick works with local ties and books that coincide with author visits.
Also at the Kenton County Library is the Book to Art Club, where participants read a book in advance, but rather than just discuss the book, the group participates in a creative project connected to the book.
All book clubs at the Kenton County Library are open to the public; you don’t have to be a member or even live in Kenton County to join in.
Bookies, Burkey said, has a core group that consistently attends every month, including 90-year-old Sue and a mother-daughter pair who’ve been attending for years, plus a rotating cast of participants.
“It’s really nice because everybody catches up with one another,” Burkey said. “It’s a lot of catching up on how people have been, how their families are, and what’s going on in people’s lives, which is really nice, because it is a group of people that probably wouldn’t encounter each other otherwise.”
If you’re looking to start your own book club, the Kenton County Library offers book club kits to any library card holder, which include 15 copies of over 200 titles.
Find more information about Bookies and other Kenton County Library programs at kentonlibrary.bibliocommons.com.
Maybe you’re more interested in comedy?
You can check out the local comedy scene or even take a shot at an open mic night at Commonwealth Sanctuary.
Located in an old church on 5th Ave in Dayton, this unique venue is one of only two independent comedy clubs in the Cincinnati area, and it is the closest to the city, which Creative Director Shawn Braley said allows them to get some of the best local talent.
“Our place is bringing through these bigger names, as well as trying to build up our local community comedians,” Braley said.
The physical space itself also enhances the experience.
“You don’t even have to have that full of a room because the building was built before amplification; they just kind of reverberate through the room, so it really creates a fun environment for a comedy show,” Braley said.
Every Monday, Commonwealth hosts a show where comedians throughout the Cincinnati area can come and work out material. It is also a chance for anyone to get up on stage and try out comedy.
The club is currently working with a local comedian to start a sketch comedy workshop, which Braley said will culminate in a show where the group members put on some of the sketches they’ve written during the workshop.
Braley said that Commonwealth is constantly open to new ideas and groups. Right now, they have a Dungeons and Dragons-themed show where comedians participate in a live game of Dungeons and Dragons (a roleplay board game), and the audience helps dictate where the storyline goes.
“Our focus is strongly on community,” Braley said. “We’re not just bringing in some of the best working comedians in the country, but we’re not trying to be elitist about it. We want people to feel connected, engaged and involved.”
Find more information about Commonwealth Sanctuary at commonwealthsanctuary.com.