When Kristin DuBois, Artistic Director of Polo Area Community Theatre, moved to the area in 2004, she began looking around for a community theatre to become involved with, especially with a focus on children. She was unable find one at the time, at least a theatre that was doing big shows that had parts for children as well as for adults. When Kristin realized that there was a need to be filled, s
he started to think of creating such a theatre group. How fortunate for Polo and the surrounding area, that Kristin brought with her the experience of having been Chairman of a children’s theatre branch where she had been living in Pennsylvania. She, with Dave Dahl, went before the Polo Economic Development Corporation and presented the idea of a community theatre for Polo. The PEDC approved a small budget for them to put on a show immediately. Luckily, the first step, finding a location to put on a production came fairly easily. Kristin’s daughter, Miranda was taking dance from Janet Wilkin in the old Polo Town Hall. After getting in touch with the Township Supervisor, PACT received permission to rent the theatre. The stage itself was being used as storage. It needed cleaned and fresh paint. Not to mention the putting together of a production from scratch, no tech, set pieces, etc. PACT’s founders felt it was crazy to be taking on such a huge project, but to look at the organization now, they are quite grateful that they took that leap of faith. "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" was the first production performed by PACT. Chaos ensued, including a terrible snowstorm one of the nights and an actor that got stuck in Chicago due to it... It was stressful, however, that show holds a special place in our Artistic Director’s heart. Because of that, PACT reprises the show every five years. PACT continued to get a budget until the point where they could become incorporated on their own. They went on to do "Godspell" (another favorite), "Clue," which was done as an interesting dinner theatre that people are still talking about, and "Hyronomous A. Kristin’s philosophy was and still is that she wouldn’t do a show if God didn’t bless it, and He did and He has continued to do so. As of 2015, ten years has passed since that first show that started this group. When thinking of the future and what the next ten years may bring, the future is bright and the dreams are big. One such dream is of PACT owning their own building, with the equipment and facilities available to support this vibrant, growing group.
