Conor Guptill and his son, Lewis, play with the Magalitsa pigs at Hackmatack Farm in Berrwick. Conor and his brother Aram will be re-opening Hackmatack Playhouse, where they hope to expand on activities for children and to integrate the farm into their community space. Courtesy photo
BERWICK – This past summer was slated to be the 50th and final season of Hackmatack Playhouse, a performance theater in Berwick. In a shift welcomed by decades of supporters, brothers Conor and Aram Guptill have stepped in and will continue on the tradition of Hackmatack, in a role their father and grandfather held before them.
In its new carnation, the 200-acre farm, which has been in the family since the 1680s, will continue to offer live theater and a children’s camp, but will expand the educational programs in areas such as land sustainability, as well as theater and live music, according to the brothers.
After the theater announced it was closing, the Guptill family heard from many community members who spoke about the importance of the theater in their personal lives and in their careers. Actors and employees met future spouses and launched Broadway careers at Hackmatack while patrons spent many summers sitting in the rustic barn with loved ones, building cherished traditions, according to a theater press release. Many in the community spoke of their love for their times at the southern Maine theater and their grief when it was closing.
And so Conor and Aram, the third generation of Guptills’ to live and work at the theater, and the 11th generation on the farm, decided that the closing of Hackmatack was premature.
“The truth is that when we were sending out the publicity about closing, it didn’t feel right,” Conor said recently, on the same day he sent a letter out announcing the rebirth of Hackmatack Playhouse. “When we had a closing ceremony celebrating 50 years, we were overwhelmed with the engagement of folks who were a part of Hackmatack sharing their sentiment.”
Hackmatack was founded in 1972 by Carleton Guptill, whose dream was to create a space where the community could come together and enjoy live theater. Michael Guptill took over in the early 2000s and Aram and Conor grew up there, spending summers playing, then working, at the theater.
Conor, with his wife Shelby, has been raising bison, pigs and goats on the farm for the past decade through Hackmatack Farm, a farm that focuses on regenerative practices and preserving heritage breeds. Aram has a long history of welcoming patrons at the box office, and overseeing the administrative elements of the theater.
In addition to his work at Hackmatack farm, Connor works in software technology. Aram directs an adult English education center in the Boston area.
After Conor and Aram announced the continuation of the theater in a letter and Facebook, the response was immediate and passionate, according to the release.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to hear that Hackmatack isn’t going away,” said one person. “I have some cherished memories at the playhouse.”
“My daughter found her passion for acting when she was seven, in the Hackmatack summer program, and now at 15 she has started her film career,” wrote another.
And so it went, email upon email and one Facebook comment after another.
The announcement invited supporters to “help create this future,” noting that Hackmatack depends on ticket sales and donations. It is “truly a collaborative community, supported by the generous donations of our friends,” the announcement said.
The vision, according to Conor, is to replace the seating with movable chairs that can be rearranged for events such as weddings, concerts, conferences and perhaps farm-to-table dinner theater.
In addition to upgraded seating, the Guptills hope donations and volunteers will help provide housing for actors and support events at the barn.
Aram and Conor see the future of Hackmatack as connecting the theater with the land and community. The farm is committed to practices that protect the land and sustain the environment, while also enhancing community development through the arts, according to the release.
The brothers see Hackmatack’s stage and farmland joining together to become a community center for southern Maine, with live music and theater education in addition to theatrical performances. The camp for kids will be expanded to offer education backstage aspects of theater, as well as acting. The farm will continue the blue grass festival begun last summer. Plays and shows will include the traditional classics as always, but will also include new cutting-edge productions.
Last summer, Conor and Aram joined their family and community in grieving Hackmatack’s end. But response in the community convinced them the playhouse was too important to too many people.
“There is no other reason we are keeping the theater going.,” Conor said. “It doesn’t make money, at best it breaks even. But we love the theater and the relationships that have been built.”
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