The Victory Theatre was founded in 1979 by Tom Ormeny and Maria Gobetti. The mission of the Victory Theatre is to develop and produce new works by American playwrights and to foster the emergence of new talent. These works engage the community – reflecting, integrating and dramatizing contemporary social, political and economic issues. The Victory’s history attests to its commitment to developing new works and talent. Since 1979, the Victory Theatre has presented 61 productions and over 67 dramaturgical workshops. Over 80% of these productions and workshops were of previously unproduced new plays. Long ago the Victory’s founders made the choice that this theatre would become a theatre to challenge audiences and artists with equal vigor. It would not become the home to vanity productions or out-dated revivals with no relevancy. Instead the Victory would breathe life into new works or new life into older works. To achieve this goal the VT has brought together the talents of writers, directors, designers and actors to produce plays which stimulate audiences and challenge artists. Since then, the theatre has inspired critical praise for its development of new works and its high quality productions of world premieres and revivals.

The theatre has also been a center for education and mentoring. The theatre has continuously provided a successful home for acting training. Many of our past artists have initiated major careers in the entertainment industry from their association with the Victory. Beth Henley was immersed in the training when she wrote her first play. The theatre opened with the world premiere of Henley’s The Miss Firecracker Contest. Henley studied for two years with Maria Gobetti in the acting studio at the Victory Theatre. She went on to win the Pulitzer prize for Crimes of the Heart, which was developed at the Victory. From this intial success, the Playwrights-in-Residence program and the New Play Workshop programs evolved. In the past 20 years, the Victory Theatre has received 2 Otis Gurnsey Awards, 2 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards and 4 nominations, 4 NAACP Image Award nominations, several LA Weekly and Robbie Awards, the XXIII Olympic Arts Festival Olympiad Award, the 1996 Leaders Newspapers Readers’ Best of Burbank Award and 26 Drama-Logue Awards. In 1995, Lee Murphy’s Catch A Falling Star won the Ovation Award for Best New Play. In 1997, The Victory produced the world premiere of Donald Freed’s The General and the Archbishop which will open on the West End in London next fall.

The Victory Theatre has a long term on-going relationship with the local Chamber of Commerce. We support various hospitals, drug-rehabilitation centers, retirement homes, and youth outreach programs through our community outreach program. VT continues its on-going relationship with local colleges and high schools that regularly attend the productions. We regularly arrange discussion for these groups with the casts, playwrights, and directors. The Victory’s most recent project was Life On The Line, by Tom Ormeny, which dealt with corporate downsizing and its attendant human costs. The play was based on Lockheed’s exit from the Burbank community and was developed out of storytelling workshops with the ex-employees. The Victory Theatre actively promotes excellence in our arts community and continues to create an enviroment in which artists flourish.