sycamore rouge theatre

Unfortunately this theatre is closed - it was located in Old Town Petersburg. There is now a fine Italian American restaurant at the former location of the Theatre. (Marias)

This theatre located in Old Petersburg, Virginia is designed like those you would see in Louisiana. Many shows are held there today. This is a must see.

Sycamore Rouge Theatre is a hidden gem amongst the cobblestones of Old Town Petersburg. The New Orleans, French Quarter style theatre space provides an audience with an intimate view of the action on stage. Currently, Sycamore Rouge Theatre is producing Ayn Rand's "Night of Janury 16th" a court-room drama where the audience is sequestered and decides wether Karen Andre, the mistress of the the deceased Bjorn Faulkner, is guilty on not guilty of murder in the first degree. This production is like watching "Law and Order" in real life. The acting was flawless with all kinds of suprise witness's and testimony. I highly recommend this high energy drama...consider it your civic duty to attend.

I first went to Sycamore Rouge to see their production of "Nickel and Dimed" and was blown away by this venue. I've been back for every performance since, even their New Year's burlesque show!First, when entering the courtyard, one is greeted by wisteria draped eves and welcomed into a space of class with black iron tables and chairs that say, "Come in, have a seat and a smoke. Stay a while." The style of the theatre is apparent from the setting of the courtyard to as soon as you walk in the red front door. In interior foyer is so rich in color and ambiance that you really feel like your walking into an old french venue. To the left is the box office and a sitting room to the right, all with what appears to be original decor. Special notation: upon asking the very accommodating manager on duty, I was informed that much of the building's original decor IS still in place and that Sycamore Rouge is actually a historical landmark-- who knew!? There's a grand staircase, which I was told goes to the upper offices. There is a full bar. I'm not talking about your little bar set up in front of a grocery store cold drinks case (like at many theatre in the tri-cities area). This is a full piano bar, with the cutest bartenders you've ever seen. Before you go into the actual performance space, across from the bar there is an art gallery that always has new and exciting works on display. When we went to see "Read-y For Right" (a play by SR's artistic director about a sit in protest at the Petersburg Library), they actually had stuff in the gallery from the protest-- news articles, photos, etc. It really added to our understanding of the play.The performance space is to die for. None of this sitting in squished rows next to someone you don't know, who may or may not begin snoring or talking on their cell phone. There are tables and chairs set up like a restaurant and even 4 or 5 couches for folks who really want to enjoy the show in comfort. It's a large open space with another grand staircase and window balconies from the second floor. The stage is at the far wall and is the focus of the space. I'll tell ya, we've seen some truly amazing sets on that stage. The best we've seen was for an Irish play-- "Translations"-- talk about outstanding and transforming. You'd have to see it to understand.Since this is a travel review, I didn't want to go into the performances too much, but plays are what this theatre does best. The first show we saw, we liked well enough to come back and they have only gotten better and better since then. Our favorite event was New Year's. My wife and I had never been to a burlesque show and didn't quite know what to expect. It was creative and really a lot of fun. I think we'll make this our New Year's tradition!I will say that when I read the other review for Sycamore Rouge, I understood about the food service. It varies with each trip, similar to any restaurant I suppose. The waitresses are always very nice and apologize when mistakes are made, but the food left something to be desired-- in both taste and cost. On a promising note-- we just went to see "Night of January 16th" this past weekend. There was a new menu and everything was priced UNDER $10! We were wary, but decided to split an appetizer and dinner. We got the hummus platter and the skewers dinner. What a pleasant surprise! The food came quickly and was delicious. The beef skewers were so tasty and my wife especially liked the homemade hummus. I hope that this good experience will be the same on our next trip to Sycamore Rouge.Overall-- I'd say we really enjoy seeing plays at Sycamore Rouge and highly recommend it!

I was lured to this venue by the smart graphic design of their fliers and instantly enamored by the street side appeal of their wisteria covered arbor entrance.While the performance by Quintango we saw was quite charming and the interior of the venue adequate for a low budget theatre supporting the local arts, the food service and wait staff left us wondering, "why bother almost ruining the night by trying to do something you've obviously not put any planning into?"When we arrived the reservation system was down and the matre de surly. It was impossible to get anything from the wait staff without asking for it 3 times. The food on the severely limited menu arrived cold, obviously due to the wait staff wandering cluelessly and endlessly through the tables searching for anyone who might have ordered what they were carrying before bringing it back to the kitchen only to emerge again. We were constantly interrupted by staff trying to give us things we hadn't ordered.The wait staff should also have been instructed not to wear heels that clicked against the tile floor throughout the musical performance and should have been trained how NOT to drop easily almost two dozen pieces of silverware on the tile while patrons were listening to the musical performance. Also, the poor staff would not have been obviously frustrated if the management had SOME sense of order to their layout. The patrons actually started playfully helping staff find their way around by the middle of the evening.My food order was an $8 salad consisting of a cup of lettuce, a few cucumber slices and 5 grape tomatoes followed by a $17 entree consisting of 6 oz. of fish, a cup of rice pilaf and 7 steamed carrot sticks...all stone cold. Clearly NOT $25 worth of food above the $20 charge for the entertainment. Our friend who'd phone ahead to arrange a vegan plate did not get her food until an hour and a quarter after the rest of our group was served.The fact that it took over 15 minutes, multiple requests and walking out to the bar to the cashier to pay for the meal left me thinking that if we return for any future theatrical performances we surely will not be ordering food, nor ordering from their woefully inadequate beer list.I strongly suggest the theatre drop the food service they are woefully unprepared to offer and suggest patrons try any of the nice looking surrounding restaurants also in the area. Concentrate on the arts.