General Contact Info
General Human Race questions: (937) 461-3823
Box Office/Ticket questions: (937) 228-3630
- Kappy Kilburn
- Phone: (937) 461-3823 ext. 3112
- kappy@humanracetheatre.org
- Costume Shop Manager
- Phone: (937) 461-3823 ext. 3121
- contact@humanracetheatre.org
- Tara Lail
- Creative Producer
- Phone: (937) 461-3823 ext. 3113
- tara@humanracetheatre.org
- Title of your play
- Synopsis of your play
- Number of characters (note if any double casting)
- Short playwright bio
- List any readings/workshops/performances of your play (private or public)
Email to Emily N. Wells, Artistic Director: emily@humanracetheatre.org
Please allow up to 3 months for a reply.
The beauty of theatre is the dialogue it creates among our audience members. We love hearing what you think. So… send us an email and let us know. Did you like a show? Do you have an opinion on a idea or topic in one of our shows? Are you a fan of one of the performers? Do you have a suggestion for a show you’d like to see? Would you like to volunteer to help on a Board committee?
Send us an email: contact@humanracetheatre.org
Frequently Asked Questions
Individual show prices vary depending on your preferred performance and seating location. Preview performances are the least expensive, and weeknights cost less than weekends. Tickets to productions in the Loft Theatre typically range from $10 - $53, but are subject to change. Discounts for seniors, military, and students are available.
As a contemporary theatre company, most of our productions on the Loft season are suitable for adults and older teens as they frequently contain adult language and subject matter. If you are interested to know if a certain production is suitable for younger teens or preteens, please feel free to call or email us. Children under the age of 6 are not permitted at our productions in the Loft Theatre.
Day / Time
Preview / First Thursday at 8:00 p.m.
Opening / First Friday at 8:00 p.m.
Tuesdays / 7:00 p.m.
Wednesdays / 7:00 p.m.
Thursdays / 8:00 p.m.
Fridays / 8:00 p.m.
Saturdays / 8:00 p.m.
Sunday Evening / 7:00 p.m. (First Sunday only)
Sunday Matinees / 2:00 p.m.
We recommend you arrive 30 minutes prior to curtain when the theatre doors open, especially if you have tickets waiting at Will Call. The Loft lobby is open two hours prior to curtain. While you wait for the show to start, feel free to enjoy a drink or snack from the Loft Bar.
Performances begin promptly. Latecomers will be seated at the house manager’s discretion, and may have to watch the performance on a video monitor in the lobby until they can be seated. Patrons who leave the Loft Theatre during a performance may—at the sole discretion of the house manager—be re-seated, although possibly in different seats, during the performance. This is a policy we must enforce without exception, due to the layout of the Loft and for the safety of our actors and enjoyment of audience members.
If you are a Loft subscriber and the tickets in question were purchased as part of a subscription package, they may be exchanged for free (no fees) until one hour before curtain the day before your scheduled performance. There may be an up-charge if you exchange into a more expensive performance.
Non-subscribers may exchange their tickets for a different performance of the same show for a flat $5 fee until one hour before curtain the day before your scheduled performance. Exchanges can be made by phone (937-228-3630) or in person.
Otherwise, if at the last minute you are unable to use your tickets, you may turn them in as a contribution to The Human Race Theatre Company. The value of the donated tickets is tax-deductible and acknowledged by mail. Tickets for past performances cannot be considered a donation.
There are no refunds.
Free assistive listening devices are available at the Loft box office prior to the performance by exchanging a license or credit card. No advance reservations are required.
Scripts for those with hearing loss are available with two weeks’ notice. Contact Tara Lail for more information.
The Metropolitan Arts Center building and Loft Theatre are fully ADA accessible.
If you require wheelchair seating, please contact Dayton Live directly at 937-228-3630.
We are working toward providing audio & visual interpretive capabilities at every performance from every seat. Please reach out to us with any questions.
Dayton Live
Phone: 937-228-3630
Online: www.daytonlive.org
Schuster Performing Arts Center lobby
One West Second Street
Dayton, Ohio 45402
Tuesday – Friday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Loft Theatre lobby
126 North Main Street
3rd Floor
Dayton, Ohio 45402
Open two hours prior to performance only
Dayton Live charges a $3 per ticket Preservation Fee on all tickets. (The Human Race already includes this fee on all stated ticket prices.)
Ticket Center Stage charges an additional 16% per ticket Service Fee on all tickets purchased online and by phone.
The Human Race Theatre Company has created a variety of discount options in order to make theatre an accessible art form for all audiences.
Human Race Memberships
You'll be in great company with our monthly Membership Plan, which allows you to join an exclusive group, get early access to prime seats, and enjoy special extras throughout the season.
Flexible Show Packages
Choose from 3-show or 4-show options for the 2022-23 season. This season, we’re offering two curated experiences, as well as a build-your-own adventure option.
LEARN MORE ABOUT FLEXIBLE SHOW PACKAGES
Pay What You CAN Night
Get a sneak peek at our productions and support a great cause. Wednesday evening at 8 p.m. prior to the opening of a show, we offer audiences the opportunity to attend an open rehearsal. The price of a ticket: bring a cash donation of your choice that will go to one of a number of The Human Race’s partnering non-profit, service-based organizations, or a non-perishable food item for The Foodbank. Tickets are first-come, first-served and are handed out starting at 6:30 p.m. in the Loft lobby. One ticket per person.
$17 and $29 Side Seats
Buy early and save. We offer a limited number of seats to each performance for as little as $20. These seats are available as soon as tickets go on sale.
“Sawbuck Sunday”
The first Sunday 7:00 p.m. performance of each Loft Series production: At 5:00 p.m., all available seats are $10 cash (a “sawbuck”). Tickets available at the Loft box office day of show for walk up sales only. One ticket per person.
Group Tickets
Groups of 10 or more receive discounts starting at 10% off. Contact Betty Gould at (937) 461-8295 for more information and to book your group.
Special Discounts
Members of the following groups receive discounts of 50% off full priced adult tickets with presentation of valid ID upon purchase of tickets. There is a maximum of two tickets per ID. Tickets are based upon availability and may not be combined with other offers or discounts, or be applied retroactively.
- Actors’ Equity Association members
- League of Cincinnati Theatres members
- City of Dayton current employees
- U.S. Military members (active duty and retired): Blue Star military tickets
- Students (may be ordered online but ID must be shown at Will Call to pick up tickets)
The Human Race does provide ticket vouchers to select regional non-profit organizations for use as a fundraising tool. Please provide us with at least one month’s notice prior to your event. Contact Tara Lail at (937) 461-3823 x3113 for more information.
Employment
Executive Assistant
The Executive Assistant supports and reports to the Executive Director and Artistic Director, and will primarily interface with The Human Race Theatre Company’s visitors, board, staff, and artists. Additionally, this role engages in logistical, organizational, and moral support of the entire staff. As such, the Executive Assistant should be an excellent communicator, possess an engaging personality, sense of humor, attention to detail, and efficient organizational methods to track multiple priorities simultaneously. This role also supports the Creative Producer and the Engagement and Learning Coordinator as needed. For more information and qualifications, please see the full job description here.
General Auditions for Adult Actors
THE HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
2022-2023 SEASON General Auditions
We do not currently have any roles open for casting in the 2022 – 23 season. Please keep an eye out here in the spring for 2023-2024 season notices. If you would like to submit your headshot and resume for our records, please email it to tara@humanracetheatre.org.
About The Human Race Theatre Company
The Human Race Theatre Company is a professional theatre that works under a Small Professional Theatre Contract (SPT 6) and performs in the Loft Theatre, a 212-seat thrust stage.
Emily N. Wells, Artistic Director | Kappy Kilburn, Executive Director | Tara Lail, Creative Producer
- Rehearsals are primarily Monday – Friday evenings, and daytime on weekends.
- Auditions are open to Non-Equity and Equity Actors (unless otherwise noted), with Non-Equity actors having the opportunity to join the Equity Membership Candidacy Program.
- We are looking for age-appropriate actors.
- All roles open to all gender identities and ethnicities.
Productions and Beyond
The Loft Season
Our signature subscription season at the Loft Theatre consists of plays and musicals, classics, and premieres. Productions on the Loft Season are rehearsed, built and produced in Dayton. The Human Race produces under a Small Professional Theatre contract with Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the union of professional actors and stage managers.
The Victoria Theatre
From time to time, we present special events on the historic 1,100-seat theatre’s stage, like 2015’s Lewis Black in Concert and 2017’s co-production of A Christmas Story with the Victoria Theatre.
Monday Night Playreading Series
Throughout the season, we will be hosting table readings of plays considered to be some of the best the theatre world has to offer, and all works of interest to The Human Race as potential full-productions. Open to the public and voiced by many of the region’s top performers, these readings provide an opportunity for theatre lovers to hear and enjoy scripts they may not be able to experience otherwise.
Preview Performance
Our preview performance is on the Thursday evening prior to our Friday evening openings. In the tradition of Broadway, it offers a significantly reduced ticket price and is available for both subscription and single ticket buyers. (See Inside Track)
Pay What You CAN Open Rehearsal
A special sneak peek with the admittance of a cash donation of your choosing that will go to a not-for-profit service organization (which varies on a production-by-production basis) or canned goods/non-perishable food items to The Foodbank. This serves community needs as well as patrons who may find the regular performances more than their budgets can afford.
Pay What You CAN open rehearsals occur at 8:00 p.m. on the Wednesday before the preview performance of productions in the Loft series. Numbers are handed out to patrons at 6:30 p.m. and they are admitted in order when the house opens at 7:30 p.m.
Inside Track
A pre-show discussion with the show’s director held in the Loft Lobby 45 minutes prior to the Thursday Preview. This is an opportunity for the audience to meet the director and learn about the creative process of producing the play they are about to see.
While We’re on the Subject
A moderated discussion held with the cast and the audience members immediately following the matinee performance on the second Sunday of a production. Frequently, a guest speaker joins the group to offer unique commentary concerning the topics brought to light by the production.
The Loft Bar
Soda, wine, beer, mixed drinks and snack items are available in our lobby for every show. Drinks may be taken into the Loft during the performance.
Education & Engagement Programs
Learning & Engagement
With our Stages and Stories program, The Human Race works with social service organizations and community partners to provide arts learning opportunities for those not served by traditional Arts Education programs. These opportunities range from paid internships and job shadowing to playwrighting workshops for teens to adults.
Throughout each season, we partner with other Dayton organizations to present conversations around the material and themes of the productions. These opportunities allow us to open our doors for civil discourse while raising awareness about opportunities and challenges in our community.
Special Events
The Human Race plans special productions, concerts and fundraising events each season to enhance our audience’s experience. Examples include holiday productions, Lewis Black in concert at the Victoria Theatre, Marin Mazzie and Jason Danieley in Concert and Mardi Gras fundraisers.