Our Story
Earl Thompson and Edie O’Connor’s vision to elevate community theatre in Quincy began in 2000 with the founding of dramaworks, a non-profit organization. dramaworks promotes the enjoyment of theatre arts, facilitates children’s and community theatre programs, and offers an educational path to reduce societal barriers and improve the lives of rural families and children.
Once dramaworks was off the ground, Earl and Edie began to renovate the historic building in downtown Quincy. The West End Theatre opened its doors to the community in 2012. Our traditional black box theatre offers an intimate space and cutting-edge design for first-rate performances.
It takes the passion and dedication of many to ensure community theatre thrives.
Join us!
A Historic Building Preserved
The building was built in 1875 by William Edwards with bricks made at Gurdon Meylert’s brick making yard just north of town. The building originally served as the Plumas House Livery Stable and was one of several stables that provided carriages for hire and care for horses that stayed at the Plumas House Hotel. Jacob Stephan purchased the business in 1882 and changed the name to Stephan’s Livery Stable.
In 1940 the site was converted to W.J. Hamblin’s Plumas Garage and a Shell Gas Station was added to the west side. Other businesses over the years resided in the building including a Ford Auto Sales site, Western Auto and Walltech.
The original structure of the building was preserved in its most recent restoration. The renovation of the West End Theatre took nearly a decade to complete. The Theatre utilizes clean, renewable energy sources—solar power and geothermal—for heating and cooling.