About
Who we Are
Cinnabar Theater is a professional community theater; a cultural treasure located in Petaluma, the heart of Sonoma County. This intimate jewel box theater, celebrating its 52nd anniversary, has something for everyone!!
Cinnabar Theater presents 6 professional shows, and 4 Young Repertory main stage shows each year.
The professional shows are an eclectic mix of musicals, drama, comedy, cabaret shows and opera.
This season, we are on the road while we build our new home at the Petaluma Outlet Mall. You can learn more about our build by visiting raisethecurtain.org.
While we're building our new theatre, we will be taking our 52nd season on the road, performing at Sonoma State University, and the Santa Rosa Jr. College, Petaluma Campus! We hope you'll join us for this exciting new chapter!
The Mission of Cinnabar Theater:
To enrich the cultural fabric of the Bay Area with intimate and thought-provoking theatrical and musical performances. We educate and inspire our youth, developing future artists and audiences.
Statement of Values:
Cinnabar Theater believes that the performing arts matter.
Our commitment is to make it matter to more people!
The History of Cinnabar Theater
Founded by an opera singer (Marvin Klebe) and his wife (Jan) back in 1972, the goal was to create a performance space where creative people could collaborate and experiment. He launched Cinnabar Opera Theater and invited artists from other disciplines (theater & dance) to perform at the theater. Each group inspired and taught the others. In 1974, Cinnabar Arts Corporation received its nonprofit status.
The theater was expanded in 1983 to accommodate a growing audience. Drastic cuts in state funding for arts education in schools prompted the creation of Cinnabar’s Young Repertory Theater. The Young Rep exists to train youth in the performing arts so that they can make lasting and meaningful connections between the arts and their daily lives. In 2012, Nathan Cummings became the Education Director and expanded the Youth Programs to become a strong and vibrant division of the theater today.
In 1999, Marvin lost his battle with cancer. Elly Lichenstein stepped into the role of Artistic Director and continued his legacy. She expanded the theater’s season to include 6 Professional shows. In 2021 during the CoVid pandemic, the theater remained closed to the public for live performances and Elly stepped down as Artistic Director. She remains connected to the theater and was awarded the title, Artistic Director Emeritus.
She is followed by Nathan Cummings who occupies the roles of both Artistic Director and Education Director.