Last year, a national tour of one of its summer musicals was produced and celebrity concerts were presented at the playhouse.

A youth department offers regular productions in the Mill Studio and an annual summer musical on the main stage.

The patient was impressed, and put her in touch with one of his contacts, manager Gus Schirmer (of the Schirmer Music publishing family), who was looking for "pretty sopranos" for his summer musicals.

Gaslight presents eight regular productions each year, including five regular season shows and a summer musical.

Each summer since 2008, Barksdale has presented its summer musical at the historic Empire Theatre, home to Theatre IV.

Starting in 1967, production of the summer musicals was taken over by the current management.

Next year, as before, the 500-seat Gateway plans to run its season of summer musicals from April or May and through early September.

A summer musical's production costs come to $18,000; ticket sales bring in $10,000 to $12,000, estimates Victor Whitehurst, a scenic carpenter who has been a board member for five years and is now the theater's chairman.

THE Candlewood production of "Fiddler on the Roof" is scheduled to run a week longer than the playhouse's other summer musicals, three weeks instead of two.

Each season includes a fall thriller, a holiday classic, a winter drama, a spring comedy and a summer musical.