Pegasus Playhouse, a youth theater company in operation since 2018, loses its venue in downtown Springfield at the conclusion of its Sunday in the Park with George production on Oct. 5. President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill forced the change through Medicaid cuts that affected one of Pegasus’ anonymous funding partners in the health care industry.
Through its website, Pegasus is seeking support from the community to secure a new home and will hold a fundraiser 7 pm on Oct. 18 at the Main Street location, which Pegasus has occupied for three years.
The company will continue to stage productions, including To Oz in January 2026 and Godspell in February next year at another venue in Lane County, location yet to be determined. Pegasus Playhouse founder and artistic director Scott Frazier-Maskiell says Pegasus performances will hopefully go on after that point, but when and where is uncertain.
In the meantime, Frazier-Maskiell says he’s seeking new corporate and grant funding partners, but in the current economic climate, the task is challenging.
Pegasus is a nonprofit, with a small volunteer staff and a board. Frazier-Maskiell says the company mounts as many as nine productions each year, with casts of varying sizes consisting of youth performers from elementary school-aged children through high school students
“Some of the kids who are at Pegasus have kind of grown up there,” Frazier-Maskell says. The company also hosts a youth theater summer camp.
Before securing the Springfield location, Pegasus performed all over Lane County. “We did summer stock on the farm. We did a Halloween show in the 5th Street Market Alley,” Frazier-Maskiell says.
“We’re hoping for a full summer camp next summer,” he adds, on a new stage. But at the very least, “continuing the youth productions for now. We’re pretty tenacious as far as getting stuff done.”
Conveying a message from the Pegasus board, Frazier-Maskiell notes: “The grief about this is what would be missing from the community,” if Pegasus fails to find a new home. “Some of this does need to actually reflect what young and older teens are going through in adolescence. We tend to set this a bit edgier than things that are written for and with them, reflecting the young performer’s life experience.”
He adds, “We haven’t been shy about brandishing the flag of inclusivity. We haven’t been neutral politically. We have been aligned with people being themselves and the LGBTQ+ community. There is a pervasive idea that kids need to be contained. And it needs to be without chaos. And I tend to embrace the chaos and believe that’s where magic happens.”
For now, Pegasus Playhouse is located at 402 Main Street in downtown Springfield. The company’s last production in the space will be Sunday in the Park with George, Sept. 19 through Oct. 5. For tickets and more information about how to get involved, go to PegasusPlayHouse.com.