About Marilyn
Marilyn Rodman impacted countless individuals throughout her life, most notably the thousands of children for whom she advocated. In addition to raising her own five boys, she served on the Canton School Committee for over 20 years. In that role, Marilyn’s work to maintain and build arts in schools was legendary.
She was also the inspiration for our Theatre for Kids program. As the story goes, her husband, Ride President Don Rodman, was frequently sending kids to professional sporting events when she told him, “There’s another world out there besides sports, you know!” With her encouragement, Don bought out the Opera House to send at-risk kids to see South Pacific in 2001. The rest is history.
While Marilyn will forever be missed, her generous spirit lives on through the Marilyn Rodman Theatre for Kids Program. To honor her legacy, our theater was proudly renamed the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center in January 2018. We believe that our mission of being THE community resource for performing arts in the Foxborough region strives to carry on her life’s work of ensuring everybody has access to experience and enjoy live theater would be a cause that Marilyn would approve of!
She was also the inspiration for our Theatre for Kids program. As the story goes, her husband, Ride President Don Rodman, was frequently sending kids to professional sporting events when she told him, “There’s another world out there besides sports, you know!” With her encouragement, Don bought out the Opera House to send at-risk kids to see South Pacific in 2001. The rest is history.
While Marilyn will forever be missed, her generous spirit lives on through the Marilyn Rodman Theatre for Kids Program. To honor her legacy, our theater was proudly renamed the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center in January 2018. We believe that our mission of being THE community resource for performing arts in the Foxborough region strives to carry on her life’s work of ensuring everybody has access to experience and enjoy live theater would be a cause that Marilyn would approve of!
Musicals, Concerts, Movies And More...
We are a professional performing arts stage. Come see us shine!
The Orpheum Theatre started next door in the old Union Building in 1912, with 250 seats reported on the second floor auditorium, it served the community as a silent movie and local Vaudeville stage.
Purchased in 1918 by Frank W. Perry, a former trolley company employee who had become the owner of the local bus line with Foxborough as the hub, the current building was built in 1926 as a silent movie house with an alleged 550 seats, all the more to encourage bus ridership!
Mr. Perry and his son owned and operated the theater until shortly after his passing in 1956. Several entities later, including converting to first a duplex and then a triplex, the movie house was closed in 1989 for good.
The Orpheum Theatre was reborn as a performing arts stage when the original Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. (FRCPA) was established in 1993 by a collaborative headed by Neil and Linda Colvin. By purchasing the building with the purpose of renovating and operating it as a functional live performance theater, there was promise of a new beginning. Re-opening in September 1994, several community arts organizations, including Bay Colony Productions, Inc. (BCP), performed and made their home here.
The BCP purchased the building outright in 2004 and, with renovations in 2006, operated it as a live performing arts stage for their productions as well as for the greater Foxborough area for the next 13 years. In 2017 a new non-profit was formed made up of approximately 20 members of the Foxborough and surrounding communities with a vision to purchase and revitalize the theatre. The current Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. was born and initially took over operations and finally in 2018 the ownership of the Orpheum Theatre, bringing a new vision, business model and energy to the pink palace on the Common.
Designed to provide maximum flexibility and convenience to all of the performing arts, the comfortable auditorium seats 400 and allows each patron complete visibility of the stage. Climate controlled and handicapped accessible to audiences, the theater is a great venue to watch and perform in.
The Orpheum also features the Upper Lobby , a comfortable meeting and reception area that is also popular for our birthday parties as well as a green room/dance studio that makes for a robust environment for practice and performance preparation.
Celebrating our rebirth at the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center in January, 2018 we are excited to make this iconic building a space dedicated to promoting the performing arts in the region, providing entertainment to our patrons and the chance to perform for so many who have lacked space and opportunity until now.
Inspired by Marilyn, whose legacy of helping others, giving children opportunity, rallying behind good causes and respectfully providing for the less fortunate in many area communities continues today through the good works of the Rodman Ride for Kids, the life and work of Marilyn Rodman has embodied the mission of our ambitious endeavor with this theater.
Now entering our second year of operations, we have been blessed with community support and a strong patron base who enjoy seeing performing arts, concerts, comedy, movies and civic and community events on our stage. We'd love to tell you more, give a tour and see how we can either be a resource for your community or civic fundraiser or reserve a spot for your party, training or meeting needs.
We are the new FRCPA (Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts), a regional community resource and we want to be your primary destination for your weekend entertainment! Stop by a see us or click the link below to be added to our monthly mailing list and think of us as your first thought for both entertainment as well as where your non-profit or civic organization can hold fund raisers, productions or show.
A non-profit organization registered in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we look forward to seeing you at the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center time and time again!
The Orpheum Theatre started next door in the old Union Building in 1912, with 250 seats reported on the second floor auditorium, it served the community as a silent movie and local Vaudeville stage.
Purchased in 1918 by Frank W. Perry, a former trolley company employee who had become the owner of the local bus line with Foxborough as the hub, the current building was built in 1926 as a silent movie house with an alleged 550 seats, all the more to encourage bus ridership!
Mr. Perry and his son owned and operated the theater until shortly after his passing in 1956. Several entities later, including converting to first a duplex and then a triplex, the movie house was closed in 1989 for good.
The Orpheum Theatre was reborn as a performing arts stage when the original Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. (FRCPA) was established in 1993 by a collaborative headed by Neil and Linda Colvin. By purchasing the building with the purpose of renovating and operating it as a functional live performance theater, there was promise of a new beginning. Re-opening in September 1994, several community arts organizations, including Bay Colony Productions, Inc. (BCP), performed and made their home here.
The BCP purchased the building outright in 2004 and, with renovations in 2006, operated it as a live performing arts stage for their productions as well as for the greater Foxborough area for the next 13 years. In 2017 a new non-profit was formed made up of approximately 20 members of the Foxborough and surrounding communities with a vision to purchase and revitalize the theatre. The current Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. was born and initially took over operations and finally in 2018 the ownership of the Orpheum Theatre, bringing a new vision, business model and energy to the pink palace on the Common.
Designed to provide maximum flexibility and convenience to all of the performing arts, the comfortable auditorium seats 400 and allows each patron complete visibility of the stage. Climate controlled and handicapped accessible to audiences, the theater is a great venue to watch and perform in.
The Orpheum also features the Upper Lobby , a comfortable meeting and reception area that is also popular for our birthday parties as well as a green room/dance studio that makes for a robust environment for practice and performance preparation.
Celebrating our rebirth at the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center in January, 2018 we are excited to make this iconic building a space dedicated to promoting the performing arts in the region, providing entertainment to our patrons and the chance to perform for so many who have lacked space and opportunity until now.
Inspired by Marilyn, whose legacy of helping others, giving children opportunity, rallying behind good causes and respectfully providing for the less fortunate in many area communities continues today through the good works of the Rodman Ride for Kids, the life and work of Marilyn Rodman has embodied the mission of our ambitious endeavor with this theater.
Now entering our second year of operations, we have been blessed with community support and a strong patron base who enjoy seeing performing arts, concerts, comedy, movies and civic and community events on our stage. We'd love to tell you more, give a tour and see how we can either be a resource for your community or civic fundraiser or reserve a spot for your party, training or meeting needs.
We are the new FRCPA (Foxborough Regional Center for the Performing Arts), a regional community resource and we want to be your primary destination for your weekend entertainment! Stop by a see us or click the link below to be added to our monthly mailing list and think of us as your first thought for both entertainment as well as where your non-profit or civic organization can hold fund raisers, productions or show.
A non-profit organization registered in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we look forward to seeing you at the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center time and time again!
