Deersville Community Players is the only community theater group within Harrison County and strives to produce excellent quality theater, as well as other arts and culture events for area residents and visitors. In a village the size of Deersville (population 78 persons) this small theater brings great joy as well as a larger sense of community spirit to our area. The theater welcomes children, adults, and senior citizens to be part of its efforts and has participants between the ages of 4 and 85 on stage and helping behind the scenes.

During the summer of 2020, Deersville Community Players has planned numerous fundraisers, a full scale musical, a dramatic play, and a local historian’s presentation. All of these fundraisers and productions were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related social distancing restrictions for theaters.

The significant loss of revenue from this situation will have a major impact on the theater going forward. Funds raised through this Cause Connector will be used for overhead expenses such as rent, insurance, and utilities to support the theater in continuing to bring joy to the Harrison County community.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all Arts & Culture organizations and has created particular challenges for smaller organizations with less access to resources.

Arts & Culture organizations serving Appalachian Ohio have access to ten times fewer resources than those in other parts of the state. This makes community support very important to sustaning these organizations throughout this challenging period.