River Valley Players Youth Program
St John XXIII Center, 1301 Second Street, Henry, IL 61537
About
River Valley Players Youth Program includes children’s theater, theater workshops for children, and a singing troupe that performs at community events. The program is part of a community theater organization that also presents a major musical each spring, various projects in the summer and fall, and a musical revue performed riverside. Activities also connect with events such as Bingo Night, which features six rounds of bingo and live entertainment from River Valley Players performers.
• Price: Bingo Night tickets: $20 per person (general admission)
River Valley Players Youth Program is part of River Valley Players, a non-profit organization dedicated to the performing arts that has been entertaining communities in the Illinois River valley since 1977 and began as a fund-raising project for Henry’s Bicentennial celebration. Leadership for River Valley Players includes Directors Elizabeth Wild and Charlotte Balensiefen and Music Directors Will Meachum and Jane Knapp. River Valley Players has frequently been affiliated with the Sun Foundation and has received grants to host theater workshops for children and for its Youth in Community Theater Program from the Illinois Arts Council. The organization has sponsored adult theater workshops, children’s theater, a singing troupe for many community events, and a riverside musical revue tied to the expedition of the floating State of Illinois Museum, with these projects raising money for workshops, community celebrations, historical walks, area schools, and St. John’s. River Valley Players was instrumental in forming the Becky Brant Memorial Scholarship, which provides scholarships for Henry students to attend summer music camps and continues to contribute to it, and it also offers educational grants for students seeking careers in the performing arts or who have served the group. Many members have participated in community church ecumenical choirs, and the group loans costumes, equipment, and technical expertise such as lighting, sound, musical direction, and choreography to surrounding schools, community theaters, and county historical societies. Bingo Night supports River Valley Players’ production of Shrek and the arts in the community.
Last updated January 11, 2026.
• Price: Bingo Night tickets: $20 per person (general admission)
River Valley Players Youth Program is part of River Valley Players, a non-profit organization dedicated to the performing arts that has been entertaining communities in the Illinois River valley since 1977 and began as a fund-raising project for Henry’s Bicentennial celebration. Leadership for River Valley Players includes Directors Elizabeth Wild and Charlotte Balensiefen and Music Directors Will Meachum and Jane Knapp. River Valley Players has frequently been affiliated with the Sun Foundation and has received grants to host theater workshops for children and for its Youth in Community Theater Program from the Illinois Arts Council. The organization has sponsored adult theater workshops, children’s theater, a singing troupe for many community events, and a riverside musical revue tied to the expedition of the floating State of Illinois Museum, with these projects raising money for workshops, community celebrations, historical walks, area schools, and St. John’s. River Valley Players was instrumental in forming the Becky Brant Memorial Scholarship, which provides scholarships for Henry students to attend summer music camps and continues to contribute to it, and it also offers educational grants for students seeking careers in the performing arts or who have served the group. Many members have participated in community church ecumenical choirs, and the group loans costumes, equipment, and technical expertise such as lighting, sound, musical direction, and choreography to surrounding schools, community theaters, and county historical societies. Bingo Night supports River Valley Players’ production of Shrek and the arts in the community.
Last updated January 11, 2026.
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