A Brief History of
Pegasus Theatre
Pegasus Theatre is a professional not-for-profit theatre
that began operations in October 1985 with a fixed
performing space in the Deep Ellum district of Dallas,
Texas. The mission of Pegasus Theatre is to:
“Produce new and original comedies in a professional
setting, highlighting the talents of North Texas theatre
artists.”
The theatre produced an annual season of shows for 17 years
in its performing space at 3916 Main Street in Dallas, a
total of nearly 100 productions. In December 2002, Pegasus
co-produced an Off-Broadway show in New York City, then
went “dark” for two years (2003-2004) while its principals
(Kurt Kleinmann and Barbara Weinberger) focused on other
projects (a tour, a book, a new performing space.)
In early 2005, Pegasus Theatre began work on a North Texas
production of one of its signature shows presented in
“Living Black & White.”™ Mind Over Murder!,
premiered in January 2006 to packed and appreciative houses
at the Eisemann Center in Richardson, Texas. It was a
calculated risk to produce in such a large venue, and the
positive experience at the Eisemann Center confirmed that
North Texas audiences were ready for the return of the
Black & White shows.
No overview of Pegasus Theatre is complete without a
description of this unique production style, created and
perfected by Artistic Director Kurt Kleinmann. Mr.
Kleinmann has written a series of plays (15 to date) that
are affectionate spoofs of American black-and-white movies
of the 1930s and 1940s. The acting as well as all physical
production aspects of these shows (lighting, set, costumes,
makeup, sound, etc.) are painstakingly designed to recreate
the look and feel of an old movie, live on stage. The
effect is truly amazing and has garnered the theatre
national exposure as well as critical acclaim.