‘Tecumseh!’ sees record season, looks toward next

CHILLICOTHE – Brand recognition is something most companies strive for, and if they are successful, they become recognized in a large market.

That is what the Scioto Society is looking to do with the Sugarloaf Mountain Amphitheatre.

Though the stage the home of the annual production of the outdoor drama “Tecumseh!”, Scioto Society CEO Brandon Smith has set out to make it known for more than one single show.

This summer, the amphitheater has played host to two bluegrass concerts, a Shakespearean production, and a second drama, “Shadows of Destiny.”

“If people continue to support the bluegrass series I could see Chillicothe becoming the place in southern Ohio that people talk about when they want to see world-class acoustic American music. This is a very good thing for Ross County,” Smith said in a news release.

With those involved in the Scioto Society bringing so much more to the stage, the work increased, but so did the reward. According to a news release, the additional shows brought in 4,000 more guests to the theater this summer.

Smith says the company had a “historic season” this summer in more ways than one.

“More people saw ‘Tecumseh!’ this year than in any season in almost 10 years,” Smith said.

When ticket sales increase, so does attendance, which came as a pleasant surprise to Smith.

“We will end the year with an uptick in attendance, something which, if you had asked me on July Fourth, I would have told you that there was simply no way,” Smith said. “It’s been a remarkable turnaround, and I give all of the credit to the cast and crew, board, and employees who refused to let this summer go and say we’d try again in 2016. They just didn’t quit.”

The production also saw historic amounts of rain. Although the seemingly constant threat of rain early this summer kept early ticket sales at bay, Smith said, the cast and crew persevered and never gave up on the show, even with a temporary waterfall and flooding issues.

“I tell the cast that they have the distinction of performing in Ohio’s greatest outdoor drama during the rainiest summer that the world has ever known,” Smith said. “But we kept at it — night after night, pushing through rain and wind.”

But the work does not stop when “Tecumseh!” ends. Sugarloaf Mountain will host Haunted Mountain — a new Halloween attraction and haunted trail — throughout the fall and has announced next summer’s expanding Live on the Mountain Concert Series lineup.

Included in the series will be the return of Nathan Stanley, famed bluegrass performer Dr. Ralph Stanley’s grandson, along with Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver on June 13, Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out with Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers on July 3, and Rhonda Vincent & The Rage on Aug. 28.