About Us

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Founded in 2007, Love Street Playhouse was created with the vision of having a true Community Theatre where the participation by and for the community of Woodland, Washington, would help create a cultural space to learn and grow. 

Founded by the current owner and Artistic Director, Melinda Pallotta (formerly Leuthold), the vision of Love Street was to create a space where the community could gather, view or participate in the art of wonderful storytelling and also provide a safe space for their children to learn and grow while experiencing the wonders and magic of theatre. 

Purchased in that same year was the theatre’s current home, the former Open Bible Church building at 126 Loves Ave, originally built in 1940, and with that, the inaugural season of Love Street Playhouse was established. 

The church building architecture put some limitations on the ability to create a true theatrical stage environment, but many creative minds and hands helped establish Love Street's most endearing quality which is its intimate surroundings. 

Audiences and actors share a certain connection that is rare in most theatre venues and Love Street Playhouse has made it an art form. With its intimate embrace of the community it serves coupled with Melinda’s vision to make each person who comes through its doors feel embraced with love and leave with joy, Love Street Playhouse has rooted itself in the heart of the growing community it now serves.

Check out our Home page for upcoming shows, to purchase tickets, or to sign up for our classes. 

You can also contact us at 800-966-8865 or by email.

 Once established, the building at 126 Loves was always considered a “work in progress.” As the number of shows were notched on our belt, needs changed and the work of re-establishing how the theatre was to grow and function became self-evident. 

The community had embraced the vision and their support helped direct the changes. By 2011 the theatre had established a full season with 4 main stage shows per year as well as a Youth Theater Program in the summer. More shows and more attention to detail meant more space for props, costumes, actors and crew. 

Challenges were met with the same joy and love that were applied to every effort at Love Street. Different needs brought out more of the helping hands in the community to make it work. From actors, students, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and of course family, things came together. Whether it was a shift in use  or the addition of storage, the show must go on and attitude persevered through it all.

By 2015 it was more than obvious that things needed to change in a big way, and they did. Enter Lou Pallotta as Managing Director at Love Street (of course there is more to the story than that but for now…). Lou’s first introduction to Love Street started the Big Wheels turning on how to transform what was theatre being done in a church building to establishing what Love Street was always intended to be. He listened, heard and saw Melinda’s vision and “proposed” some big changes. Gulping and with a little trepidation, Melinda said YES!

And so started the renovation from church building to theatre. We ran campaigns to ask the community for help and were overwhelmed by the response. Those many hands and hearts grew and met the challenge to transform the space. In all, we added a beautiful enclosed side patio where we now host opening night galas, we enclosed space to create more storage, we added a new roof, we built a new wheelchair ramp with better access, we gutted and renovated the actor dressing room to make it more professional, we raked the seats in the theatre to give patrons a better view of the stage and finally we tore down all of the established church walls and ceiling that housed the old pulpit area and grew the stage to a point where we can now produce larger shows. 

Now, Love Street produces 5 main stage shows a year and our “if you build it, they will come” spirit has drawn more patrons and actors wanting to be part of the Love Street experience. 

"We are very blessed to be doing what we love and to be doing it together." -

-Melinda and Lou Pallotta. 

Melinda grew up on a farm in Northern Illinois with her parents and 4 siblings. Her love for theater started at her family's local Methodist church where she would perform short puppet skits. It didn't take long until she was officially BIT by the theater bug.

Melinda holds a BFA in theatre with most of her training from Illinois State University and her final year of college at Seattle Pacific University. In addition to a degree in theater Melinda also holds a degree in Graphic Design and owned a design business, Moondance Graphics for many years before starting her beloved Love Street Playhouse.

  Lou grew up in an Italian family in Brooklyn, New York. His formative years were spent around a family that shared great love for one another. His father moonlighted as an entertainer in local clubs, so stage and music became part of who he has become. 

Lou brings a wealth of stage experience to Love Street and his passion for community is part of his makeup. “I stand in front of the theatre rain or shine to greet and embrace all who enter our doors.” This mantra not only comes from being Italian, it also comes from his years creating the atmosphere for his two long-running shows in Portland, OR. The two shows, both Interactive Musical Comedy Dinner shows, “Who Stole My Dead Husband” and “Why Can’t You Stay Dead” ran for more than 7 years. "I would kiss everyone who came to the show to thank them for just being there. At Love Street, I have found the perfect place for just being ME!"

Together, our love for the theater, with the help of our amazing volunteers, the support of our faithful patrons and our love for story-telling are what drive us to produce great theater at Love Street Playhouse. 

We look forward to seeing you soon.