Founded in 1950 by Col. Eben C. Henson, Pioneer Playhouse is the oldest outdoor theatre in Kentucky and has been called the "Granddaddy" of Kentucky Outdoor Dramas. The Playhouse was also instrumental in pioneering the outdoor theatre movement in the state. In the fifties and sixties it received national attention as the "King of Summer Stocks" in New York trade magazines and in 1962 was the first theatre in the nation to be accorded the legal status of State Theatre. More than 3,000 aspiring actors have strode across the stage since Henson turned an empty field into a theatre complex. Today the unconventional, hand-built theatre serves a pre-show dinner out of doors and a live performance Tuesday through Saturday, every summer, come rain or shine.