Jenny Wiley Theatre is a non-profit organization that puts on productions of classic Broadway musicals, comedies, historical dramas and holiday productions at both the Jenny Wiley Amphitheatre, located within the Jenny Wiley State Resort Park

Jenny Wiley State Resort Park

Jenny Wiley State Resort Park, originally known as Dewey Lake State Park, located at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, is a mountain resort park located on the shores of Dewey Lake. It is named for Virginia "Jenny" Wiley, a pioneer woman and Indian captive...

, and surrounding venues. The theater's first musical was South Pacific

South Pacific (musical)

South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...

, performed in the summer of 1965. Some theater alumni have later achieved success in television, film and national theater. These include: Michael Cerveris, who won two Tony awards, one for his performance in Tommy  in 1994, and one for his performance in Assassins

Assassins (musical)

Assassins is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by John Weidman, based on an idea by Charles Gilbert, Jr. It uses the premise of a murderous carnival game to produce a revue-style portrayal of men and women who attempted to assassinate Presidents of the United States...

 on Broadway; Sharon Lawrence from ABC’s NYPD Blue

NYPD Blue

NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan...

 and Desperate Housewives

Desperate Housewives

Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...

; James Barbour, who played the Beast in Disney’s Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast (musical)

Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical...

 and was Tony-nominated for his role as Mr. Rochester in the musical, Jane Eyre; Jim Varney, Ernest Goes to Camp

Ernest Goes to Camp

Ernest Goes to Camp is a 1987 Touchstone Pictures comedy film directed by John R. Cherry III and starring Jim Varney. It is the second film to feature the character of Ernest P...

; Tommy Kirk, Old Yeller; Ron Palilo, Welcome Back Kotter; Eileen Bittman Barnett, Days of our Lives

Days of our Lives

Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...

; Cynthia Bostick, As the World Turns

As the World Turns

As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...

; Jeff Silbar, composer of "The Wind Beneath my Wings"; Randy Jones of the Village People

Village People

Village People is a concept disco group that formed in the United States in 1977, well known for their on-stage costumes depicting American cultural stereotypes, as well as their catchy tunes and suggestive lyrics....

 singing group; and Paige Davis, host of TLC's Trading Spaces

Trading Spaces

Trading Spaces is an hour-long American television reality program that aired from 2000 to 2008 on the cable channels TLC and Discovery Home. The format of the show was based on the BBC TV series Changing Rooms. The show ran for eight seasons....

.