[4] Built in 1902, the former Town Hall[5] has a rich history of entertaining audiences with such legendary performers as Beatrice Lillie.

Determined to save their historic theatre from destruction, all 1,000 Drayton residents rallied together and raised $110,000 to retrofit the facility.

A tiny budget necessitated plenty of creativity as well as volunteer and community involvement – from front of house managers and ushers, to laundry and technical support.

A great deal of attention was generated when The Drayton Festival Theatre made Canadian theatrical history by completely selling out both its 1993 and 1994 seasons.

[9] Eager to see if the winning Drayton formula could be replicated in another community, the company launched a second stage in the village of St. Jacobs, in the heart of Mennonite Country in 1997.

Huron Country Playhouse launched its 1972 inaugural season[14] in a rented big-top tent while actors and staff lived and worked out of the century-old barn.

[15] In October 2004, Drayton Entertainment officially announced it would be expanding its operations in Waterloo with a new performance facility that would be housed in the vacant St. Jacobs Winery & Cidery.

[16] In 2009, Cambridge City Council passed a resolution for the development and construction of a 500-seat performing arts venue[17] in the heart of Old Galt, to be operated by Drayton Entertainment.

In 2017, John and Terry Hamilton pledged another $500,000 to assume the exclusive 20-year venue naming rights, valued at $1 million.

The Youth Academy's aim is to help dismantle systemic constructs which serve as cultural, financial, and physical barriers to representation and participation in arts education.

Rooted in belonging, Drayton Entertainment delivers a profoundly new and positive approach to performing and technical arts education.