Christine Wetherill Stevenson (April 12, 1878 – November 21, 1922) was an heiress of the Pittsburgh Paint Company and founder of the Philadelphia Art Alliance."Pilgrimage Play Founder Is Dead." Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Evening Citizen News, front page (subscription required).
She helped fund the Daisy Dell which became the Hollywood Bowl, in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. She established the Pilgrimage Theatre (now known as the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre) in Hollywood Hills. She played a major role in the theater's first production, Life of Christ, which received significant advance newspaper coverage and was described "an American Oberammergau"."Life of Christ" (photo essay). Brooklyn, New York: The Standard Union, July 2, 1922, p. 8 (subscription required)."California's Oberammergau." San Francisco, California: The San Francisco Examiner, May 28, 1922, p. 92 (subscription required).
Early life Born on April 12, 1878, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as Christine Wetherill, she was a daughter of Samuel Price Wetherill (1846-1926) and Christine (Northrop) Wetherill (1852-1930). Her father was a descendant of Samuel Wetherill, who was a fellow member, with Betsy Ross, of the Free Quaker Meeting House.Rittenhouse Square, US History.org
Christine Wetherill was married twice, first to John V. Rice, Jr., whom she divorced in 1902, and then to William Yorke Stevenson, son of Cornelius and Sara Yorke Stevenson, in 1908.
Career During the late 1910s and early 1920s, Stevenson formed an art alliance with Marie Rankin Clarke, and raised money with her to buy a piece of land on Cahuenga Pass called "Daisy Dell". They then rehearsed together for their first play there, Light of Asia."'Light of Asia,' First of Big Outdoor Pageants." Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, June 12, 1918, p. 7 (subscription required). A second series of plays was planned, The Pilgrimage, when resistance was met from Clarke and others in the group who wanted to expand the venue's themes. Leaving them to form the Hollywood Bowl, she bought of land on the other side of Cahuenga Pass to build a new amphitheater for her plays, naming it The Pilgrimage Theatre, and created the Pilgrimage Play."'Life of the Christ', Religious Play, Opens in Los Angeles July 10." El Paso, Texas: El Paso Herald, July 5, 1922, front page (subscription required)."Bay Cities Will Have Night at Play." Venice, California: Evening Vanguard, July 25, 1922, p. 2 (subscription required).
Today The Pilgrimage Theatre is known as the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre in Los Angeles.Christine Wetherill Steveson and Pilgrimage Play (photo essay), in "Men, Women and Things in the World's News." Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Evening Express, June 26, 1922, p. 19 (subscription required).
Stevenson was also known as the founder of the Philadelphia Art Alliance,"Art Alliance Reveres Memory of Its Founder: Admirers of Mrs. Christine Wetherill Stevenson Attend Service at Theatre." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, January 22, 1923, p. 12 (subscription required). which is housed in the former Samuel Price Wetherill Mansion.
Death and legacy She died in Media, Pennsylvania, on November 21, 1922, and was interred at Philadelphia's Laurel Hill Cemetery.Gibson, Idah McGlone. "The Woman's Viewpoint." Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Evening Express, November 23, 1922, p. 24 (subscription required).
A memorial service was held in her honor on Sunday, November 26, 1922, at 3:00 p.m. in the Pilgrimage Theater. In pre-memorial announcements about the planned event, newspapers reported: "Hollywood is asked to attend the service, and pay tribute in all reverence to the woman who brought the Pilgrimage Play to Hollywood."Many Are Expected at Service in Memory of Mrs. Stevenson." Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Evening Citizen News, November 25, 1922, front page (subscription required)."Mrs. Stevenson's Memory Honored by Gathering." Los Angeles, California: The Los Angeles Times," p. 4 (subscription required).
The Hollywood Cross, a thirty-two-foot-high steel cross, at 2580 Cahuenga Boulevard was erected in 1923 to her memory.
Timeline – Hollywood Bowl and Pilgrimage Theatre 1916 – Hollywood's first outdoor theatre production takes place in nearby Beachwood Canyon. 1918 – First organizational meeting leads to plans for a permanent park and art center in Hollywood; Christine Wetherill Stevenson produces the religious drama, Light of Asia, on the grounds of the Theosophical Society above Beachwood Canyon. 1919 – Theatre Arts Alliance incorporated, with Christine Wetherill Stevenson as president; purchase of in Bolton Canyon for $47,500 on which to build a community park and art center. 1920 – Christine leaves the Theatre Art Alliance and purchases of land on the other side of Cahuenga Pass to build a new amphitheater for her plays. 1920 – Community Park and Art Association established, replacing Theatre Arts Alliance 1922 – Christine Wetherill Stevenson dies 1929 – Fire destroys Pilgrimage Theatre and theatre rebuilt
References
External links Pilgrimage Theatre, Los Angeles History Hollywood Bowl