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Emerald Coast Theatre Company that helps young voices find the spotlight.
When Emerald Coast Theatre Company founders Nathanael and Anna Fisher hosted 10 elementary school students for an after-school theatre program in 2012, they couldn’t have imagined it would grow into a thriving theatre company serving more than 600 students and producing professional performances that draw actors from across the country.
What they did know was that Northwest Florida had a gap.
At the time, no elementary or middle schools in Walton County, where the couple lived, or local educational groups offered theatre programs, either during the school day or after hours. Only one small program served the neighboring county. As theatre educators, the Fishers understood how transformative that kind of creative outlet could be for young people.
“We had seen over and over how theatre can change a child’s life,” Nathanael said recently during an interview at the company’s studio in Miramar Beach.
In 2012, Anna had just earned her master’s degree in theatre studies, and Nathanael was nearing completion of his Master of Fine Arts. The couple was living in Virginia Beach with their twins, who were about to turn six, and Anna was pregnant with their third child.
Nathanael, a longtime theatre professional, had performed on stages across the country, including bringing Spider-Man to life for audiences at Universal’s Islands of Adventure. But he was ready for steadier work to support his young family.
He got an offer to lead a one-man theatre department at a small college in Barbourville, Kentucky, and he was considering the move.
Before accepting, Nathanael spoke by phone with Anna’s father, who lived in Santa Rosa Beach, near where Anna had grown up. The conversation gave him pause.
“My father-in-law said, ‘Nathanael, you’re a good man. You’ve got a job. Good for you. But do you really want to move even farther from family? Why not talk with Anna, pray about it, and consider coming home for a while? Stay with us and see if something better might open up.’”
The idea resonated. The Fishers packed up their home, left Virginia Beach, and moved to Northwest Florida so Nathanael could continue looking for work. What was meant to be a one-year pause became a turning point.
The Fishers began making calls, exploring what opportunities might exist.
Nathanael reached out to Jason Hedden, then a theatre professor at Gulf Coast State College in Panama City. One comment, in particular, stayed with him and quietly reshaped his thinking.
“He said, ‘If you’re moving here to participate in the arts, there’s not much, especially in the way of professional theatre. But if you’re coming to provide the arts, the ground is fertile,’” Nathanael recalled.
Encouraged, the couple kept digging. They connected with local arts leaders and asked questions. What they found was striking: theatre education was nearly nonexistent.
Gradually, the possibility of starting their own company took shape.
The Fishers understood the impact an educational theatre program could have on young people.
“It’s not about them going to Broadway. It’s not about them having a professional career in theatre,” Nathanael said.
“All of that is great, of course. We bless that and honor that — but there are life skills that children learn from theatre. It’s about learning to stand in front of people, and it’s about learning to communicate, and memorizing lines, and the empathy that is learned when you see the world through a character’s perspective. It’s that shared camaraderie that kids get.”
With that conviction, but little sense of how far the journey might go, the Fishers launched their first after-school theatre program at Destin Elementary, serving 10 students. Their next program drew 30 kids. They ran it as volunteers, with their six-year-old twins and infant daughter in tow.
They tiptoed in.
Today, more than 600 children ages 5 to 18 participate annually in the nonprofit company’s 52 summer camps and after-school and weekend programs, a reach that continues to grow.
At the company’s 10-year anniversary, Nathanael and Anna reflected on how far they had come. After one interview, Anna turned to her husband and asked a simple question: When they first launched the company, had he ever imagined it would grow this large?
The answer was immediate.
No.
“I think we just care about this community, and we never wanted to stifle the growth,” Nathanael said.
“Our programming is meant to be very inclusive, especially when it comes to education. I think our mindset was simply to stay open to the possibilities.”
And so they did.
As word spread, interest surged. Year after year, they found themselves racing to keep up, constantly searching for creative ways to expand capacity.
“In those early years, it was always trying to catch up with growth,” Nathanael said.
The company expanded its after-school programming into DeFuniak Springs in 2019 and Freeport in 2024, bringing theatre education to more students closer to home.
They also launched a weekend program for teens, which now draws 90 students each Saturday morning. The program is divided into three age-based productions, so younger and older students aren’t competing for the same roles.
“We have parents tell us all the time, ‘On Monday through Friday, I can’t get my teenagers out of bed for school. But on Saturday mornings, they’re waking me up saying, “Let’s go. We’ve got to get to the theatre,”’” Nathanael said.
Many stay long after rehearsal ends. About 30 students regularly remain for hours to work on competition pieces or hone their skills further.
For Nathanael, that level of dedication is deeply motivating.
“They could be playing on their phones or doing whatever teenagers like to do in their free time. But they’re choosing to be here,” he said. “Especially in a time that’s so digital, when there’s so much conflict, having a place that builds self-confidence, communication, and empathy, I think it could be an antidote to all that.”
In December 2014, while continuing to grow a robust education program, the Fishers expanded into professional theatre.
The first shows premiered at different event venues in the area and empty retail spaces used as black box theatres. As with their education programs, the approach was cautious at first.
“We did the same thing, really. We kind of tiptoed in,” Nathanael said. “We launched a couple of shows, and it just kept growing.”
In 2025 alone, Emerald Coast Theatre Company hosted more than 200 performances and welcomed 23,000 ticketed attendees. Professional actors now travel from across the country to perform on its stage.
For Nathanael, the enthusiastic response from audiences affirms that the company is meeting another community need.
He recalls a conversation with an actor who had performed in Legally Blonde and several other productions. The actor, who works regularly at theatres across the Southeast, told Nathanael that audience behavior in Miramar Beach stood out.
In many larger cities, the actor said, curtain call signals a rush for the exits as patrons hurry to beat traffic. At Emerald Coast Theatre Company, audiences linger. They remain in their seats, applauding, then stay to mingle with fellow theatre-goers.
“I feel like that’s their heartfelt thank you to the actors for what they’ve done, and that’s not something you get everywhere you go,” Nathanael said. “Our community is so special.”
Community generosity has been integral to the theatre’s growth. The company relies on a mix of grants, sponsorships, and individual donations to keep its doors open.
Nathanael knew the company had loyal supporters, but he was unprepared for the outpouring that followed when the pandemic brought live performance to a halt.
“My mindset was that we were going to have to tighten our belts and figure out how to get through this,” Nathanael recalled. He braced for the possibility of losing sponsors and donors.
Instead, the opposite happened.
“We had people increasing their sponsorships, saying, ‘We know you’re going to need this next year,’” Nathanael said. “Our sponsorships went up. Donations went up. People told us they wanted us to survive.”
The experience left the company humbled.
“We had some survivor’s guilt,” Nathanael said. “At a time when theatre companies across the country were closing at a rapid rate, Emerald Coast Theatre Company, without even asking, was supported more than ever.”
That spirit of generosity has continued, sustaining the company as it grows.
The company now has a staff of 12, including the Fishers, an eight-person board of directors, and numerous guest contributors.
In October 2016, the company found a permanent home when it moved into its current location, a 17,600-square-foot studio at Grand Boulevard in Miramar Beach.
“We use every inch,” Nathanael said.
Today, the facility houses professional productions along with most theatre classes and camps. During the summer, four age-group camps run simultaneously, filling the building with motion.
“It’s a cacophony of noise, joy, and fun,” Nathanael said.
Behind the scenes, every corner serves a purpose. They’ve divided it up using curtains for a 260-seat theatre, a 100-seat cabaret, a lobby and bar area, and rehearsal spaces. Nathanael’s office and others are tucked into the back. The costume designer creates roughly 1,500 costumes each year for student and professional productions in a 500-square-foot workspace carved out for the task. Nearby, the set designer uses just 650 square feet to design, build, and assemble 14 unique sets annually.
“We do the absolute best with the resources we have,” Nathanael said.
But as programs continue to grow, so do the limitations.
“If we want to keep raising the standard and serving our community with excellence, it’s time to face the challenges ahead and plan for the future,” he said.
That future may include expanding some operations to locations beyond Grand Boulevard while keeping the heart of the company rooted there.
As always, the approach will be careful and deliberate.
They’ll tiptoe in.
And go from there.
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