Spotlighting Saranne Rushin Peacock: A Deep Dive into Her Journey with Sumter Players

As a relative newcomer to Sumter Players, board president Laura McConatha continues in her quest to learn more about the people responsible for its longevity and success. This spotlight is the first in a series of articles taken from fascinating hours of conversations with individuals whose love and commitment to Sumter Players helped shape its identity as Americus’ Community Theatre. The subject of this first installment is Saranne Rushin Peacock.

Saranne’s involvement with Sumter Players began when she was just 19 years old. She had just returned home to Americus and while in the office of local attorney Billy Smith, he casually mentioned that he’d been needing to get a receptionist for some time. He asked Saranne if she needed a job, and the answer was a definite “yes”. Shortly afterwards, representatives from the newly formed “Little Theatre Group” came in to have Billy assist them with the paperwork to legally become Sumter Players, Inc. Saranne said that one of her very first work assignments was typing up and filing those articles of incorporation. She remembers being very happy that her hometown was establishing its own community theatre.

A few years later, and now married to Bobby Peacock, their son Hugh, a third grader, came home from school declaring, “They’re having auditions for a children’s play, and I want to be in it!” Saranne owned a bookstore across the street from the Merritt Building, where Sumter Players was located at that time. So it worked out nicely that every afternoon after school, Hugh would walk across the street for rehearsal. Saranne remembers that he had so much fun doing it, and she so enjoyed seeing him perform, that she tried out for a role in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that very same season and was cast as Sister Woman. “My favorite thing about the role is that I was always a quiet person, never looking for trouble, and Sister Woman was the complete opposite of that. It was so fun playing someone so different from myself,” said Saranne. “Hugh stayed involved with Sumter Players throughout his school career, and due to his physicality, he moved quickly into performing in the adult shows,” she continued. Upon entering college, Hugh auditioned for and won the role of Danny in Grease and was awestruck by the young woman named Anita who was cast as Sandy. “It was pretty much love at first sight, and they married shortly after graduating from college. The magic of theatre!”

With the support of Bobby, Saranne continued to perform in plays through the years and served as accompanist on the piano. “I directed a few plays, played the piano for a few, acted in several others. Since I was raising children, I only allowed myself to work on one play a year,” she said. She laughed remembering, “I was no good at set building. Sharon Parks was so patient trying to teach me how to hold a hammer and I just couldn’t do it – I liked painting, so I stuck with that.”

Saranne’s directorial debut was Auntie Mame. “I really wanted us to put on the non-musical version of the show, and since no one wanted to do it, I offered to take it on. It went over very well, and was a lot of fun to direct,” she said.

Saranne also had a great time directing the 1995 show (which also happens to be our opener for the 2025-26 season of the Sumter Players), Love, Sex, and the I.R.S. Her nephew, Thomas Weber, was a very young man when he took on a lead role as Leslie Arthur. She recalls, “It was so much fun, everybody in it had a blast, and those who saw it really enjoyed it. The entire cast was fantastic, and I felt that I could give them artistic license to make the show their own. It was the only show I ever won Best Production for.”

Saranne’s middle child, Patrick, began performing in Sumter Players productions in junior high school. His first musical was The Music Man, where he got to show off his talent as a tuba player. The first play Patrick sang in was Man of La Mancha, garnering him his first Best Actor award; he also received the award for his portrayal of Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird. Patrick remains involved with Sumter Players to this day, working with the production crew and starring most recently in 2022’s God of Carnage.

Youngest son Judson never got involved in theater, becoming a history teacher. Saranne laughed when telling me that Judson always lamented that her penchant for choosing middle names for her sons based on people she knew and admired, made them sound like a country music band: Judson Olin, Patrick Homer and Hugh Lester. Saranne also has a stepson who came to live with she and Bobby when he was 11 years old. Although never involved with Sumter Players, he is also a performer who sings gospel music.

Saranne shared, “My mother, Nancy Ruth Rushin, got involved after I got involved, and for several years she did props. She had to create a lot of very unusual props. One I remember was a turkey that was presented on a tray to the King and Queen at the ball in Cinderella. She blew up a big balloon, put plaster of Paris all around it, shaped it into a turkey with lifelike looking wings and legs, and used roasting sauce to make it brown and golden and beautiful.” In her 70’s when she first began volunteering, Nancy worked on props into her 80’s.

Saranne’s favorite actor to work with was Sharon Parks, saying, “I felt closer to her than anyone else. We were around the same age, and she was such a gifted actress. Being around her boosted my confidence. Sumter Players has always been the best social experience I have ever had. Working with so many different people, all through the years, was just wonderful. We could fuss and fight like any family, but the next day we would be back joking and having fun. No one ever held any grudges, and it was a safe space for everyone.”

When asked about what she thought were the best performances she witnessed during her years with Sumter Players, she quickly answered, “Every time John Parks was onstage, he was just so extraordinarily talented. I once had the privilege of performing in a play with him, where I played a very difficult mother-in-law. Since I had to act upset a lot, I turned to him one day and asked if it would be too much if I were to hit him with my pocketbook. He said, ‘Absolutely not, it’s comedy, it’s never too much!’ So I got to hit him several times, and I enjoyed it very much”.

Saranne ended our conversation by sharing what she enjoyed most about directing, “I absolutely loved the planning aspect of putting on a production – thinking about how we’re going to do this; how are we going to find the right props and furniture for the show; how will we make all the scenes work together. The planning was so much fun to me. I always felt that the actors I directed knew as much and probably more about what we needed to do as I did, so I always asked them what they thought. I just loved collaborating with them all like that."