The Barn

More than 45 years ago, Chaffin's Barn opened as Nashville's first professional theater and was the first place to bring live theater tours from New York to Nashville. It was part of a chain of "barn" theaters around the country that offered its audiences a full buffet dinner along with live theater in the round. Today Chaffin's claims to be one of only two remaining original barn dinner theaters in the country.

Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre

 

A.W. "John" Chaffin and his wife Edna – known to everyone as "Puny" – opened their theater at 8204 Highway 100 on March 27, 1967. It still provides live theater productions, comedies, mysteries, musicals and special events under the leadership of their son John. One of the barn's most unique features is its elevator stage. Guests are treated to a full dinner buffet, set up and served in the center of the seating area. Once the salad bar and hot food are removed from the floor, the stage is slowly lowered from the ceiling and the live in-the-round entertainment begins.

In addition to dinner and a show, Chaffin's Barn also hosts a number of charity events to help raise money for area non-profits, including churches, the YMCA and the Nashville Symphony.

Edna "Puny" Chaffin passed away earlier this month and will be missed by not only her family, but the Nashville theater community as well. What started in a little red barn in Bellevue in the late 1960s is known as one of Nashville's most unique venues for quality, live entertainment.

 John and Puny Chaffin opened Nashville's first live theater in 1967. Puny died on Dec. 10, 2012.