Ed Steele: 1983
Artistic Director Steele was very upbeat when he made the announcement of Wayside’s 1983 season. Part of the reason for his confidence was that the huge debt he inherited had been whittled down to a mere $10,000. “We’re still in the minus column, but we think that’s pretty remarkable. We’re doing everything possible to eliminate it by the end of the season. We think we can make it,” he stated. (Strohmeyer. “Wayside Theatre Making ….” TWS. 1 Apr. 1983).
The 1983 season had a very positive feel to it. Steele was delighted with the high quality of the actors and interns he had hired for the season. He mentioned a few people who had advanced in the profession after their time in Middletown: “Among those who cut their teeth at Wayside were actress Susan Sarandon, while she was a student at Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and about a decade ago, set designer John Lee Beatty, who has won two Tony Awards for his work on Broadway” (Strohmeyer. 1 Apr. 1983).
In reflecting on the financial crisis that required cutting the budget to the bare bones a few years earlier, Steele stated that “one of his first priorities was to rebuild what was a damaged reputation. There were some bad shows, some incredibly sorry management, both artistic and fiscally …. I felt the first thing we had to do was give our audience a quality product and then we could start rebuilding.” The year after the crisis, one reviewer wrote, “The theatre was back to a full schedule with larger casts, and the company hasn’t looked back since” (Fordney, C. “Wayside to Open Tonight.” TWS. 6 June 1984). These encouraging words were delivered almost two years after the financial crisis that almost closed the theatre.
The 1983 season opened with the two-person, one-set play, Talley’s Folly. The audience seemed to have been captivated by actor Ken Lambert’s opening monolog when he “plopped down on stage and began chatting about what props he needed for a no-holds-barred romantic evening” wrote one reviewer, who concluded, “Director George Black is to be commended for his success with a one-act, 97-minute play that has only two actors. They deliver a host of lines in a single setting without ever losing the audience’s attention” (Robbins. “ ‘Talley’s Folly’ Will ….” TWS. 9 June 1983). Another writer praises the excellent acting as well as the set, calling the old Victorian gazebo ”both functional and attractive” and notes that the lighting “completes the illusion of a summer evening” (Horan. ‘Wayside’s ‘Tally’s Folly’ ….” NVD. 9 June 1983).
Much of the success of the 1983 season can be credited to the work of George Black, who had been hired as the summer’s Artistic Director. [One should be reminded that throughout the theatre’s documentation, the terms artistic director and producing director, have been used interchangeably and the use of these terms seemed to depend upon the person in charge at that particular time.] Black had successfully directed several productions for Wayside in earlier seasons. He appeared in Black Coffee as “a charming Poirot, with the perfect fastidious habits and flourishing movements that made the Belgian detective a favorite among Christie fans” (Sims. “ ‘Black Coffee’ …. ” TWS. 23 June 1983). Sims makes additional comments about the play, noting its luxuriously appointed set, and costumes and hairstyles appropriate to the period. It seems that in 1983 Black Coffee was not a commonly known Christie title. Steele confesses that, “to get a hold of the play, [he] had to visit a friend’s attic and type up [my] own copy.” The reviewer continues, “To point up the fact that this 1930 play had been lost to audiences for nearly 50 years, Steele begins and ends each scene in strobe lighting, to create the effect of an old movie. Mysterious organ music completes the effect” (Sims. “ 23 June 1983).
Both Steele and Black did double duty during this season, as they both directed and appeared on stage: Black as the lead in A Thousand Clowns with Steele serving as the show’s director. In this title, one reviewer characterizes Black’s acting as superb, stating, “[He] has captured his character’s spirit and rebellion against the norms of society perfectly with his delivery of one-liners and his refined comic touch” (Shetterly. “Wayside ‘Clowns’ a Comic Gem.” DNR. 12 Aug. 1983). Another writer praises Black, saying that “playing someone who appears to be a minority of one can’t be easy, but Black succeeds with aplomb” (Horan. “Wayside Cast Portrays ….” NVD. 11 Aug. 1983). In addition to directing this show, Steele also played the part of Arnold, the brother.
With the production of On Golden Pond, these two men reversed their positions with Black directing and Steele playing the grumpy Norman and Debra Cupp playing the devoted, “flinty and independent wife Ethel.” Steele’s “portrayal of crotchety old Norman Thayer, Jr. … was such a crowd-pleaser that even Steele seemed to have trouble stifling laughs along with the audience” (Loomis. “Feelings Run Deep ….” TWS. 7 July 1983), while another source praises his delivery of “one-liners so beautifully that none of them gets lost” (Kinley. “Wayside’s ‘Golden Pond’ ….” DNR. 7 July 1983). Horan is equally positive in his comments about the production noting Steele’s “perfect timing and subtle bits of stage business” gives a portrayal a man who has a crusty exterior hiding his sensitive inner self. “Steele manages to capture that important aspect well” (Horan. “Wayside’s ‘On Golden Pond’ ….” NVD. 7 July 1983).
The success of this strong production and the “response to advance [ticket] orders … Wayside Theatre has added for the first time a third week” to the usual two-week run of its plays. The support not only for this play but for the entire season could allow the “summer season to close in the black.” The stronger financial base, Steele suggests, could “allow Wayside to produce experimental works” in the following year, “perhaps in the more intimate setting of the adjoining Cabaret” (Loomis. “Feelings Run Deep ….” TWS. 7 July 1983). The Cabaret performances that took place in the Curtain Call, had been inaugurated the previous year as post-curtain entertainment following the main stage production. Unfortunately, to date, no records have surfaced to indicate the success of these Cabaret events.
Bram Stocker’s Dracula kept the audience on the edge of their seats by …
filling the stage with haunting music, gorgeous sets and costumes, scary
scenes, and consistently good performances from all cast members …. Add
to that … some realistic special effects – bats flapping against the window, a
scene of pitch blackness, and eyes that glow in the dark” (Robbins. “You Can
Sink Your ….” TWS. 28 July 1983).
After listing many credits for this production, the review concludes, “For those who appreciate good theater done well and like their thrills live, not taped or filmed, every once in a while, ‘Dracula’ fits the bill splendidly” (Strohmeyer. “Wayside’s ‘Dracula’ Works ….” NVD. 29 July 1983).
A bit of confusion was caused in the playbill of A Thousand Clowns, when a printing error made no mention that this was a three-act play with two intermissions. Despite this omission, the audience adjusted, took their two breaks, and enjoyed the story of a seemingly unfit person with no job or ambition, about to lose the guardianship of his nephew that was set in a seedy New York apartment. “Each of the roles” in this comedy,” states the reviewer, “has a certain complexity and believability which the cast manages to capture without lapsing into overly broad acting” (Horan. “Wayside Cast Portrays ….” NVD. 11 Aug. 1983). Another writer praises the set, a one-room apartment, that is a “wonderful jumble of old movie posters, musical instruments, and general clutter” (Robbins. “ ‘Clowns’ Tramps Happily …. TWS. 11 Aug. 1983).
For the final play of the season, The Owl and the Pussycat, critic Horan found that “although the play is flawed, the cast does their best to rise above it.” He adds that the two actors “work well with each other, and display a deft comedic touch. Their acting is on a par with the quality associated with the Wayside company” (Horan. “Wayside’s ‘Owl and Pussycat’: ….” NVD. 26 Aug. 1983).
The traditional December show took on quite a different twist with The Butterfingers Angel which proposed not to be a play, rather an allegory. This work was written by William Gibson, author of The Miracle Worker, and is based on the life of Helen Keller. While one reviewer was uncomfortable during the first act, she found that in act two, both the cast and the playwright “began to hit their stride and [is] where the audience can began to see the divine plan unfolding.” She praises the production for its visual elegance, the beautiful Christmas music, and the poignant words as the play draws to a close when “Mary finds self fulfillment saying, ‘All my life I have wanted to make something of myself. And I did – Him.’ she concludes, looking at the infant Jesus” (Eller. “ ‘The Butterfingers Angel’ …,” NVD. 16 Dec. 1983).
The Theatre’s files for 1983 hold a mystery. They contain is a copy of the script for Moliere’s The Doctor in Spite of Himself along with a comprehensive study guide of background material and creative activities to be used in conjunction with a performance of this title. The latter is carefully laid out to introduce students to the play and what to expect from a performance. The issue here is that there is no record of a performance of this title performed during the summer season or as a WTOT play. The question must be asked if this were something that was planned but discarded, or if it were performed but there is no record of such an event.
Before the 1983 season began, the Shenandoah Arts Council used Wayside Theatre as the location of concert of music by William Walton and Igor Stravinsky. For Walton’s Façade, actress Debra Cupp and Artistic Director, Ed Steele served as the readers. After intermission, Stravinsky’s L’histoire du Soldat was performed by Debra Cupp and Jeff Stern with dances by Gennadi and Susan Vostrikov. Both titles were conducted by Chauncey Kelley. Unfortunately, other than a copy of the program in the Archives, no additional information can be found regarding this performance which was a joint effort between Wayside Theatre, Shenandoah College and Conservatory of Music, and the Shenandoah Arts Council.