The Final Curtain
During the summer of 2011, the world-renowned Shaw Festival, located in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada, observed its 50th anniversary. Next to the imposing Festival Hall is the smaller Studio Theatre where a collection of posters and production photos were on display. A larger and more comprehensive exhibit of the Shaw’s history was found at the town library, located a few blocks away.
When entering the Studio Theatre, one’s eyes were immediately drawn to a three-panel screen. The text on the screen served as an introduction to what was on display only a few steps away.
It just so happened that the 50th anniversary of the Shaw Festival coincided with the observance of the 50th season of Wayside Theatre. And, it was the opening sentence on the screen’s first panel that caught my attention. It read:
Theatre is always doomed to become a memory once the final curtain falls.
A few tangible records remain - - house programmes, newspaper reviews, a
poster; (photographs) …. These bits and pieces are no less ephemeral than the
theatre experience itself (Shaw Festival Display. Summer 2011).
It was the phrase, “bits and pieces,” that caught my eye, as I had just begun to delve into Wayside’s history. These “memories” had surfaced from various sources: thumbing through old playbills; viewing photographs of past production; listening to actors recount their rehearsal and performance experiences; jogging the memories of those who had served on the artistic staff creating the sets, hanging the lights, and building the costumes. These “memories” also included some conversations with people who had sat in the seats and applauded what they had seen on the stage, and then left, filled with the magic that only theatre can bring.
What a privilege it has been to come into contact with these Wayside “memories.” When this project began in 2011, it was assumed the final form would be a coffee-table book, combining historical narrative with abundant photographs. Because new information continues to surface, it was decided not to freeze the story into print, but to keep it flexible in some type of electronic format, so that, when additional information surfaced, it could be easily added. Regardless of the project’s format, it was assumed from the very beginning that collecting these memories would be a long, tedious, but fascinating, process.
But, further “memories” were not to be. In July of 2013, the Board of Directors made the decision to close the Theatre due to financial reasons. Consequently, there will be nothing more to add, only the reconstructing of what has gone on before. This project is now an historical document about a defunct organization with a rich past.
It is with hope that these memories will be all the more valuable to those who will read the story of Wayside Theatre. May this “jewel in the Shenandoah Valley” not be forgotten.