Ed Steele: 1981

Despite the severe altering of the performance schedule for the 1980 season, the shadow of debt still continued to hover over the Theatre in 1981, threatening its very existence.  When Steele was asked in an interview how such a situation had developed and reached such a point that the theatre faced closing, he gave several reasons, which were printed as follows:

What did happen can be attributed to a number of things …. The theater got in
trouble because of poor fund-raising tactics, a disorganized board of directors
and a staff that did as it pleased in a rubber-stamping sort of operation.

The roof began to cave in when the nation’s economy began to spiral out of
control.  Inflation forced the Foundation to get its act together or close the theater. 

That’s when Steele was hired.  He and a consultant, ‘with the board standing
behind us,’ started pulling pieces back together and shaping a new focus for the
theater and its progress.

Before, Steele noted, fund-raising for Wayside was approached with the attitude,
‘If you don’t give, this will be the end of the world for us.” Now, fund-raising campaigns focus on what the theater and the foundation can offer for the community.

And also before the new approach was initiated, the board of directors was so
disjointed that it couldn’t even fire anyone, Steele confides.  But, the board in
existence then in no way resembles the one now, even though some of the same directors still serve on it.

The big difference is ‘attitude,’ he continued. The board has been brought into
the day-to-day workings of the theater (Kinley, Dean.  “Wayside Awaits ‘Proof of
Pudding’ Summer.” DNR. 20 May 1981).

Steele also credits the Theatre’s comeback to the support of the community, along with a very strong staff.  All of this work resulted in something special - - ticket sales for Life With Father were so strong, it was necessary to add an extra performance, a first-time experience in the Theatre’s history (Cameron.  “Wayside Theater Pulls ….” TWS.  10 Oct. 1981).  Actually, records reveal that additional performances had been added for some shows in earlier seasons.

In summary, Steele stated - - the 1979 debt of $114,000 “has decreased to just $28,000.” The theatre was able to enlist more support through added subscriptions and gifts.  In addition, there was an attempt to use the theatre space to host various events, such as a program called, “A new ‘Weekends at the Wayside’ that offers opportunities for other art forms, such as dance.”  A concert featuring two of these dance groups that performed in a joint concert on the Wayside stage, one from the Shenandoah Valley and one from Delaware, received a glowing review (Kinley. “New Dance ….” DNR.  18 May 1981).

Other financial support came in the form of a grant from the O’Sullivan Corporation for the purpose of funding a guest director for the season. The recipient of this award was George Black, Director of Theatre at the University of Virginia.  Black, recognized as one of the South’s most respected directors, was in residence for the summer of 1981.  Steele states that establishing …

(T)he O’Sullivan Guest Director’s chair is the first that we know of its kind in the
state.  Even though the theatre has hired an artistic director for the summer of
1981, the tremendous demands placed upon that one person make it impossible
for her (see below) to direct all of the shows (“Wayside Gets Endowment.” TWS.  
23 June 1981).  

Records show that Black directed only one play, The Rainmaker, during the 1981 season, He directed two productions in the 1982 season.

Adding a person with George Black’s qualifications to the staff was a good move for the theatre, as he brought a great deal of experience to Wayside.

Black, who has been at the University of Virginia [for] 10 years, was the founder
and artistic director at the Heritage Repertory Theatre, now in its seventh season,
as one of the region’s most successful repertory companies (“Wayside gets endow-ment.” TSVH.  25 June 1981). 

No other information regarding the O’Sullivan grant or further awards to Wayside can be found.  Consequently, one assumes that this funding for a guest director was for only one year.

Earlier, Steele makes reference to Karen Hayes, a name that appears only during the 1981 season.  Hayes was identified as “Wayside’s new artistic director and in that role she’ll be directing three of the six plays on the summer’s bill, plus [directing] three cabaret shows planned for weekend evenings.”  The thirty-five minute Cabaret shows were performed by the summer company and interns in the Curtain Call Café on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings.  Intern Diane Bearden, a student at Middle Tennessee State, served as the pianist for these performances.  Refreshments were included in the cover charge. Hayes gives the overall plan for these Cabaret evenings: “The first show will be on relationships, using excerpts from several writers and vignettes from Broadway shows.  The second one will be Broadway Babies - - with a theme of famous femme fatales - - and the third one is still open.” Before coming to Wayside for the 1981 summer, Hayes taught “high school and college, [served] as an administrator for the American Theatre Association and direct(ed) summer theatre productions” (Cameron.  “A Tough Time ….” TWS.  18 May 1981). To round out the summer season, Hayes made an appeal for additional actors. “Needed were three males ages 8 – 18, four women of various ages and two men between 30 and 50” (“Wayside Auditions.”  TWS.  27 May 1981). 

Neil Simon’s Chapter Two opened the 1981 season and was well received. In addition to the fine acting, the set is highly praised. The full use of the small stage was credited to Chris Rusch, a member of the technical theatre staff at Shenandoah Conservatory, who had created

… two apartments - - George’s wood-paneled, traditional looking one to the
audience’s left, and the modern chrome-and-glass living room of Jennie Malone …
to the right. With clever stage and lighting … the spotlight alternates from one
apartment to the other, unless they are both talking on the telephone when both
are lighted (Cameron. “Wayside Scores ….” TWS.  18 June 1981). 

Carolyn Marcellus’ opening night review for Radio Station WFFV gives the performance high praise and comments that she, “had a problem deciding who these individuals really were, for I kept getting the uneasy feeling that two were actors, playing the parts of people, while two were people playing the parts of actors” (Marcellus. “Chapter Two.”  WFFV critique).

Deathtrap, the season’s second play, received a high rating by reviewer, Pat Robinson, who wrote, “With a good play and a fine cast, there’s no reason why anyone would stay home and miss this exciting production.” Robinson acknowledges that the theatre’s financial situation is common knowledge among the local residents and it “needs some packed houses to keep it afloat.” He concludes, “this is one production that should be billed as ‘Standing Room Only’ throughout the end of its run” (Robinson, P.  “ ‘Deathtrap’ is Wayside’s ….”  NVD.  6 July 1981). 

However, another reviewer felt the opposite.  While praising the writing of the play, Cameron pans the acting of most of the actors except for Carol Hanpeter, who “could probably steal scenes from strong leading characters, so in this production, she has a field day … delivering her lines with perfect timing.” Winchester actor, Greg Simpson, is credited with being flawlessly able to “hold his own with the professionals on the Wayside stage.”  Cameron concludes,  “After last night’s show, Managing Director Ed Steele said, ‘Deathtrap’ had been put together in 10 days.  Unfortunately, no one expressed any surprise at this.  Perhaps as the play continues, performances will improve, but for now, Wayside has taken a splendid play and done a second-rate job with it” (Cameron. “ ‘Deathtrap’ a Second ….” TWS.  2 July 1981).  Not everyone shared Cameron’s opinion, as another writer calls Deathtrap “one of the funniest mystery thrillers ever written and although funny … makes use of ‘scare tactics’ [that] were used at Wednesday’s opening brought a shouting cry from the nearly full house” in the show’s final scenes (Kinley. “ ‘Deathtrap:’ Exquisite Blend ….”  DNR.  2 July 1981).

The review for the season’s third offering, Life With Father, was filled with high praise for everything: the sets, the costumes, and the acting. The reviewer loved Steele playing the part of Father “who is simply perfect as the gruff businessman who rails at his morning newspaper, shouts at the maids, cusses in front of the preacher, and dotes on his wife and children” (Cameron.  “Wayside’s ‘Life with ….’ “ TWS.  14 July 1981).

Wayside’s small stage was no hinderance in successfully creating three bedrooms for Bedroom Farce, the season’s next offering. The staging of this farce was enhanced by clever lighting, the use of platforms, and especially by the strong direction of Karen Hayes. 

The Rainmaker, the next production, was equally successful, with Ed Steele showing “another of his many talents in this production’s set design which brings an arid look to the interiors and provides three different areas for stage action” (Cameron. “Romantic Miracles in ….” TWS.  12 Aug. 1981). 

Rounding out the summer was the musical, The Amorous Flea, ending a season that has “provided a good balance of drama, comedy, thrills, and poignance …” (Cameron. “ ‘Amorous Flea’: Impressive ….”  TWS. 27 Aug. 1981). The three musicians, used in the production, were students at Shenandoah Conservatory.

For patrons who were willing to spend some additional time following the final curtain, Steele and Hayes added a post-play Cabaret event held in the Curtain Call Café.  The material for these presentations was listed as a “potpourri of song, dance and skits for those who wanted a little something extra following the show,” adding that much of the material “was written by Jules Feiffer, and dealt with the relationships between men and women.  Sure-fire stuff, since everyone knows what they’re getting, and double sure fire, since the three women in the cast encompass every female stereotype in the book.”  These Cabaret performances began about 11:15, “so it is definitely something for those wanting to add a nightcap to an evening of theatre” (Patton.  “Cabaret Debuts….” TWS.  2 July 1981).  Unfortunately, little information is available regarding this post-performance event, as to whether it only took place following the run of The Deathtrap, or for the entire summer season, much less how they were received.  However, when asked about the Cabaret Series, George Black replied, “These were pretty much impromptu entertainments usually after matinees. They were ostensibly to give the apprentices performance opportunities.  They also produced a bit of income via a bar/refreshment stand” (Black.  Email. 4 May 2011)

As had become a post-season tradition, a Christmas program was scheduled for December that was a co-production between the Wayside Theatre and the Wayside Youth Ensemble (SEE: Appendix, Classes).  An appeal appeared in the local press for “adults to complete our professional staff and young actors … All ages and sizes of young people are needed, ages 8 – 18.  Three adults are also needed … two females and one male, of varying ages” (“Wayside Christmas Play ….” TWS.  6 Nov. 1981).  To create The Gifts of Christmas, Ed Steele “adapted three Christmas stories to a late Victorian setting, added some harmonious Christmas songs, a clever set and lighting, and a wonderful cast to create an entertaining show that really does have something for every age.” The first was a little morality play, “My Uncle Peter;” the second, “The Littlest Angel,” was “presented in a delightful way, with gospel-singing angels trying to practice with constant interruptions from the pesky little angel.” The third was Dylan Thomas’s “A Child’s Christmas in Wales,” read by four actors who “obviously enjoyed the chance to speak some of the most beautiful language ever written” (Cameron. “Wayside Christmas Show ….” TWS.  18 Dec, 1981).  The production was enhanced by beautiful costumes and music played on piano and autoharp. The lengthy, detailed review by Gregory Sorrell, singles out each actor giving a comment about some aspect of their performance, be it a falsetto speaking voice, stoop-shouldered posture, an excellent cockney accent, or the intense feeling expressed when a particular line is delivered (Sorrell, G. “Wayside Yule Show ….” NVD.  13 Dec. 1981).

And on that positive note, the 1981 season came to a successful close.