Tag Archives: Westport Country Playhouse

Lucille Lortel, Eva La Gallienne Still Live

Posted on May 8, 2012 | 10 comments

One of Westport’s best-kept secrets is the White Barn Theatre.

The White Barn Theatre.

Founded in 1947 by actress/producer Lucille Lortel on her Newtown Road property straddling the Norwalk line, the 148-seat White Barn has always played second fiddle to the bigger, better-known red barn Westport Country Playhouse.

But despite its low-key presence — it may be the last organization on earth without a website — the White Barn Theatre deserves its place in arts history.

Lucille Lortel

Lortel envisioned the former horse barn as a showcase for daring plays and new playwrights, composers, actors, directors and designers. It has been called “one of the greatest American experimental theaters of the 20th century.”

It presented works by Ionesco, Albee and Beckett, and premiered or staged early versions of plays that went on to successful Broadway and Off-Broadway runs, including Paul Zindel’s “The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds” and Terrence McNally’s “Next.”

Among the actors who got their start there were Peter Falk and Geoffrey Holder.

The White Barn Theatre and Athol Fugard, featured in a 1964 1994 Norwalk Hour story.

Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller were regular guests for plays by Athol Fugard, Bertold Brecht and Tennesse Williams.

It’s the real deal — even if you’ve never heard of it. And many Westporters have not.

This Saturday (May 12, 2 p.m.), you’ll get a chance to peek inside the White Barn Theatre. The Westport Historical Society is sponsoring a tour. Former general manager Mark Graham and British stage designer Peter Ling will show off the building and grounds (Lortel’s private residence still stands).

There will be a reading, and refreshments in the garden.

Eva La Gallienne

Plus, Ling says, through “the magic of theater” Lortel and Eva La Gallienne — the actress/producer/director long associated with the White Barn — will “live again.” I can’t say more than that, but it should be very cool.

Just like everything about the White Barn Theatre. Whether you’ve been a fan for 6 decades, or heard of it for the first time 6 seconds ago.

(Tickets are $10 each. For reservations, call 203-222-1424. The White Barn Theatre is located on Newtown Turnpike, near the corner of Cranbury Road.)

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Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Looking back, People, Westport Country Playhouse

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Stephen Sondheim: 62 Years In Westport

Posted on April 30, 2012 | 4 comments

If you’ve been paying attention, you know that the Westport Country Playhouse 2012 season opens tomorrow (Tuesday, May 1) with Stephen Sondheim’s “Into the Woods.”

What you may not know is that the composer/lyricist’s connection to the Playhouse goes back more than 60 years. In fact, Sondheim may have longer ties to the Playhouse than just about anyone else on earth.

In the summer of 1950 — just after graduation from Williams College — a young Sondheim was one of a dozen Playhouse apprentices.

Stephen Sondheim (crouching, top of photo), during his 1950 apprenticeship. The photo was taken at the Jolly Fisherman restaurant. Also in the photo: future film director Frank Perry (front row, left) and Richard Rodgers' daughter Mary (2nd row, 4th from left).

According to a 2006  New York Times story,

He was 20 but not totally untested: he had written two shows in college, one of which was staged. He had won a composition prize that would help finance his further studies. And Oscar Hammerstein II, a neighbor from previous summers in Bucks County, Pa., had been giving him assignments in musical theater writing, critiquing the results without condescension.

Still, he had not moved many sets or called lighting cues from a booth and didn’t yet have the practical knowledge of stagecraft that would eventually inform his scores, helping to create the seamless style of works like “Company” and “Sweeney Todd” decades later. And if there’s one thing a summer theater apprenticeship can deliver on, among the many things it necessarily cannot, it’s the promise of plenty of time spent living the less glamorous life backstage.

An undated photo of the Westport Country Playhouse -- before the most recent renovation.

He applied to the Playhouse because it was near his father and stepmother’s home in Stamford. Perhaps more importantly, he said, “in those days (it was) the most prestigious summer theater in the country.”

One of the great things about his apprenticeship, he added, was that

you got to be an assistant stage manager on at least one show during the summer. I got to do it on a show called “My Fiddle’s Got Three Strings,” directed by no less than Lee Strasberg and starring Maureen Stapleton. It was my first taste of the Actors Studio. When the actors started reading, I couldn’t hear one word. You want to talk about mumbling.

Back then, Sondheim told the Times, there was a different show each week. Apprentices learned everything — from getting props and parking cars to selling Cokes and cleaning latrines.

Nothing was beneath anyone. “We were kids in the theater,” he said.

Stephen Sondheim today.

The occasion of that Times piece was a tribute to Sondheim. The Playhouse benefit was hosted by Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward.

We think — rightly — of that wonderful couple as two of the Westport Country Playhouse’s most devoted benefactors.

But Stephen Sondheim was there nearly a decade before they moved to town.

Starting tomorrow, he’ll be there — in the form of “Into the Woods” — once again.

That’s a lot more than a little night music.

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Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Looking back, People, Westport Country Playhouse

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“Smash”: The Bernadette Peters Sequel

Posted on March 20, 2012 | 2 comments

Yesterday morning “06880” profiled David Marshall Grant, the Staples grad now serving as executive producer/writer of NBC’s new hit series “Smash.”

A few hours later, the show featured a shout-out to the Westport Country Playhouse.

Last night’s storyline alluded to the character played by musical theater legend Bernadette Peters singing “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” (from “Gypsy”) at the playhouse.

Although “Gypsy” has never actually been produced there, in 1966 Peters appeared at the playhouse in the musical “Riverwind.” She returned to that stage in 2008 to present a special tribute to Angela Lansbury.

Last September, Peters herself was honored with Westport Country Playhouse’s Distinguished Dedication and Service to the American Musical Theater Award.

As they say in TV land, “stay tuned” to “Smash” for more Westport references.

(Click here to view last night’s show. The Playhouse reference can be heard at about 00:54.)

Bernadette Peters and Weston's James Naughton at last year's Westport Country Playhouse Gala. (Photo/Kathleen O'Rourke)

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Striking 12 This Christmas

Posted on November 19, 2011 | 1 comment

‘Tis the season.  Deal with it.

Not exactly falalalala or roasting chestnuts, is it?

But that’s the best way to describe “Striking 12” by GrooveLily — a musical presentation at the Westport Country Playhouse on December 10.

It’s a great show — but, sponsors say, the toughest part is describing it to the potential audience of families, kids, and basically everyone in Westport.

Finally, someone came up with this:  “‘Striking 12’ is to Hans Christian Andersen’s ‘Little Match Girl‘ as ‘Rent’ is to ‘La Boheme.'”

Or try this:  “‘Striking 12’ is a cross between a concert and a theater piece.  It brings the spirit of ‘Match Girl’ into contemporary New York.”

And:  “It’s a concert-with-a-story, band-is-the-actors musical, with hauntingly beautiful songs and a funny, heartwarming story….part rock concert, part musical…the hippest holiday show in recent memory.”

If that sounds like PR, it is.  I haven’t seen “Striking 12.”  But I trust the people who have.

They love the show.  They think GrooveLily — the band that plays, mixing electric violin, piano and drums to create new music with roots in classical, musical theater, jazz and rock — is way cool.

David Roth — who, as director of Staples Players, knows a thing or two about satisfying an audience — says, “I first heard about GrooveLily from someone who was obsessed by them.

“Now I listen to them a lot, and use them in my directing class.  It’s one of the most creative and different mixtures of theater and music I’ve ever seen.”

Supporters of the show want to spread the word to everyone in Westport that — despite the hectic holiday season — this is a show not to miss.

Writing on the Playhouse blog, Chad Kinsman says:

It’s not kid’s music, but music that is accessible to kids and adults, and everyone in between!  One of the hardest things about planning a family outing during the holidays is trying to find something everyone will enjoy, and I can safely say “Striking 12” is just that. Younger patrons will enjoy the story, tweens and teens will like the band’s sense of humor, and everyone will love the songs.

He continues:

There is the poignancy (of “Match Girl,” but unexpectedly mixed with musical comedy, pop-rock tunes, old-fashioned uplift, and the little salesgirl whose holiday spirit can’t be matched.

Inside the clever lyrics and great melodies are important life lessons.  It’s a touching, family-and-friends-affirming show perfect to help spread the holiday spirit to you and yours.

I hope I’ve done a good job of conveying the excitement of “Striking 12.”

If not:  bah, Humbug!

(For tickets to the December 10 4 and 7 p.m. performances, click here.)

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A Short Interview With Martin

Posted on September 9, 2011 | 2 comments

Somehow, it’s fitting that my interview with Martin Short took place as he was being fitted for a wig.

Martin Short

The visual of the comedian talking about his upcoming performance in Westport was compelling.  But he chatted calmly, while wigmakers buzzed about preparing him for his new role in “How I Met Your Mother,” as Marshall Eriksen’s new boss.

Short will be here on Saturday, September 24.  The event is Homes With Hope‘s 4th annual “Stand Up” benefit.  Guests “stand up” for the services the organization provides to the homeless, at the same time being treated to great stand-up comedy.

It’s a formula that works, and one that Short likes.

He’s always wanted to help people — he was pre-med until he realized he liked the idea of being a doctor more than actually being one; then he switched to social work, before giving in to his inner actor.

This is not just a fly-in-and-fly-out appearance.  Short knows all about Homes With Hope.

“It’s an amazing organization,” he says.  “I love doing events like this.  People are in a good mood, and they commit to doing good things.”

There’s nothing funny about homelessness.  But Martin Short is a very funny man.  From “SCTV” and “Saturday Night Live” through “Three Amigos” and “Father of the Bride,” he’s entertained audiences for decades.

Now he’ll use his gift of laughter to help Westporters stand up against homelessness.

(Martin Short will perform at the Westport Country Playhouse.  Holders of $200 and $150 tickets enjoy a 7 p.m. plaza reception with cocktails, “short” ribs, “short” cake and more.  $75 tickets are also available.  The event includes a live auction.  For tickets and information, click here.)

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Posted in Entertainment, Organizations, People, Westport Country Playhouse

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The Playhouse: Past, Present And Future

Posted on July 5, 2011 | 12 comments

As the Westport Country Playhouse celebrated its 80th anniversary last week, I wanted to interview someone who attended the 1st performance.

No luck.

But I did find Doug Tirola.  The producer (4thRowFilms) and Westport Arts Center board member has a long history with the Playhouse.  In fact, it has informed and influenced his entire life.

Doug’s father Vincent was the Playhouse attorney — and helped save it one of the many times it nearly went under.

Doug Tirola

Doug’s earliest memories of the Playhouse are of “typical kids’ shows.”  His 1st job, a few years later, was placing posters for upcoming shows in as many store windows as possible in Westport, Fairfield and Darien.  He earned 25 cents per poster.

His 2nd job was house beautician.  “That’s theater-speak for janitor,” he notes.  Doug would prepare the Playhouse for the upcoming show, head to the Y to play basketball (or Ships to eat), then return afterward to clean up.

Mondays were special.  That was opening night — and shows changed weekly.  Local critics like Ina Bradley and Jeanne Davis were there.  They’d eat next door at Backstage (now the Dressing Room) before the play ; afterward they’d all gather on the gravel patio outside the theater, then return to Backstage for drinks.

Some theater-goers were there already.  “If the play wasn’t good, at intermission guys would wander over to the bar,” Doug says.

Doug also ushered.  His co-workers were older people, like today.  But there were also many younger ushers.  He doesn’t see many of them now.

The Playhouse, he says, was a hangout for teenagers — and not just the theater crowd.  “I played 3 sports,” he notes.  “Lots of kids wandered back and forth between the playhouse and Friendly’s” in Playhouse Square.

Westport Country Playhouse -- 80 years young.

Now — producing and marketing movies — Doug looks back on those days with a sense of awe.  “I had this sense of it being like ‘hey, let’s put on a show.’  I had no idea how hard that is.  Turning shows around week after week, with what I realize now were very limited resources — that makes me realize anything is possible.”

Doug was influenced by men like Jim McKenzie — the longtime executive producer, and a “larger than life figure” — and Todd Haimes, now artistic director of the Roundabout Theatre.

Looking back, Doug also realizes that his initial experiences at the Playhouse were special.

“11-year-olds today have a lot more options than we did then.  There’s good and bad sides to that.  But I also think there are more things today geared directly at them.  Back then, by default, kids were exposed to more adult activities — the theater, movies, even TV shows.  That forced us to interact with the adult world.”  As with ushers, Doug sees few young people involved with the Playhouse’s adult shows.

He also senses less of an overall townwide connection with the Playhouse.

“I’m not trying to be negative,” he emphasizes.  “But part of the DNA of Westport has always been the arts.  People here still point with pride to the arts, but they don’t always take advantage of them.

“My parents chose Westport over other Fairfield County towns in part because there was more diversity, but also because of the arts opportunities.  People who moved here the last 10 years, probably 95 percent would say they came for the schools and the beach.  Those are great things, but 30 years ago they might have included the arts too.

“I know plenty of people support the arts financially,” he says.  “But it’s important to go to shows, and to the Arts Center — and to expose your kids to them.”

But — on the 80th anniversary of the Westport Country Playhouse — Doug continues to beat the Playhouse drum.

“As much as I remember what it was like when I was young — the sights and smells — you can’t walk into the Playhouse now and not feel how awesome the space is.

“They’ve done a great job of honoring what it was, and doing what needs to be done for the future.”

A future that — thanks to Westporters like Doug Tirola and his father — now seems more secure than ever.

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Posted in Arts, Looking back, People, Westport Country Playhouse

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Dressing Room Gets A Dressing Down

Posted on June 27, 2011 | 25 comments

Several area restaurants offer discounts of up to 20% to Westport Country Playhouse subscribers.

There is only 1 restriction — as very disappointed Westport resident Eileen Ogintz found out Saturday night.  Here’s her story:

Our mistake was not reading the fine print.

As  Westport  Country Playhouse subscribers, we’d  gotten a brochure with local restaurant discounts — a good marketing move, we thought, to encourage us to eat out  nearby  before attending a play.  All we needed was to show our tickets in order to get a 20 per cent discount at The Dressing Room, La Villa Trattoria,  Manolo,  Matsu,  Rizzuto’s, Tavern on Main or Thali.

In this economy,  local restaurants need our business, and we need to watch what we spend on dinners out.  This seems like a win-win.   We’d enjoyed dinner at Thali before the last Saturday evening performance we’d attended; this time we opted for The Dressing Room next door to The Playhouse — in part because our daughter and her boyfriend had given us a gift certificate there.

But we didn’t read the fine print that said the offer is only good at The Dressing Room Tuesday through Thursday.  None of the other restaurants impose such restrictions.   Our apologetic waiter indicated many weekend  Playhouse goers  are as surprised as we were to learn the discount they expected wouldn’t be honored.

The haughty restaurant manager wasn’t the least apologetic, though she did give us the 20 per cent off “this one time” when we complained, ominously adding she was going to “mark our profile” in their computer.  I didn’t know if I was supposed to be worried or why.

By that point,  I knew I didn’t want to return any time soon.  I even posted a message to that effect on Facebook, prompting a call from my son who wanted to know what had prompted my ire.

“We’re doing the Playhouse a big favor,”  the manager insisted as we left.

Frankly, I thought it was the Playhouse  doing the Dressing Room the favor.  The restaurant wouldn’t even be there without the Playhouse and the  original support of the Newmans,  I thought.  (Paul Newman’s name figures in some of the menu selections, in fact.)

And without  Paul Newman and especially Joanne Woodward,  of course, the  Westport Country Playhouse wouldn’t  be the wonderful community resource it is for all of us today.

On Saturday night, The Playhouse was full.  The Dressing Room wasn’t.

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Posted in Economy, People, Restaurants

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Eat, Drink, See A Play

Posted on June 11, 2011 | 5 comments

Several years ago, when the Westport Country Playhouse was being renovated, nearby restaurants saw drops of up to 2/3 in business.

The Dressing Room sits in the shadow of the Playhouse. Other partner restaurants are not far away.

This summer, many of those restaurants — the ones still around, anyway — will show their appreciation for the Playhouse in a tangible way.  Seven have signed on as “partners” for the 2011 season.  Playhouse subscribers receive discounts of up to 20%, when presenting a ticket or stub on the day of that performance.

The 7 partners include The Dressing Room, La Villa, Manolo, Matsu Sushi, Rizzuto’s, Tavern on Main and Thali.

It’s a win-win-win.  Participating restaurants get their logos displayed in Playhouse promotional materials (and complimentary tickets).  The Playhouse gets to support — and gets support from — local businesses.

And theater-goers get great, discounted meals at a diverse mix of restaurants.  It’s a nice reminder that Fairfield hasn’t stolen all our culinary thunder.

Yet.

(Click here for full restaurant descriptions and discounts.)

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Posted in Arts, Downtown, Restaurants, Westport Country Playhouse

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Now Playing At The Library

Posted on May 8, 2011 | Comments Off on Now Playing At The Library

In 1931, Broadway producers and Weston residents Lawrence Langner and his wife Armina Marshall transformed an old red barn into the Westport Country Playhouse.

Now 80 years old, the iconic establishment is honored with a display at an even older institution:  the Westport Library.

Downstairs — across from the River of Names tiles — posters, photos and memorabilia celebrate 8 decades of entertainment, enlightenment and education.

Included is a shot from the 1st-ever show:  “The Streets of New York,” starring the legendary Dorothy Gish (and the long-forgotten Rollo Peters).

Only a tiny smidgen of stuff is on view.  To see more — including a show — go to the Playhouse itself.

A scene from the first-ever play: "The Streets of New York."

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Tiger Mother Comes To Town

Posted on April 14, 2011 | 24 comments

Amy Chua is coming to Westport.

Amy Chua

Unless you’ve been living in a country like China with a censored internet — or too busy ferrying your kid to piano lessons, violin lessons and math tutoring sessions — you know who she is.

Chua is the author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. She took time from her day job (professor at Yale Law School) to describe her secret parenting skills.

Chua’s daughters were never allowed to:

  • attend a sleepover or have a playdate
  • be in a school play (or complain about not being in one)
  • watch TV or play computer games
  • get any grade less than an A
  • not play the piano or violin.

Chua also rejected birthday cards of insufficient quality, and demanded new ones.

On Tuesday, May 3 (11 a.m.-1 p.m.) she’ll be at the Westport Country Playhouse.  The event is a fundraiser and book signing for the Read to Grow literacy program.

Chua will be interviewed by Roxanne Coady, Read to Grow’s founder and a contributor to Faith Middleton’s NPR Book Show.

The press release didn’t say if Chua will take questions.  If she does, Westporters might ask if her child-raising methods aren’t just a wee bit out of line.

Or tell her they don’t go far enough.

(Tickets are $75, which includes a copy of the book, and $125, which includes priority seating, 2 copies of the book, and a pre-event reception with Chua.  To register, call 203-227-4177 or click here.)

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Posted in Education, Organizations, People, Westport Country Playhouse

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