Laura Giannarelli - the 70's, Actor Overview

I'm not sure I have any great tall tales to tell, but I have been around town since getting out of Catholic way back in '78, so I do have a certain 'institutional memory', as it were.

Just off the top of my head, I can tell you that the theatre 'scene' back then was vastly different. The only Equity houses in town were Arena Stage and the Folger, plus Hayloft Dinner Theatre, way out in Mannassas. There was a gaggle of dinner theatres out in the 'burbs, but they were all non-Equity, and other than the National (a touring house only, then as now) and the relatively new-at-the-time Kennedy Center, there was a lot of nothin' out there, especially in terms of work on a small entry level -- New Playwright's Theatre was a hotbed of activity and there was the old Washington Theatre Club, but not much else.

Actors who were lucky enough to get their AEA cards at Arena or the Folger had to go to NYC once they had them, because those theatres virtually never hired local actors to play meaty roles. They cast everything other than walk-ons and understudies out of NY. So, actors would move to NY and then get hired to come work back down here. It was pretty nutty! However, there was really no other choice. Once you got your card, you really couldn't stay here in town, cuz you wouldn't get any work sticking around.There was so little going on professionally in DC compared to today that Catholic University's Drama Department (still headed by Father Hartke back in the '70s) got Press coverage from -- i.e. the shows were reviewed by -- the Washington Post and the Washington Evening Star.

When I was a student there, our main stage productions ran two full weeks, Tuesday through Sunday, with matinees, too!! And people subscribed and came in droves, because there wasn't a lot else to choose from in terms of live theatre. It was wonderful training for us students, but it was also a boon for theatre lovers in town, who had few places to go to see live theatre.

I'm all in favor of some way of holding on to the history of DC theatre. The times change so quickly, and people move on or pass on, and the stories disappear....

Sometime between 1982 and 1984

I don't remember the exact year, but it must have been sometime in the summer between 1982 and 1984: I was cast as "the cat" in a production of Goethe's FAUST, co-produced by The Source Theatre. We were performing behind some abandoned buildings on 14th St., basically in a large alleyway, and we made our entrances and exits through the buildings. One night, i and an actress made our usual exit through an abandoned storefront that led out onto the street. About halfway into the space, we suddenly heard a loud voice say, "Ok, come on out of there!" Both of us were confused and I said something like "what, who is that". The voice said, "Police! Come on out of there, or we're going to send the dogs in!"At this point, the actress i was with literally flew back toward the stage. With images of ravenous police dogs not only attacking me, but running out onto the stage and taking chunks out of the audience, I decided to take my chances and walk toward the voice. Telling them not to "send the dogs in" and holding my "cat" mask high above my head, i crept toward the front of the store. When i get there, i see about 14 cops, plainclothes and uniformed, with guns drawn waiting for little ol' me. Insistent that i just "shut up", they force me facedown onto the sidewalk with no intention of listening to me telling them that i'm an actor in a play.After a few minutes that feel like a few hours, some of the other actors, also in costume, come out, particularly a tall German woman, who yells at the cops to let me up. Eventually, the cops are convinced of what's going on and they quit standing on my neck. I brush myself off, and we go back to resume the play.What i still can't figure out is, what was so valuable in an abandoned building(!) that brought out the entire DC police department (including the K9 squad).
reg metcalf
brooklyn

Fits and Starts

Reading over these posts is already an insightful experience. It seems as though theatre is an organic living creature. Something of strange evolution that is never really stagnet. It's always growing and changing and turning into a different version of itself. And just when someone thinks they've got it nailed and figured out it morphs again. When it does stagnate, there is a stench connected to that as well.

I'm curious about these rivalries and fallings out...not to rehash them in anyway, but to maybe learn something from them. My own experience has taught me that although we think "theatre" in this generic way, really it is a diverse collection of visions and ideas (hopefully) tempered by lots of training and experience. These storms that come in may actually be the things that shape us most. This is difficult to understand when we are trying to build something positive and without flaw. The best characters are always full of flaws. Hard to see when we are in the midst of it.

The difference between good business and good shows can be at odds with itself at the table. So structure becomes the determining factor with regard to success or failure. When you are small and still building foundation, the lack of structure can be a crusher.

Of the many emotional disputes, what can best be gleened from them in hindsight? And, tempering the passion with the paycheck seems to have worked for many individuals in Washington, what's the best advice with regard to that during the foundation building of a company?

onward...deb.

PS. I know, times have changed. What else?

Reply to Lisa Lias' post

Deborah - I tried to post this reply to Lisa Lias' post and I am not sure it posted, so I am sending it to you.

Lisa Lias – so nice to hear your voice again even if only in print. Nice to read your memories. The 70’s were awesome in Washington small theatres because there was more passion than money and nobody thought twice about working 18 to 24 hour days to make theatre happen. Your mention of HAGAR’s CHILDREN peaked my curiosity. I looked up the info. on that production in which you performed a wonderfully sympathetic Sharon. Also in the cast were Brad Oscar – yes, that Brad Oscar of recent Broadway fame and Ron Canada whom we see in so many movies and TV shows … also cast were Paula Marmon, Portia Kamons, Tom Loftis, Mark Morris, Peter Suddeth and here’s one that surprised me … Brian Hemmingsen as the Sheriff. What a great cast – directed by Harriet Davis who worked as an advisor to director Bobby Small on the original production that went on to NYC thanks to Joseph Papp. Wow, you mention the ASTA Theatre – brings backs memories of achievement as well as rivalries and fights when we all tried to worked under one roof – all of us ASTA founders - we all went separate ways and Donna Cooper wound up as head of the company. Oh yeah, the HAGAR production you did was performed in April 1979 as part of New Playwrights’ Theatre’s “Dramathon 79” at the L’Enfant Plaza Theatre because we had been thrown out of our home on Church Street by the fire marshal … how about that – we moved from a 125 seat theatre to an 800 seat theatre … the nerve of us! Oh Lord! And so many actors and techies worked so hard on that 53 hours marathon! I think we raised over $40,000 with that event (a fortune in those days).
Well, you’ve got me thinking when I should be writing on a script that’s due soon. But thanks for the memories Lisa. Those were wonderful years. The Washington Theatre Lab was remarkable, the Horizon’s Theatre Co was wonderful and Bart Whiteman’s passion for theatre gained him a noble following while turning some others off .. but we were all making theatre happen on a shoestring … we succeeded, we failed … and damn, it felt good!

Timeline & more - Miles's Mom

Saw your "Remeber When" post in Brian's newsletter: In case you haven't read it, here's a link to a fascinating dissertation I ran across on the web a while back. It includes a timeline...

https://drum.umd.edu/dspace/bitstream/1903/2917/1/umi-umd-2708.pdf

1990 - Matthew Pauli

1990, summer

Avalanche! Theatre- first and only season.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. The idea was that while Washington, DC is the center of American politics, there was very little political theater at the time. Avalanche set out to change that with a season consisting of Oedipus the King and The Memorandum, by Vaclav Havel.

On the heels of the scandal of mayor Marion Barry's arrest for smoking crack cocaine in a hotel room with a woman who was not his wife, the artistic director of Avalanche! set out to produce Oedipus the King, drawing parallels between Oedipus and Mayor Barry. In the exposition, this is plausible. A city (Thebes/DC) in the throes of a decline. A young, charismatic leader comes to power and revitalizes the city by the force of his own will. After a brief period of regrowth, however, the city begins to languish again. The charismatic leader is too self absorbed to see that he, himself, is the biggest problem the city now faces and that the only way to save the city is to leave it.

Unfortunately, once you get into the actual events of the play, the parallels end. This was obvious to reviewers and patrons alike, both of whom stopped coming shortly after the run began.
In fact, the producers had been counting on a positive review from the Washington City Paper to turn the tide on attendance. The paper had a history of antagonism toward Barry, and the producer felt sure that would translate into a love of this production. In fact, the paper ran a review that was quite negative and followed up with a series of articles about the problems of Avalanche! Theatre and its misguided vision.

The run closed early when the money to pay the actors ran out.

Rehearsals for The Memorandum began with some difficulty. Several of the actors who had been cast at the beginning of the season left the company after it failed to pay them in full for their work on Oedipus. Replacements were hired, but after a very brief rehearsal period, the company folded.

1975 +...Lisa Lias

I can start you in about 1975. At that time, there were the Folger and Arena Stage of course, but also New Playwright's, The Washington Theatre Lab and Asta. I worked for all of them between '77 and '80. The Washington Theatre Lab's final show was The Snow Queen. Michaeline O'Neal was in that as was Bart Whiteman, who immediately started Source and took Michaeline along. Meanwhile, I met Joy Zinoman in '79 when Studio had not yet done a full production in the Church St. space that later was home to Woolly Mammoth, and then took classes and worked at Studio in the office for a chunk of '83.Asta did one full season. Dona Cooper was AD and in 77-78 did "Merton of the Movies," "Private Lives," "Playboy of the Western World" and some other things. Richard Coe of the Washington Post was quite supportive. Still, at that point they were in finacial trouble and not only did the Washington Theatre Lab move into their space on 8th st. SE (where I think the Shakespeare Theatre now has its costume shop) but the very first Source productions ever were done there - 2 one acts by O'Neil. That same summer a group who had just graduated from Georgetown did "The Goodwoman of Szechwan" and "Measure for Measure," often butting heads with Bart if I recall.The following season ASTA was gone as was the Washington Theatre Lab and at New Playwright's Tim Grundman was writing musical comedy. I had worked for Russel Metheny at ASTA and followed him the New Playwright's where I eventually got cast in their summer festival, the annual "Dramathon," in Ernie Joslevitz' play, "Hagar's Children." I met Leslie Jacobson at that festival and did 3 shows for her between 86 and 91. The 80's is when small theatre took off in DC. Even so, the first League auditons in the early 80's were not what they are today. There just were not 60 or 70 groups much less 800 actors vying for their attention.

1975 - Alexander Fraser

1975

Chevy Chase Players was putting on FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TOTHE FORUM. The late, lamented Cliff Smith was the director; SandyBremer was producing; I played Erroneous. Opening night, about 7PM, wegot a call that our leading lady, our Virgin, was lin the Hyattsvillejail for shop-lifting. Sandy and I jumped in my car and broke severallaws getting to the lock-up. Sure enough, there sat our leading lady,hand-cuffed to a bench. Bail was set at $200; bond was $20. I was incostume and had zip. Sandy looked the desk sergeant in the eye; dumpedher purse on his counter; and said "Here's $l9.80; it's all I have; andI WANT MY VIRGIN." The cop laughed and let her go.Curtain was late but the show went on.

Alexander Fraser

1986 - Deb Randall

1986, October
I remember turning 19. My friend took me to see a show in DC. This was a good idea to me at the time because the Grandfather clause said that I could legally drink in DC, but not in MD - where I was from. I'd seen shows on Broadway and done theatre in school. What I was about to experience was something that would change my outlook on theatre forever.

I walked into the Georgetown Foundry on something like 33rd St. It was a bar. There were tables. We ordered food and drink. And then there was a show.

"A, My Name Is Alice" was performed by Horizons Theatre. I'd never seen anything like it in my life. In particular I remembered an amazing African American actress in the hair salon monologue. She was getting her hair shampood by an invisible person and I could sense every touch...Every intricacy...Then there was the woman with the sub sandwich who shouted back at construction workers. For some reason my brain opened up a little that night.

The power of the piece for me was immeasurable and my work would forever be effected by that birthday outing.

-Deb Randall