By Burt Saidel
Isn’t there enough good theater in Dayton? The answer is a resounding yes. There are, however, reasons to journey some miles east to Springfield to catch a different theater venue.
Dayton Public Radio personality Larry Coressel spends the very early morning hours giving us great music on WDPR and WDPG. Arising at 4 a.m. hasn’t dimmed his enthusiasm for live theater. Larry has directed several productions in and about Springfield. Presently, he has mounted Samuel Beckett’s forever controversial play Endgame at the State Theatre. The combination of experiencing a Beckett play and Larry’s directorial talents made the trip on the coldest night of this autumn important and worthwhile.
My personal fascination for the works of Irish playwright Samuel Beckett has spanned the decades back to my college days. Beckett, a friend and disciple of James Joyce, spent the years between the two great wars in Paris. This was the center of artistic and intellectual ferment, creating new ages of literature, art and politics.
His seminal work, Waiting for Godot, burst onto the literary scene in 1953. The play, a minimalist approach to the mysteries of life, has created more devotion than theatrical appreciation. Volumes have been written about the characters, their inaction and truncated dialogue. Beckett, it seems, has struck a vulnerable spot in our collective psyches.
Endgame emerged in 1958 and continued Beckett’s enigmatic view of life and its suffering. I have seen “Godot” several times but never Endgame. Reading Endgame, like all of Beckett’s plays, is nearly impossible. So much of the content, the thrust of the play, is in the stage direction, the stage movement - the dialogue is often disconnected and meaningless. It is the interaction, or lack of interaction, of the four pitiable characters that makes a confusing but indelible impression on the audience.
In short, it is Larry Coressel’s direction that makes, or breaks, the effect of the play. He was able to cast the play, four actors, entirely from the Springfield area. Not only were the actors capable of driving the forces of the play, but they had real “Beckett faces”
The setting added to the “Beckett quality” of the experience. The State Theatre was once a movie house in mid-Springfield. Originally built in 1927, it has many of the characteristics of those cinema palaces of that golden era.
It closed in 1990 and was acquired by attorneys Jim and Tom Lagos. They have kept the building alive and support its use by a variety of arts groups. The non-restored interior gave an added feeling of disjointed reality to the play.
The theater seating is gone, replaced by a central raised area. Temporary seats crowd the stage. The play was performed in the narrow space between the stage and the seats. The ghostly appearance of the ruined walls and exposed stage apparatus took us further into the mind of Beckett and its realization through the direction of Coressel and the fine acting.
The actors were more than convincing. So much of the action of the play is studied
inaction. The central character, Hamm, is played by Wayne Justice. Blind and confined to a chair, he begins life on stage as a sheet-shrouded mass. We knew that it was an actor but marveled at his statue-like stillness.
His foil, Clov, is the only moving person in the play. K.L. Stover, well known in Dayton theater circles, managed to convey Clov’s frustration and disabilities in wordless repeated limps across the stage.
Confined to boxes which open occasionally, the other two characters serve as footnotes to the suffering and conflict portrayed. As Nagg, WDPR’s Ron Weber who was Coressel’s high school drama teacher joined Nancy Mahoney as Nell. Again, they were perfect Beckett faces and perfect Beckett enigmas.
There is no question. Springfield is “hot” with arts activities. In the future I’ll attempt to work our neighbor community into our already hyper-busy arts calendar.
Oakwood was very well represented at the annual National Philanthropy Day luncheon on Nov. 16. Colleen Judge has garnered much deserved kudos for her co-founding of “Giving Strings.” with her older sister Julia. This street concert has attracted hundreds of volunteer musicians and raised more that $24,000 for worthy charities. More important, it has raised the awareness of charity in the lives of these young persons.
Colleen joined popular and “almost Oakwood” Mary Karr, Raj Soin, Joe Baldasare and Robin Kane on the dais to receive the gratitude and recognition they all deserve. Their collective inspirations never cease to amaze!
The Dayton Art Institute is currently accepting nominations for the 2006 Yeck High School Fellowship. Twelve students will be selected through a competitive portfolio process to participate in this challenging program. Recipients will attend twelve Saturday classes from Jan. 28 to April 15, 2006.
Now in its fifth year, students in the Yeck High School Fellowship will be instructed and mentored by four Yeck College Artist Fellows from area colleges. A variety of teaching styles, techniques, and use of mediums will be an integral part
of intensive studio classes. Learning interactively through workshops and demonstrations, students will benefit from experiencing college level instruction.
“The Yeck High School Fellowship is an invaluable opportunity for young artists,” said Alex Nyerges, Director and CEO of The Dayton Art Institute. “Once again, we are pleased to offer the program to both high school juniors and seniors.”
Students do not need to be nominated by a teacher to apply for the competition. Students must submit their portfolios to the EducationDepartment at The Dayton Art Institute by Nov. 30, 2005. For more information about the 2006 Yeck High School Fellowship, please call 937-223-5277, ext. 335 or e-mail mwhitley@daytonartinstitute.org.
The Yeck High School Fellowship and the Yeck College Artist Fellowship are made possible through the Dorothy and Bill Yeck Education Endowment. The Yecks have been longtime supporters of The Dayton Art Institute and programs that encourage young artists.
