(Host) A two-time Tony Award winner is lending his talents to community theater in the Champlain Valley.
VPR’s Neal Charnoff went backstage at the Willsboro Drama Club’s production of "Mame".
(Charnoff) George Hearn made his living as a professional actor for 45 years. He won Tony awards for his work in La Cage Aux Folles and Sunset Boulevard, and an Emmy award for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd.
But retirement has done little to keep Hearn away from the stage. You can catch him this weekend performing the role of Beauregard in the Jerry Herman musical, "Mame".
George Hearn is now 74, and enjoying retirement in Essex, New York.
He says it’s a far cry from his life in the Big Apple.
(Hearn) "I love my life up here, and occasionally I miss the theater, I miss a wonderful bar called ‘Barrymores’, which was my favorite place in New York, and they sold it to Disney and they’re building a hotel there, so I had to retire about that time."
(Charnoff) Hearn has dabbled in local community theater, including productions at SUNY Plattsburgh.
More recently, Hearn and his wife Lesley decided to get involved with the Willsboro Drama Club, in upstate New York.
The two originally met on Broadway, when both were appearing in La Cage Aux Folles.
(Hearn) "I was dressed as a woman she was dressed as a man. But we figured it out real quick. But it was a great show, we got married halfway through and it was a wonderful time, then we went to London with for a year, so I did three years in drag. That’s tiresome…"
(Laughs)
(Charnoff) Lesley Hearn has taken on the title role in Mame. The musical focuses on the eccentric Mame Dennis, who introduces her nephew to her free-wheeling lifestyle. Mame loses her fortune in the stock market crash of 1929, but is able to maintain her sense of humor and style.
(Hearn) "The famous quote which was a little scandalous in the fifties, was "life is a banquet and most poor sons of bitches are starving to death,",and that’s used several times in this play, so its an admonishment to live fully and richly, and don’t be afraid of being different. These aren’t bad lessons."
(Charnoff) Director Derrick Hopkins says he’s looking forward to bringing the musical Mame to audiences who may not be familiar with the musical.
(Hopkins) "The appeal to me is …#1, that it’s a Jerry Herman show, and I’ve never done a Jerry Herman show. His music is absolutely singable."
(Charnoff) But as for the greatest challenge in staging Mame.
(Hopkins) "It’s a Jerry Herman show!" (laughs)
(Charnoff) Hopkins says that the cast has to wade through multiple costume changes and huge production numbers.
(Hopkins) "It’s a spectacle, that’s what Jerry Herman loved, , he did that with La Cage Aux Folles, Hello Dollly….."
(Charnoff) Hopkins says he wouldn’t be able to stage Mame without the name recognition of his two stars. George and Lesley Hearn originally wanted to take part to help the drama club get through a tough economic period. Hopkins says their presence inspired many volunteers to help out with the production.
(Charnoff) For his part, George Hearn is happy to have his director do all the heavy lifting. Hearn says that for all his theater experience, he never formally studied the craft.
(Hearn) "Funny I wasn’t paying attention when I was learning these things, almost everything I know is instinctual. I never studied much acting, I studied a little while with Uta Hagen, but I got tied in knots with Stanislavsky, stuff, so I found that spontaneity was worth more."
(Charnoff) Derrick Hopkins says he and Hearn marvel at the talents of their cast, and enjoy watching both the kids and adults learning the art of theater together.
(Hokins) "Seeing them sort of find out what this beast is of acting, and having to get in front of people and perform, and you see people’s mind shift, and sometimes we just sit in the back and just watch people and see how they’re c hanging and how they’re shifting and growing and learning from each other."
(Charnoff) Hopkins says that with the help of George and Lesley Hearn, the Willsboro Drama Club is fulfilling the true mission of community theater.
For VPR Backstage, I’m Neal Charnoff.
Note: Mame will be presented Thursday through Sunday at the Willsboro Central School in Willsboro, New York.
For More information call 518-963-4456, x214
For reservations, e-mail mtrienen@willsborocsd.org