I HATE HAMLET
In the years since 1989 I carried the torch for the Unicorn, producing plays as the time and opportunity presented themselves. We produced shows for three years after Maxs' death with no particular rhyme no reason - just inspiration, and a passionate need to do theatre. The logic directing our choices often came down to someone saying, “I've always wanted to do this play, there's a great part for me!" and “You could direct!--- Whaddaya say?!" So with enough enthusiasm - we'd do it... after about eight months we'd have a show! We'd collect the box office, recoup our funds and plan for the next one.
From 1988 - 1993 we produced plays at the Wharf Theater, at Robert Down School, in the tent at the Monterey Bay TheatreFest, at the Carl Cherry Center. Following that we did a season of dinner theatre at the Big Sur River Inn in 1993 and 1994. Performing at the Big Sur River Inn was a great experience for those in our company at the time. There was the fun, the performance, good company, the great staff at the Inn, and there was pay at the end of the week (gas money and a little more).
One of the remarkable parts of the experience was the drive. Whether you had a good day or bad day in town, by the time you were a mile south of the Highlands your mind relaxed with the beauty of the coastline. The drive down was always mental massage. The members of our company arrived in mellow spirits, relaxed and focused on the show, and at the end of the evening’s performance the actors gathered for dinner and as often as not were joined by some members of the audience in good conversation .
The storms of that year took out the bridge near Rio Road and the rest of the season was canceled. By the time the bridge was back Unicorn had moved into Hoffman. 1994 was a crossroads for me - taking risks. I have always been an artist with a passion for the theatre and I have learned a lot along the way, but until that time I had never fully committed myself to the theatre.
Creston Crockett (my Dad) died at age 71 . During this period he was proud, thoughtful and oftentimes bitter. Our relationship had been rocky, but in the last two years of his life he had mellowed considerably and so had I . He slowed down; I spent more time with him. We had our lunches together. We'd have coffee and he'd smoke, and we'd look out at the garden and he'd say, "Looks like it gunna rain tomarra..." (he was from Oklahoma). And I'd say, after a long moment's thought, ".."Yep, it sher does." I enjoyed sitting with him. It was a truly remarkable thing .
When he died he left us kids some money. And I paid off some debts and put some away. In that same period two opportunities arose. While we were doing shows at the River Inn , I was sharing a small rent with Larry Welch at the Hoffman Playhouse and rehearsing for our show in Big Sur. In April Larry and The World Theatre moved out leaving me with the problem of paying the full rent ... I knew staying at the Hoffman location would be difficult.
About Going Non-profit
Flashback!...
One time, early in 1986, Unicorn explored going non-profit. At that time, with our success and dreams held in front of us, Max and I thought if we wanted to produce more plays it would be better if we weren't always putting up our own money to pay for them. At least we thought we would have a little more support for our work. It was at that time that Maxs' priorities changed with the discovery that he was HIV positive. With the likelihood that we would no longer be able to produce anything resembling a regular season we dropped the attempt to go non-profit.
Flash Foreword....
Starting in 1994 we faced the challenge of a monthly rent of the Hoffman. If I was to be able to pay the rent we would have to produce a full season of shows to keep money coming in. It would require our theatre to grow past a show to show existence. It came down to my committing myself to a fulltime life in the theatre... I asked myself the question, "If this is not the right time to commit to this passion, is there ever going to be a time right enough?" So I took the plunge and we went non-profit.
The question was, could we keep afloat long enough to file our paper work and build a greater public awareness and support of our little theatre. How did we bank roll it 'til then? The first year I drew heavily on my inheritance to pay for basic startup costs. We also had the benefit of having a great stock of costumes and set pieces saved from our "street theatre" days. This made a great difference in our survival the first year. In the years since 1994 I wondered what my father would think if he knew what I had done with his gift. ...I think in a ironic way it put all things right with us. I would not trade the experiences of the past six years for anything and I can only think he'd be happy.
It took us a few months to get our non-profit paper work together. By October we had our non-profit status. It is a great thing, but even with the support of grantors and our loyal subscribers, there were times every year we were heavily in the red. I think the first year of a new producer's life is marked by many sleepless nights, worrying about finances. Our biggest costs were the rent and utilities. Actors and directors were not paid. The only people paid were technicians who were paid on occasion. A lot of people came in and did lighting or carpentry for us, donating many hundreds of hours. Without the dedication of many incredible people Unicorn at the Hoffman may only have lasted a season.
Part of the Mission Statement was "to create classical, contemporary, and original works that somewhat express the magic side of life." We have failed at that sometimes. but most of the work we've done, has at some level been transformational in terms of its action and interaction. Among our best at Hoffman have been: THE VOICE OF THE PRAIRIE, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, OF MICE AND MEN, THREE PENNY OPERA, THE GLASS MENAGERIE and LIFE IN THE THEARE. Among our original productions we GUY THINGS by Rob Foster, which he directed, and "WILDE ABOUT OSCAR, written by Morgan Stock and myself.
We had great successful productions with emerging directors. Jeff McGrath did a great job directing Neil Simon's JAKE'S WOMEN and also ARSENIC AND OLD LACE; Colleen Finnegan took on Mamet's SPEED THE PLOW with critical success and Cindy Womack had good reason to be satisfied with her comic blending with LAUGHTER ON THE TWENTY-THIRD FLOOR. Bob Colter's production of BRILLIANT TRACES played both at Hoffman and at the Carmel Performing Arts Festival and Jody Gilmore directed THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER.
We sometimes picked shows because an actor had shown an exceptional potential, dedication and growth in their work. For instance a Rob Foster has proven himself to me time and time again; he's a hard worker. He has taken many challenges for our small theatre. He wrote and produced a modern radio version of "The War of the World" for KAZU Radio under our banner. and when he says, "I've got an idea for a show," I'm going to take it seriously. Most times he has the script in his briefcase. Unicorn produced Rob's original comedy GUY THINGS, and (advertisement) we are currently producing "AMBROSE BIERSE at the Cherry Center. I am not opposed to picking shows to feature developing talent. OF MICE AND MEN was picked for Rob Foster and Thomas Burks for Lennie and George because I felt their personalities were well-suited to the story. In addition they had worked very hard and successfully in a number of shows...and it was good casting. Looking back at that production we had an incredible ensemble cast, and I was proud of all of them.
Sometimes I received complaints that the auditions were not open. In most cases they are open, but I would assert that it is natural to cast a part based on a developed sense of personality and temperament. And that same knowledge has stopped me in casting a person in a role regardless of how much I like him/her personally. This seems obvious. At Unicorn we have supported personal growth in the theatre. Is that a click? I say its all a click at some level. Mamet writes his plays with his favorite actors in mind and he uses the same actors over and over again. There is nothing as satisfying or fulfilling to a director as working with an actor you know really well, but parts are earned. Most often casting choices are built on a strong feeling of personal believability and the talent and commitment of each given actor. Most times there are no free rides.
If you "want in" take courage and put yourself out. Walk through the door on a non-audition day, pitch yourself and offer yourself up or to paraphrase John Kennedy, "Ask not what your theatre can do for you, but what you can do for your theatre," ...and if you think you are not getting back as least as much as you have put in you should move on until you find a match.
Next episode: "Who was it that said the show must go on?"
For generations of actors, it has been a phrase which demands a chivalry, and stoic martyrdom which is worthy of a Saint. It stands to reason that there are times, in spite of the noble quest for Sainthood, that.. "the show must not go on."