A peek into the past
Tracing the golden beginnings of the Monomoy
The following excerpts from the 1994 book "A History of the Monomoy Theatre" by Robert Hannon Davis, MFA '83, shed light on the Monomoy both before and throughout its affiliation with Ohio University. Davis is a two-time Monomoy company member who has returned many times as a visiting artist.
For a photo album of last year's season, click here. The images, by Rick Fatica and Mitch Casey, capture excitement of a move-in weekend at the quaint Cape Cod theater as well as the play and other festivities that are part of the annual alumni gathering.
Theater on the Cape in Monomoy's first era
To be in the theatre on Cape Cod in the 1930s, '40s, and '50s was to share some impressive company. Consider the following cast list: Gertrude Lawrence, Henry Fonda, Helen Hayes, Humphrey Bogart, Ethel Barrymore, Robert Montgomery, Uta Hagen, Walter Matthau, Eva Le Gallienne, Bette Davis, Edward Everett Horton, Ruth Gordon, Tallulah Bankhead, Dana Andrews, Beatrice Lillie, John Garfield, Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, Lillian Gish, Paulette Goddard. And that only begins to tell the tale of Cape Cod's golden age of summer theatre.
It was a time that saw the opening of such famous theatres as the Cape Playhouse in Dennis, the Melody Tent in Hyannis, and the beautifully designed Falmouth Playhouse. It was a time when Cape Cod's summer theatre-goers could see the greatest actors of the day in current Broadway hits. Even today, with the profusion of enterprising summer festivals throughout the United States, none can boast the lineage nor the legend forged in those glory days.
As the movement spread from Provincetown, eager producers scoured the Cape in search of suitable homes for their new companies. In 1938, Harold Dunbar's playhouse, or "The Guildhouse" as it was then known, caught the attention of a young impresario named Mary B. Winslow. Like her predecessor, Winslow arrived with the idea of establishing a performing arts center in Chatham. She bought the property and established a company that would endure for nearly 20 years.
Naming the Monomoy
Transformation (of the theatre) began immediately. Winslow had not only a theatre to renovate, but an image and a reputation to build as well. With her vigorous and affable spirit, she was a natural diplomat and quickly earned the good will of Chatham's citizenry. She wanted her theatre to be a community institution, to make the local residents feel as if it belonged to them, and not as if they were being invaded by a group of outsiders. She started by choosing for her playhouse a name which called forth memories of the town's colorful past and its original inhabitant, the Monomoyick Indians.
Before its incorporation in 1712, Chatham was known as the constablewick Monomoit. Locals derived the name "Monomoy," which maintains an enduring popularity on the Cape. Winslow wanted to share in that tradition and christened her playhouse the Monomoy Theatre.
The curtain rose at the Monomoy Theatre for the first time on July 2, 1938. Presenting a frothy English comedy by Gerald Savory called "George and Margaret," Winslow gave Chatham its first fully professional summer theatre.
One era ends
During the 1953 season, Monomoy celebrated its longevity with the production of its 100th play. The renovated auditorium which greeted audiences that summer seemed to promise a long and prosperous future. A cupola with a golden eagle weathervane was added to the roof of the theatre's lobby in 1954. The golden eagle became a traditional symbol of Monomoy, taking its perch each summer on the cupola as a sign that the company was in residence.
Despite her strength, Mary Winslow's disease (she had fought cancer since 1948) finally caught up with her. She died in the winter of 1957. It was a tremendous blow to both her friends in Chatham and her friends in the theatre. She would be remembered for her spirit and resilience. With her at death, her great friend, Rose Pasquarelli, offered this eulogy: "Everyone who knew her, loved her. And everyone gained by knowing her."
Winslow's death left the future of her theatre in doubt. Neither her family nor her colleagues deemed themselves capable of carrying on her work. It needed both money and commitment, and no one seemed to have enough of either. By the summer for 1957, a "for sale" sign was the only advertisement in front of the darkened buildings. For those who had known the Monomoy Theatre in its glory, it was a sad sight indeed. But amidst the encroaching weeds, the pitiful "for sale" sign caught the attention of another dreamer. One dark summer passed, and then the Monomoy Theatre was alive again.
Another era launches
Elizabeth Baker loved the theatre, and she loved Cape Cod. But it was her devotion to Ohio University and, in particular, to its theatre program which would inspire her to become Mary Winslow's successor as the guardian angel of the Monomoy Theatre.
When the "for sale" sign appeared in front of the theatre in 1957, she saw a brilliant opportunity: "I felt that the drama department at Ohio University would be greatly strengthened if its advanced students earned credit by performing in a summer theatre on Cape Cod where they would face professional competition and be seen by general audiences." The Monomoy Theatre, she believed, could be the perfect setting for such an experience.
Her husband, John C. Baker, president of Ohio University at that time, approved of the idea, but he did not believe that the university should buy property in Massachusetts. He suggested that his wife purchase the property personally and then make the appropriate contractual arrangements with the university officials for its use. "So I took the big gamble and bought the theatre," said Elizabeth Baker. "I thought that the Ohio University program was good enough that it would succeed." By 1958, the Monomoy Theatre was back in business.
Partnering with Chris Lane
As busy as she was with official duties, Elizabeth Baker always found time for her great loves: music and theatre. Since her college days, she had been deeply involved in the performing arts. For a time, she had a professional singing career in New York City, enjoying an extended run on a radio program, performing with the Intimate Opera Company, and touring with a professional Gilbert and Sullivan company. In Athens, she took part in a variety of musical and theatrical productions within the university. Her theatrical activity brought her into close touch with an outstanding man dedicated to educational theatre -- the person who would take a leading role in the realization of her dreams for the Monomoy Theatre -- Christopher Lane.
Lane taught at Ohio University and was director of the university theatre. During the summer, he oversaw the Ohio Valley Summer Theatre, which drew upon local talent as well as university students. Under his direction, Elizabeth Baker played the title role in "Candida" (1951) as well as the Dowager Empress in "Anastasia" (1957). She admired Lane’s skill as a director, and they soon became warm personal friends.
"He was a great fellow," Elizabeth Baker once said in remembering her friend and colleague. Lane's work in theatre at Ohio University was, as she described it, "…the most educational thing I ever ran into -- I mean in human understanding -- he went at it that way. I thought it was wonderful."
Monomoy’s first play
The revived Monomoy Theatre opened on July 23, 1958, with a production of "Two Blind Mice." The season also included "Bus Stop," "The Glass Menagerie," "Blithe Spirit," and "Antigone," and closed with "See How They Run." The theatre quickly established itself as a laboratory for training young artists, and, as the years passed, Christopher Lane and Elizabeth Baker watched their experiment in educational theatre grow into one of Cape Cod's most popular playhouses.
Elizabeth at home at Monomoy
Elizabeth Baker was deeply involved in every aspect of the Monomoy Theatre. She was especially interested in the programming and enjoyed reading and recommending plays. She encouraged the production of the classics, ranging from Shakespeare and Moliere to Ibsen and Arthur Miller, sometimes directing them herself. A special high point for her was directing the Lanes' daughter, Charlotte, in Sophocles' "Elektra" (1973).
She also was interested in the plays of Eugene O'Neill -- pouring meticulously through his sea plays, written for production on the wharf in Provincetown, and making notes about production difficulties. She directed "Anna Christie" at Monomoy in the summer of 1970. Other plays directed by Elizabeth Baker were "Candida" (1966), "The Seagull" (1968), "Nude with Violin" (1972), "Pierre Patelin" (1973), and "A Touch of the Poet" (1974). The last play she directed was Shaw's one-act play, "Man of Destiny" (1978). Roles she played at Monomoy included the Dowager Empress in "Anastasia" (1959 and 1978), Miss Moffat in "The Corn is Green" (1960), Mrs. Gilbey in "Fanny's First Play" (1961), Lady Bracknell in "The Importance of Being Earnest" (1962) and Rebecca Nurse in "The Crucible" (1976).
… (Following her death in 1990) a memorial service for Elizabeth Baker was held on the Monomoy Theatre stage. Her life was remembered through a series of scenes and monologues that were some of her favorites and celebrated her passion for the theatre.
Posted 01-11-07 |
