Stars Over St. Edward's: the Seu Theater Arts Program, 1962-1982
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STARS OVER ST. EDWARD'S: THE SEU THEATER ARTS PROGRAM, 1962-1982 E v e r e t t L u n n i n g J r . Stars Over St. Edward’s: The SEU Theater Arts Program, 1962-1982 Everett Lunning Jr. 1Introduction 1 2September 2, 2011 6 3Theater’s Roots in Religious Tradition 22 4 1962 to 1965—Br. Dunstan Bowles 34 51965 to 1966—Edward Mangum Arrives 46 6 1966 to 1967—Br. Dunstan Returns 57 71967 to 1968—Pope Formosus 65 81968 to 1969—Formosus Redux 71 9 1969 to 1970—Building the Foundation 80 10 1970 to 1971—Building the Theater 90 11 1971 to 1972—Creating a Program 111 12 1972 to 1973—Spreading the Word 136 13 1973 to 1974—“Beware What You Wish For” 157 14 1974 to 1975—Reaping the Whirlwind 176 15 1975 to 1976—Branching Out 210 i ii Contents 16 1976 to 1977—A New Leader 243 17 1977 to 1978—Engaging the Community 274 18 1978 to 1979—A Student Protest 301 19 1979 to 1980—Redressing the Grievance 332 20 1980 to 1981—O’Rourke Bids Farewell 358 21 1981 to 1982—The Founder Retires 379 22 Conclusion 415 23 Sources, Interviewees, Productions 422 To Brother Stephen Walsh, CSC (1942-2011). His vision guided the University through difcult times and helped to establish the Mary Moody Northen Theater. iii Iwas supported in this project by two St. Edward’s University Presidential grants during the summers of 2011 and 2012. In the beginning, April Palmore Sullivan and Johanna Jones, the archivists in the SEU Library, gave me invaluable assistance with the trove of documents from theater activities. As I continued searching through folders and photographs, both Margy Warner and Susan Eason were helpful. Susan scanned the photos and saved them on a disc for me. Megan Blair helped me in the final stages of the research. I appreciated the help Pat Fox provided at the Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin. Ed Mangum bequeathed his personal papers to the HRC, but I found that much of the material in those archives was also present at SEU. My colleagues Professors Alan Altimont and Peter Austin, gave me valuable feedback on drafts of chapters as I began to write. Dr. Brooks Barr provided a close reading of a late draft with clusters of tweaks and suggestions. Brenda Stone combed the text for discrepancies in titles and time references. Professor Drew M. Loewe provided final editing expertise, formatting the text, cleaning up footnotes, and correcting errors created by switching file formats. The energy, speed and thoroughness of his assistance inspired awe. Iam grateful for the late Ellen O’Donnell ’82 and her role as a “den mother” for SEU Theater alumni. She included me in a group that would meet at Hill’s Café on South Congress Avenue every reunion, and I got to know several alumni who provided valuable stories for this narrative, including Nina Florence McGrath ’82 and Gary Coll ’80. Finally, I must acknowledge the encouragement and support I received from Sr. Donna Jurick, SND, Executive Vice-President and Interim Vice- iv Stars Over St. Edward’s v President for Academic Afairs. Without her aid, this book would never have come to be. I moved my family to Austin in the summer of 1983 to assume teaching duties at Kirby Hall School that fall. As a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, I was naturally interested in Austin’s theater scene. During our second week in town, I purchased a copy of the Austin American-Statesman and found a photograph from a production of A Shot in the Dark by Marcel Archard at the Mary Moody Northen Theater (MMNT) an arena theater on the campus of St. Edward’s University. Featured in the photo was Jim Daniels, with whom I had worked nine years before at the Globe of the Great Southwest in Odessa—by God—Texas in productions of Macbeth, Tw e l f h Night, and The Imaginary Invalid. I attended a performance and caught up with Jim who was winding up a stint as a lecturer at the University of Texas. Iremember the theater as a bit seedy—it was just before Artistic Director Donald Seay and Business Manager Melba Martinez-Mishler began one of the periodic refurbishings. My next memory is the 1986 production of Once Upon a Mattress directed by Susan Loughran. I had appeared in a summer- stock production of the show in 1965, and I had directed a high-school production in 1973. In 1990 I auditioned for roles in the summer season at MMNT, which included The Drunkard, Black Comedy, and Count Dracula. Through a production of The Night Hank Wiliams Died directed by Don Toner at Live Oak Theater, I had reactivated my membership in Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) and was eligible for employment as a guest artist. After appearing in The Drunkard and Count Dracula, I was asked to return for a production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood the following spring. After learning that Prof. Susan Loughran would be taking a year’s sabbatical in 1991-92, I decided to apply to teach two of her courses on an adjunct basis. In the fall of 1992, Melba Martinez-Mishler was appointed Artistic Director of MMNT, and Associate 1 2 Chapter 1. Introduction Professor Marcia Kinsey, Dean of the School of Humanities, selected me to replace her as Theater Business Manager. Iserved as Business Manager until 1997 when Ijoined the faculty of the Theater Arts Program on a full- time basis. I continued to appear in MMNT productions as an actor, and I directed productions. From 2004 to 2008, I served as Artistic Director of MMNT. My experience of the special quality of arena production and performance and of the wonderful transformations students experience through their work on productions and in their university courses led me to consider examining the beginnings of the program and how its vision of students working with professional guest artists had been maintained. Over 200 plays have been presented in the MMNT since it opened in the spring of 1972. Since a chronicle of these 40 years would stretch into several volumes, I chose to limit my exploration to the two decades between 1962, when Brother Dunstan Bowles became sponsor of dramatic activities at St. Edward’s, and 1982, when Edward Mangum—founder of MMNT—retired from the University. Br. Dunstan was a member of the Congregation of Holy Cross (CSC), the order that founded St. Edward’s, and was a gifted teacher, director, actor, and visual artist. He also did valuable work for students at the Austin State School. This work especially inspired Richard Halpin, who became one of the first Theater Arts majors at St. Edward’s. Br. Dunstan took a sabbatical year in 1965, and his replacement was Edward Mangum, who had extraordinary credentials in educational and professional theater. After completing a graduate program in Theatre at Catholic University of America, Mangum founded the Theater Arts Program at American University in Washington, DC. In 1950 he founded the Arena Stage in Washington, one of the first professional regional theaters in the US. While working with the American National Theater Academy (ANTA) in the late 1950s, he had created exchange programs in Europe and Asia. For four years, Br. Dunstan and Ed Mangum worked to generate interest in a Theater Arts major at St. Edward’s, relying on student experiences in campus-wide Fine Arts Festivals to fuel the desire for wider experience and deeper study. Mangum developed a vision of a program in which students would work alongside professional actors, directors and designers. As they earned a BA in Theater Arts, students would work in all phases of production and would graduate ready to take a place in any part of a professional arts organization. Their skills would also transfer to many other fields. When funds became available to build a theater to serve an academic major in Theater Arts, Br. Dunstan and Mangum experienced irreparable Stars Over St. Edward’s 3 disagreement. Br. Dunstan declared that a proscenium stage would provide students with the best preparation for a professional career. Mangum believed in the arena stage as an antidote to film and television and that the limited funds available for the construction of a theater for St. Edward’s would best be used to create a flexible arena space. When the University administration sided with Mangum and approved the design for an arena theater, Br. Dunstan resigned and took a teaching position in Australia. Ed Mangum intended that Pernell Roberts, star of the TV series Bonanza, be the first professional guest at MMNT. In 1950 Roberts had been one of the first actors hired for the inaugural season at the Arena Stage and credited Mangum for giving him his start in “the business.” However, the opening of MMNT was delayed and the new date conflicted with Roberts’ schedule. William Shatner, star of the sci-fi series Star Trek, was the second choice to appear in Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie? in March of 1972. Throngs of Star Trek fans lined up to buy tickets, and the University administration saw the immediate value of celebrity publicity. Aided by canny Admissions Director John Lucas, Mangum saw enrollment in the Theater Arts major skyrocket from 20 students in 1972 to over 100 students in the fall of 1974. When Mangum had arrived at St. Edward’s, he was a vigorous 52-year-old. Entering his seventh decade in 1974, he found the pressures of dealing with demanding students, a pressing production schedule, and temperamental guest artists beyond his capacities.