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George Luscombe: His L1fe and Art 1926 - 1989

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George Luscombe: His L1fe and Art 1926 - 1989 • GEORGE LUSCOMBE: HIS L1FE AND ART 1926 - 1989 by Delia D'Ermo A Thesis submitted to the • Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts Department of English McGili University Montréal • January 1993 D'Ermo i • ABSTRACT ln Î 959, George luscombe, a Canadian-born actor and director, founded Toronto Workshop Productions, Toronto's first alternate theatre. For over a quarter-of-a-<:entury, luscombe pioneered the creation of a Canadian theatre of polltical and social concern and the development of plays through a collective process. This study attempts to reconstruct the major events of luscombe's personal and artlstic Iife, and to assess his contribution to Canadian theatre through his work at Toronto Workshop Productions as revealed in company reports, contemporary records and the recollections of his friends and associates . • • D'Ermo ii • RESUME En 1959, George Luscombe, un acteur-directeur canad len, fonda Toronto Workshop Productions, le premier théâtre 31ternatif de Toronto. Pendant plus de vingt-cinq ans, Luscombe fut un pionnier dans la créatIon d'un théâtre canadien d'esprit socio-politique, et du développement d'oeuvres par travail collectif. Cette étude vise à reconstruire les principaux événements personnels et artistiques de la vie de Luscombe et d'estimer sa contribution au théâtre canadien par ses réalisations au Toronto Workshop ProductIons, tel que revelés par les archives de l'organization, les rapports actuels et les souvenirs de ses amis et associés . • • D'Ermo iii • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1 met George Luscombe in October 1987 and over the past five years have spent nearly 45 hours in interviews with him. Despite warnings of his tempestuous and difficult personality, 1discovered a kindred spirit, and count myself amongst those who became a captive of his work, his fascinating stories and his inextin{]uishable passion for theatre. 1 also wish to acknowledge the kindness of Luscombe's friends and associates, who generously allowed me to make use of their recollections; Mona Luscombe, Francois-Régis Klanfer and Jesus Garcia who helped me gather and assemble my material; my mother, Mariette D'Ermo, and my devoted companion, Richard Felx, for their support and encouragement; and the Max Bell Fellowship in Canadian and Northern Studies for its financial support . My foremost debt is to Professor John Ripley, an inspiring guide, • who tirst introduced me to Canadian theatre and to George Luscombe . • D'Ermo iv • TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract Resumé ii Acknowled gements iii Table of Conte.lts iv Introduction v Chapter 1 -- The Backdrop: The 1930s and 1940s 1 Chapter Il -- The Inspirational Years: 1950 to 1959 17 Chapter III -- Luscombe's Approach ta Play-Making 41 Chapter IV -- The Pioneering Years: 1959 to 1969 68 Chapter V -- The Beginning of the End: 1969 ta 1989 104 Conclusion 145 Appendix A: Stage, Television and Film Raies: 151 • 1956-1960 Appendix B: Awards and Distinctions Conferred 153 ta Luscombe Appendix C: Chronological Handlist of TWP 154 Productions: 1959-1987 Bibliography 169 • D'Ermo v • INTRODUCTION For nearly three decades, George Luscombe created exciting new plays and championed in Canada a theatre of social and political relevance. Tom Patterson, founding father of the Stratford Festival, estimates, "there are five people who 1 think have done the most for Canadian theatre", 1 and names, besides himself, Dora Mavor Moore, Ernie Rawley, Herbert Whittaker and George Luscombe. When he established Toronto Workshop Productions in 1959, Luscombe offered Toronto playgoers their only opportunity to see experimental, home-grown theatre. At the time, the Royal Alexandra and the Crest were promoting mainstream, usually foreign drama. The New Play Society devoted itself primarily to its annual revue, Spring Thaw, while The Stratford Festival was dedicated to celebrating the Bard of Avon . Luscombe's commit ment to the creation of a serious, innovative and • socially-aware Canadian theatre was total. Against overwhelming odds, he developed and maintained Canada's only professional year-round theatre company, and the first of Toronto's alternate playhouses. His most successful shows were concerned in one form or another with abusive or insensitive social and political systems and their victims. 2 Through his drama, Luscombe spoke out for Central Americans, black people, Chileans; in Mr. Bones, he condemned racism in America; in Chicago '70, the Vietnam War and American totalitarianism; in Ten Lost Years, he told compelling, authentic stories of the survivors of the Depression; and in The Mac-Paps, he directed Toronto's attention to the Canadian experience in thf3 Spanish Civil War. The vitality of TWP depended primarily on its ability to develop Canadian work through a collective process with the writer present • whenever possible. In 1961, Hey Rube! became Toronto's first original Of Ermo vi play realized through this approach, and the precursor of a host of others • to be created at TWP and elsewhere. While luscombe's theatre was developed by Canadian artists for Canadian audiences, its themes and style of presentation were never insular or introverted. "If one were to take a luscombe production and tour it around the world," insists Herbert Whittaker, "it would be recognized as Art Theatre of the highest level, though no one would be able to identify where it came from. ,,3 luscombe's associates have described him as stubborn, overbearing and cantankerous; actors and crew members found him intimidating, tyrannical, emotionally explosive and often irrational. ''l'm ornery and truculent," he admits, "short-tempered and impatient, a badly battered survivor who has earned every grey hair in my beard. The only thing 1 take credit for is being stubborn ... 4 Only Luscombe's sheer stubbornness can account for TWP's longevity in the face of never-ending adversity. And whatever his diplomatie shortcomings in dealing with fellow-artists, he • offered them by way of compensation more opportunity to exercise and extend their creativity than any other contemporary Canadian director. Despite his impact on Canada's theatre, little attempt has been made to record Luscornbe's contributions. As a result, TWP has often been treated as a footnote to Canadian theatre history, when, in fact, it is a highlight of the narrative. This ~tudy, as a first step toward giving luscombe the recognition he deserves, attempts to reconstruct his lite in theatre and to assess, however tentatively, his artistic achievement. Although its foc:us is George luscombe, it tells the story of both the man and his theatre: indeed, they are virtually one and the same. For most of the company's 29-year existence, Luscombe was its only artistic director and producer, and through it his vision of Canadian theatre was given lite. The study begins with an examination of luscombe's artistic • tarmation, continues with an analysis ot his approach to play-making as D/Ermo vii director and political activist, and culminates with a production-by­ • production survey of TWP plays he directed and sorne analysis of the reasons for the company's ultimate collapse. The period preceding TWP's opening, which stretches from 1926 to 1959, was Luscombe's learning period, about theatre, about life and about politics; and includes his early years and first experiences in theatre, and the later circumstances, both social and personal, that drew him to drama and to the politically-oriented style of theatre he advocated. From 1959 to 1988 Luscombe dedicated himself totally to the creation and evolution of Toronto Workshop Productions. An adequate appreciation of his achievement requires more than a mere catalogue of productions. It demands an understanding of Luscombe's conception of play-ma king, his rehearsal process, his relationships with actors, writers, crew members and audiences, and his influence on Toronto's emergent alternative theatre movement. By the 1970s, the new alternate theatres Luscombe's work had fostered had become serious competitors for • government funding and public patronage. And Luscombe found himself inadequately prepared ta meet the challenge. This study attempts ta examine in a final chapter the company's demise in 1988, the victim of a changing cultural, social and economic climate. 1 have used TWP's archives extensively for my research, primarily annual reports, financial statements, correspondence, press releases and programming records. Particularly helpful were the company's box-office reports to corroborate production preview and opening dates. Regrettably, TWP, like many other theatres, failed ta maintain an adequate archive system. The presence of various versions of plays without indication of the final script was a specific weakness. Much archivai mate rial that remains bears the marks of the theatre's fire and other types of damage. A major research source have been taped interviews with friends and • associa tes: writers Carol Boit, Rick Salutin, Len Peterson, Larry Cox; actors D/Erm'"' vii i Geoff Bronstein, Barry Flatman, Tom Butler, François-Régis Klanfer, Doug and Sonya Livingston, Peter Faulkner, Ross Skene, Len Donchef, Suzette • Couture, Lee Broker, Janet Amos, Tom Kneebone; directors t<en and GnSS Robert Rooney; theatre administrator June Faulkner; set and costume designers Astrid Janson and Bob Greene; artist Theo Dlmson; theatre critic emeritus Herbert Whittaker; Stratford Theatre Festival fOllflder, Tom Patterson;5 and, of course, Luscombe and hls wife Mona. Mrs. Luscombe's private dlaries, which she kindly allowed me to examine, were an invaluable aid in establishmg an accurate chronology. The selection of interviet'"ees, though not haphazard, was, ta sorne extent, arbitrary, depending primanly on thelr ~vailabillty and accessiblilty It must be recognized that, despite interviewees' best efforts at accuracy, memories are sometlmes fallible and perceptions clouded by subjective concerns. 1 have tried, therefore, to balance narrative agalflst narrative throughout, and, whenever possible, have attempted to rcsolve confllctmg accounts through resort to the company archives.
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