Edition 20, Volume 3
October 15, 2008

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The Great Vacation Staff
“Making Vacations Great in 2008!”

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Cape May Stage

   Did you think just because you lost some or all of your hearing that you would have to miss out on going to the theatre?  Well, Cape May Stage has some good news.  With a mission of improving access to theatre for all patrons, Cape May Stage, in association with the New Jersey Theatre Alliance (NJTA), is offering its first Open-Captioned performance on Sunday October 26th at 8PM during the theatre’s current side-splitting baseball comedy, “Rounding Third.”
 
   Open Captioning is text displayed on a screen simultaneously to live speech, dialogue or performance.  Like “Closed Captioning” – a service that is offered on television programs for people with hearing loss – Open Captioning (OC) benefits a growing number of people who have profound hearing loss and affords them the opportunity to experience the excitement and joy of live theatre.
 
   Richard Dresser’s “Rounding Third” follows two very different dads as they attempt to work together and coach their sons’ Little League team to the championship. Philadelphia-based actor Greg Wood and NY-based actor Richard Hoehler have been hailed by local critics as both “…fascinating to hear and watch” and as ”…grand slam home runs in this absolutely hilarious baseball play”. 
 
   Cape May Stage’s marketing director Alicia Grasso is thrilled to be working with the NJTA to bring Open Captioning to Cape May Stage.  “I read in an article written by Lisa Carling that ’hearing loss affects an estimated 28 million people. Of this population, over 98 percent do not use sign language as their primary means of communication. For some people, assistive listening devices provide inadequate support.’”
 
   Grasso continues, “I am very excited that Cape May Stage has been able to provide this unique opportunity at the theatre. My hope is that by offering an OC performance, people with hearing loss who have stopped seeing productions or may never have been able to experience live theatre before, will be given that chance at the Playhouse on the 26th.”
 
   Open captioning was first introduced in 1996 inside a theatre at the Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of “Gigi.” This came at the request of Arlene Romoff, advocate for the Hard of Hearing, and author of "Hear Again - Back to Life with a Cochlear Implant." Open captioning in theatre has since gained world-wide attention and support for its universal appeal, ease of integration and program enhancement. It has introduced a wave of new audiences and, especially, offered opportunities to those who can finally return to the theatre.
Performances run Wednesdays thru Sundays at 8pm thru November 1st at the Robert Shackleton Playhouse of the Cape May Stage with the special OC performance on October 26th at 8PM.  Tickets are $35 adults, $25 seniors, and $12.50 students.
For more information (click here)
Box office at (609) 884-1341.
The box office is open Monday through Sunday from 10AM – 5PM. Assisted Listening devices are also available upon request.
 
This Open Captioned performance is a co-sponsored project of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance, made possible by the New Jersey Department of Human Services Division of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.  This production is generously sponsored by CapeBank Charitable Foundation and Carney’s. For more information (click here)
Photo credit: Tina Giaimo
Pictured L to R: pictured L to R: Greg Wood, Richard Hoehler

Lee O'’Connor: In his tenth year as Technical Director
of East Lynne Theater Company 

An interview with Artistic Director Gayle Stahlhuth

 Difficult to believe, but Lee O'Connor and I are in our tenth year of serving as Technical Director and Artistic Director of the Equity professional East Lynne Theater Company.  As the current production of "To the Ladies!" winds down, and preparations are being made for the upcoming annual fundraiser, two more productions, and plans for the 2009 season, I sat down with him for a chat. 
     Not too difficult a task really.  I've known Lee since 1979, and we were married in the fall of 1981.  We've had many chats.
     Lee was born in Washington D.C. in room 337, which, he likes to tell people, is "Lee" upside down. His family had one of the first homes in Leavittown, NY, and when Leavitt built the same housing development in Pennsylvania, the O'Connors were offered the opportunity to move.  They took it. 
     He likes to relate the story about how he became interested in theater.
     "I hadn't thought much about performing, when, one day, the high school choir director literally grabbed me while I was walking down the hall, and informed me I was going to be in the choir. There was a shortage of baritones, tenors, and bases."
      After days of the director working with the sections individually, it was when the whole choir first sang the harmony together, that Lee realized, as he puts it, "the beautiful power and strength of many people working together to bring joy and entertainment to an audience."
     He was hooked. The song was Jerome Kern's "All the Things You Are." Still one of his favorite songs to this day. And he still knows his part.
     He performed in high school musicals and apprenticed at Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, where he worked with Eddie Earle.
     Then he went to war.
     "In Vietnam, it was jungle rot that got me out of the field as a grunt, and sent me back to Saigon," he commented. "I ended up performing with a theater company on the base. My first role was playing Felix in 'The Odd Couple.'" 
     Once out of the army and with the G.I. Bill, Lee attended Penn State, majoring in History.  After college, he worked as a Sales Representative for IBM. 
     Then he visited Phil, a friend from his Vietnam days, who lived on 54th Street in Manhattan.
     "You opened the door!" Lee exclaimed.
     He’s right. I did.  Phil and the other roommate were out.
     Although Lee still had his foot in the corporate world, he now found himself in the heart of Manhattan, staying with three people who worked in theater. Soon, he decided to move from Pennsylvania to New York City.
     "I worked as a Sales Representative and Instructor for The Executive Technique, an organization that teaches communication skills to business people. Then I worked for the American Institute of Banking, a non-profit educational organization for member banks, but I still found time to do voice-over work, perform, and stage manage. I ended up joining the theatrical unions. By the end of 1990, I made a complete shift from the corporate world to theater."
     I asked him if there were any highlights – or anything he particularly thought about.
     "There are so many really good people in this business. You never know who will continue in it, who will become well-known, who will drop out. When I was house carpenter at The Astor Place Theatre, one of the productions was "A Weekend Near Madison." It was a good show, but two women really stood out: Mary McDonell and Holly Hunter. This was several years before their film careers took off, and "Battlestar Galactica" and "Saving Grace."     
     I've also been lucky enough to work at Radio City Music Hall for several events, including "Liza Steppin' Out" with Liza Minnelli.
     I was a production assistant on one show that never made it to Radio City. That happens. A lot of time and money spent, and the show still doesn't get produced for one reason or another. We rehearsed in an armory in New Jersey. It was the only place large enough and close enough to Manhattan. The place had been booked way in advance. Then 9/11 happened. The armory was filled with military equipment and personnel – and us. It was surreal.  Chorus girls in colorful costumes rehearsing - young guys in military uniforms – and an arsenal of weapons – all in the same building."
     For five years, Lee worked for Madison Square Garden Theater's "A Christmas Carol," including the final year.
     "It was sad to see it close," he recalls. "All those props, costumes, performers, crew. A lot of people assumed it would keep going on year after year. The producers claimed they could make more money by bringing in smaller shows instead of remounting this one." 
     Also in New York, Lee has stage managed for several companies including Primary Stages, Richard Forman’s Ontocological Theater, and Irish Rep.
     On a larger scale, he was a production assistant for NYC Operation Welcome Home, the tickertape parade and festivities for those who fought in Desert Storm. He's also worked as the road manager for CORE Ensemble, Jose Melina Dance Company, and The New Jersey Ballet. 
     Outside of Manhattan, he'’s stage managed for Coyote Theatre, not too far from NYC, and Ivoryton Playhouse in Connecticut. In New Jersey, he's worked at American Stage Company, Centenary Stage Company, The Bickford Theater, Surflight Theatre, The Women's Theater Company, and of course East Lynne Theater Company.
     It was because Lee and I worked for ELTC that we started coming down to Cape May in 1987, and eventually bought a home in West Cape May in 1993.   
      We've discussed the pros and cons to running a non-profit company, and what keeps us going, but I asked Lee to discuss it just one more time.
     "It’s the looks on people's faces – and their comments about how wonderful, funny, thought-provoking a play is – and how wonderful the actors are – and that connection between the audience and actors.  Live theater - there's nothing like it."
     Lee left on Sunday to go to NYC to work on a benefit for Dancers over 40, hosted by Dick Cavett.  But he'll be back to stage manage the final week of "To the Ladies!" and get ready to portray Sherlock Holmes in ELTC's popular radio-style production of "The Adventure of the Specked Band” in November.
     The company operates year-round with touring shows and educational outreach. During the Cape May production season, the company performs at The First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, 500 Hughes St., were it is in residence. For information and reservations, contact ELTC at 884-5898, or (click here).


Picture of Lee O’Connor as Sherlock Holmes with fellow-actors Patti Chambers and Fred Velde in East Lynne Theater Company's radio-style production of a Holmes' adventure.

Great Vacation Things To Do

Oishii Sushi & Tea   
507 Ninth Street
Ocean City, NJ 08226
Phone 1-609-391-8900  
   
 There is one word to describe Oishii Sushi and Tea, and that word is “Delicious!” Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week, Oishii Sushi & Tea has combo platters featuring your choice of two sushi rolls and soup or salad for both lunch and dinner. Everything on their menu is delicious, and two customer favorites are the Spicy Tuna Roll and the Shrimp Tempura Roll. 

Oishii Sushi & Tea  features Bubble Tea, Flavored Teas and Fruit Smoothies, and their teas are all brewed fresh daily. They accept VISA and MasterCard. So, if you’re in Ocean City on vacation, a weekend getaway, or anytime of the year – and you love sushi and tea – the best place to go is Oishii Sushi & Tea. In a word: “Delicious!” For information: (click here)

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