I grew up in the theater. Warren Players was a place to escape after a long day at school or work. It was full of familiar faces and friendly people. You did not have to have money to help with a play. You did not have to have any acting skills or theater experience to be part of a production. You didn’t have to be anyone to be part of one of the “longest continually running community theater groups in the country.” From the age of seven, I did odd jobs around the theater and landed on stage a few times in bit parts. I was a stagehand a couple of times. I found my strength, ultimately, in lights and sound. My years at Warren Players meant a lot to me. I can remember being awe-struck by Bob and Connie Weiland, directors of the play in which I landed my first role. The show producers and directors were like mentors to me. They were people who were dedicated to putting on a “Broadway worthy” show in a small community theater.
I remember constantly looking at the old cast photos that lined the wall in our former Water Street location. I could only dream of being a lead in a show one day. A few times I had my chance, but soon discovered that lights and sound were my favorite way to contribute to a show. Jim Senger mentored me on my first time out in the lighting booth. Mike Kolos was also around to give me pointers, especially when it came to me blowing circuits when overloading the light board. This tightly-knit community enriched my life.
Now that I live in Pittsburgh, I don’t have a way to contribute to Warren Players. Most theaters here are professional. Union workers staff backstage and do the show lighting. What better way to contribute to players now than to create a website that celebrates our heritage and enhances our current shows! I have been active in the podcasting, blogging, and social media communities for about eight years. I have the knowledge and tools to create a useful, functional, fact-filled website for Warren Players.
The time that it has taken to put this site together has been worth it. We can see the cast photos online for the first time. Actually, the public can see them for the first time in over a decade. I am proud of what Warren Players contributes to the community. Warren, Pennsylvania is my hometown. It has fallen on hard times. I can’t count the number of my former Warren Area High School classmates that now reside in Pittsburgh and elsewhere in the country. One thing has remained constant, though, Warren Players. I look forward to seeing Warren Players through its 82nd season and many more to come.
My Warren Players resume includes:
- Rogers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1990): Page boy
- The Miracle Worker (1991): Percy, the servant boy
- Barefoot in the Park (1991): stage crew
- Cheaper by the Dozen (1992): one of the kids
- Charlotte’s Web (Jack-in-the-Box, 1992): someone in the cast
- The Velveteen Rabbit (Jack-in-the-box, 1994): lights & sound
- The Goodbye Girl (1995): lights & sound
- A Christmas Carol (1995): lights & sound
- There Goes the Bride (1996): lights & sound
- Camelot (1997): musician, clarinet and oboe
- Meet Me in St. Louis (1998): lights & sound
