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inal Theatre in a Food Term 8,000 Or How a Professional Theatre with Subscribers Happened in New Haven By Elizabeth Bushnell Kubler Excerpted from the Smith Alumnae Quarterly, Winter 1966 Long Wharf Theatre is the creation of Jon Jory and Harlan Kleiman, who met in the Yale Graduate School and found they shared the same hopes and ideas. When they first mentioned their dream of starting a resident professional theatre in New Haven, shrieks of horror and derision were voiced by numerous skeptics. “You’re out of your minds!” “How will you ever finance it?” . . . “It’s too near New York.” . . . “We’ve already got the Shubert Theatre and the Yale Drama School.” etc. Well, starting on Labor Day and laboring continuously, they hatched a theatre in little more than nine months’ time with the help of an ardent, enthusiastic group of citizens who spent untold, unsung, unnumbered hours to facilitate the delivery of this, the 28th resident professional theatre in the United States, to the waiting public of greater New Haven and surrounding communities. Both Jon Jory and Harlan Kleiman had long theatrical backgrounds which had helped them organize and operate a successful summer theatre at Clinton, Connecticut in 1964. After studying population, traffic flow, and average income they realized that New Haven was the logical, adequate, and desirable location for a new resident professional theatre. Bolstered by their convictions and a few words of encouragement, they dove in, beginning an intensive drive to infect alive and responsive people with their enthusiasm and consistently refusing to be discouraged by adverse or pessimistic comments. In November friends were found who offered the use of a large ballroom for an initial meeting, to which about 80 people of varying persuasions and interests were invited. Fifty or more came, and the two future directors began the first of a long series of spiels that became known as the “Gallagher and Sheehan Act,” telling of their hopes for a theatre where good plays well produced would be available at modest prices. They planned that a traveling company would go to the high schools with scenes from comedies through the ages. There would be a special program of plays for children. Special efforts would be made to bring underprivileged or handicapped young and older citizens to the theatre or to take the theatre to them. There would be Wednesday and Thursday performances of the regular shows open to students at reduced rates. On certain nights there would be discussions after the final curtain, to allow the audience the chance to question and converse with the directors and the actors. A newsletter would be sent to subscribers to keep them informed of theatre activities. Of the fifty at the initial meeting, about ten volunteered to be on a steering committee, whose function was to tell of this new theatre to its potential audience, and to ask for financial backing. Teas, coffees, suppers, lunches — even breakfasts — were arranged in order to explain the ideas and hopes for this theatre. The more widely the news could be spread the better. Days and nights were spent compiling a list of people who were known to be interested in the arts. A preliminary goal of $30,000 in pledges was set, but as interest grew, over $80,000 was promised, so the steering committee and the twin entrepreneurs were able to move into the next phase. Enthusiasm mounted steadily, but the problem of a site was more and more crucial. So many things had to be considered—convenience of location, parking facilities, and costs of rebuilding in rented quarters. One possibility after another was considered and ruled out. When things looked very bleak, a ray of hope shone unexpectedly from the direction of the Food Terminal in the Long Wharf redevelopment area. Six sections of the western wharf were still unrented, so if the Board would consider the possibility of such a location . . . ? The Board did. The Long Wharf Theatre sounded fine, and unlimited parking space offset the slight inconvenience of the location. Early efforts to find an old movie house or other suitable stage faltered. By happenstance, however, Newton Schenck, secretary of the Food Terminal, was also a member of the Theatre’s steering committee, and brought to the group the fact that five market units in the meat building and meetings was that the office— the borrowed office of an early sympathizer who had an extra space— began to overflow. The two small adjacent rooms held three telephones, four desks, all the paper goods and printed material, a coffee percolator, one paid secretary, a procession The Food Terminal’s President Jim of helping hands, out-of-town and Lamberti and Vice-president Babe local visitors, applicants for jobs and Gordon took leadership and in time aspiring actors, curious members of even joined the Board of the Theatre. the future audience, and an occasional The group, with its architect, George stray dog. Sometimes it was so Cash, developed a plan for a novel crowded that everyone had to stand thrust stage within a horseshoe of up to work. Whenever a particularly tiered seats for 450 at an estimated cost of $70,000. With the enthusiastic exciting thing happened, like the day the steel arrived for the work at the support of Mayor Richard Lee and Theatre, or the day the second-hand his staff, the Food Terminal obtained seats arrived from an old movie house a special exception to its limited BE in New Jersey (to be stored at Long zoning to permit the theatre use on a “temporary” basis, temporary because Wharf), or the day a big local bank it was thought that in time the Theatre, agreed to permit customers to charge Long Wharf Theatre subscriptions, a if successful, could be relocated special sort of frenzy would break out. downtown. Wild gestures and dancing. Knockedover stacks of envelopes and upset Since the initial construction cost coffee. of $70,000 had to be doubled for equipment, lights, seats, etc., and Many hands were soiled with paint since the untried dramatic experiment and stain; some chiseled old chewing had to be totally funded through community giving, the Food Terminal gum off of the ancient seat bottoms; some stitched black backdrops; some gave a major boost through a $20,000 arranged donated plants for the gala credit with the contractor in order to opening; some refinished chair arms generate the rent it needed. and backs with a donated magic finish; some stenciled numbers on In launching such an enterprise, seats, aisles, and rows. Anyone who gatherings of people are essential. It appeared was put to work—dirty was often possible for Jon and Harlan work. to address pre-fabricated assemblies of listeners like Rotary, Lions, By July 4th, somehow, everything Masons, Chambers of Commerce, was pretty well finished. Even the etc. The ultimate and much-hoped air-conditioning was working. Arthur for result of all of these talks, parties, had been released for rent. With the happy precedent of London’s Covent Garden Theatre in its market district, the idea was nourished by the acute needs of the Terminal for rent and of the Theatre for a home. Miller’s The Crucible opened for two weeks, followed by Brendan Behan’s Hostage, then Rick Besoyan’s Little Mary Sunshine, and the summer season windup was Peter Shaffer’s twin one-acts Private Ear and Public Eye. Almost every night chairs had to be put in for the overflow of customers. In fact, there were only 23 unsubscribed seats for the summer season. This has been commented on as a minor miracle for a new theatre. Nobody seemed to mind the rather stark interior, the 440 battered seats, and the bleak aspect of the lobby, adorned for the summer with one giant rubber tree on loan, and a long gay banner announcing each play. Our young directors can well be proud of what they have brought to New Haven. We New Haveners are proud of what we have helped to happen. Long may it continue to give pleasure and enlightenment to young and old. “A Theatre in a Food Terminal?” Well, what’s wrong with it? It works!