LONDONPLAYSWELL 

How it all began... 

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The history of Cayuga Community College’s January London Theatre Program

Special thanks to Daniel Labeille for sharing this story.

 

Daniel Labeille, then Professor of Theatre at Cayuga Community College and now retired, first developed the program in the fall of 1977 and submitted it for Faculty and College approval.  It was intended as a credit-bearing intersession program offering students a travel and study abroad experience over the two-week period between their first and second semesters.  It was the first such study-abroad program to be offered by the college and among the first of such by any SUNY community college.  First offered in January of 1978, five students from the college enrolled, taking the course for credit.  It was also offered as a non-credit community course on an audit basis and ten community residents signed up.  The course included six two-hour classes with guests from the productions, the reading of all the plays, and attendance at fourteen plays.  Students taking the course for credit were also required to write a paper to be submitted after return to the college.

 

Labeille, who five years prior had spent three weeks immersed in London theatre while on sabbatical leave, recognized that for the program to be successful he had to develop personal contact with key theatre people in London theatre, a relatively closed community.  To that end he invited Alan Schneider, a close personal friend, to accompany him on this first trip as a guest artist and consultant.  Schneider, a well-known American director and the director of the American premiere of all the plays of Samuel Beckett, and all of the early works of Edward Albee, had also directed in London.  He had also recently been the head of the theatre department at Julliard.

 

In that first year, the group saw all six plays offered at the National Theatre, and two productions at what was then the London winter quarters of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Aldwych, and two plays at the Warehouse, the RSC’S little studio theatre and precursor to what would become the Donmar Theatre on that very site.  The group also attended several productions in the West End and one at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, a new venue under the direction of Peter Gill.  Schneider also introduced Labeille to Peter Hall, director of the NT, Maurice Daniels, director of Education for the RSC, and to several actors and playwrights who Schneider knew from his time in London.

 

Then, later that same year, Labeille was selected to be one of twelve participants in a summer program sponsored by the NEH (National Endowment for the Humanities) that was to take place at the National Theatre in London.  The program, taught by the American Beckett scholar Ruby Cohn, would include attending all the NT plays that summer and would convene twice a week, for eight weeks, in the boardroom of the National Theatre where directors, designers, playwrights and actors would visit and talk about their work.  As Labeille had met Peter Hall through the good graces of Schneider six months before, he approached Hall about incorporating the elements of this summer program into Cayuga’s January program.  Hall agreed that Labeille could have access to the boardroom and to artists at the NT for the two-week period in January and use the rotating repertory of the theatre has the mainstay for the program.  Labeille also travelled to Stratford-upon-Avon and, at a meeting with Maurice Daniels, solidified arrangements that would also provide easy access to the winter London offerings of the RSC, including an overnight trip to RSC’s home quarters at Stratford.  In January 1979, Labeille returned to London with the second January group and the program, now with 22 enrollees, established itself in a manner that was to continue for many years.

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LONDON THEATRE HISTORY, continued.

Special thanks to Karen Keane for sharing more of this story. 

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After 23 years of running annual 14 day trips, sometimes 2 for 2 groups in January, Dan turned over the baton to Mark Cole, Professor of Theatre and Chairperson of the department of theatre at SUNY Oswego.  Mark then invited Karen Keane to be his colleague, both having been on the trip for a few years.  Mark’s wonderful & thoughtful leadership endeared him to all the travelers, lightening the sting of the loss of Dan.  The wonderful relationship with the National Theatre continued with classes, a bus tour around London on the first day and a Sunday of travel to another area, i.e. Oxford, Brighton, & other sites of author homes.

After 7 years, due to family responsibilities, Mark retired.  Karen persuaded Dan to return which he did, surprisingly, and she continued on as a helper and resource along with the great help from Cayuga College.  That was in 2008 and continued for 2 more years.  The Sunday trips began to fall by the wayside as bus prices soared and so did the GBP value.

 

And then came the Big Blow. The National Theatre announced a big change in their Mission which we later discovered was the announcement of NT Live along with many new outreach programs to younger and more diverse communities of theatergoers.  Our connection with the NT was over and also with Cayuga College as they could no longer offer the educational connection.

 

Here I am reminded of my Fitzgerald family Irish motto: “Transfixed but not dead.”  Really!!!

Many emails flew back and forth among the group, what can we do?  Who will take over? Sighs & anguish, Shakespearian in tone, continued.  And then, John Frantz, a frequent traveler for many years, called Karen.  The rest is history for the next 5 years.  John became the Main Man taking the financial risk and developing all new connections, purchases, and the considerable tasks of doing this program from the start.  His faithful commitment to new plays & theatres, Shakespeare of course, and developing the contacts to “get the guests.”   Karen, meanwhile, worked on finding a place to meet, the SU Faraday House, and supporting John with play choices and research.  This continued happily for all for 5 years from 2011 thru 2015. 

 

Then John retired and Karen took it on for 2016 & 2017 with the help of Peter Moller, retired Professor, from the Newhouse School at S.U.  He developed the website and launched Karen into the world of spreadsheets & website creation. In the fall of ’16 Karen announced that this ’17 trip would be her last trip.  My math says that is 40 years total. 

 

Now comes the sweetest part: Lisa Buck & Peter Arabadjis, the married son & daughter of parents, Gus & MaryAnn and Helen & Phil, who had attended the trip for well over 20 years, asked her if they might take on Year 41. They said yes, and asked their dear friends from Maine, Danny Williams and Emily Cain, to lead the trip as a team effort.

 

All the rest brings us to today.  In some of my recent calls to London to introduce them to my contacts, in those lovely British tones, they all reply: “Isn’t that just lovely.”

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