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Published May 7th, 2014
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Town Hall Theatre's New Director and New Season
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| By Sophie Braccini |
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| Town Hall Theatre's new artistic director, Joel Roster with Jenny Wehrmeister, THT's new director of education. Photo Sophie Braccini |
Town Hall Theatre board president Betsy Streeter is very comfortable with Joel Roster's nomination as THT's new artistic director. Nine months ago, Derrick Silva was appointed to replace long-standing director Clive Worsley, but Streeter acknowledged that although Silva is a talented director and actor who brought many good things to the theater, the fit was not there.
"Joel comes from the ranks. We had offered him the job when Clive left, but he said he was not ready; we are very happy he accepted this time," she stated. "We are a real family."
To replace him as director of the popular education program the board chose Jenny Wehrmeister. "Jenny is a natural," said Streeter. "She is the most infectious person and can just light you up. She is also very organized and has been working for the program with Joel for some years." Roster and Wehrmeister got married at THT just a few months ago.
Roster exuded energy and passion as he described his first season as artistic director at THT, scheduled to open in September with the musical comedy "Company" that received 14 Tony Award nominations and six wins. Roster acknowledged that the return of musicals to the main stage was one of Silva's ideas. "It is more expensive to do musicals," he admitted. "The play rights are two to three times higher, and you need a music director and musicians. But people love musicals and the one we chose has been a trailblazer since it opened."
A self-proclaimed night owl, Roster loves to get up early to get a lot of things done; as a result the theater is his second home. Born to two actors, the young director remembers his first theatrical experience at age 4 when he saw his father in "Fiddler on the Roof." He acted throughout high school and started being paid for it before graduation. While taking classes at DVC he earned more roles and became a fulltime actor, and soon after, a director. He has worked at THT for 12 years.
Backed by an enthusiastic board, Roster is planning what he calls a ground-breaking season with four shows that include the musical as well as a Pulitzer Prize winner. "The shows are very different, they are all inspiring and are told a little bit differently than what people might be used to," commented Roster. The second show opens in December: "It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play."
"It is the sweetest interpretation of that story," said Roster, who saw the show at the Marin Theatre Company last year. "It is for the whole family and it is also a very good play." He added that the script does no harm to Frank Capra's beloved movie, but adds a level of nostalgia. The third show, "Angels in America," was awarded the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for drama.
"This is a big year for us at Town Hall," said Roster, "marking the 100th anniversary of the building and the 70th anniversary of theater being played here. I wanted a play that would mark this moment."
He first thought of "Our Town," but the timing wasn't right since it will be performed at the same time on the other side of the tunnel. "Angels" is not an easy play. It is an epic story about the United States in the early 1980s when the AIDS epidemic was killing hundreds of thousands of people and America began to embrace its gay population. "I talked with Clive (Worsley) about this play, and at first he thought that our audience was not ready for it," admitted Roster, "but then he thought about it and agreed with me."
The fourth show, "Moon Over Buffalo," is a light comedy by Ken Ludwig that has been very well received everywhere it has played and praised as wildly funny.
The last show of the 2013-14 season will be Bernard Shaw's "Candida," which will open at Town Hall Theatre May 24.
For more information, visit www.townhalltheatre.com.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA