The Show Must Go On Again
The Little Theatre Marks a Big Anniversary With an Old Favorite and a Walk Through Time

By Michael Toscano
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, July 10, 2008

Little Theatre of Alexandria, one of the Washington area's oldest theater companies, is kicking off a special birthday celebration this weekend that will last for much of the summer.

LTA was formed 75 years ago and over the decades has grown roots deep in the community. By any measure, the group has to be considered one of the most successful community-based theater companies in the nation, having grown from a small play-reading club in 1934 at the Old Town home of founder Mary Lindsey to a full-time play-producing factory.

The group stages seven full productions a year -- including the occasional award-winning show -- in its own extensive facility. LTA also manages a one-act playwriting competition and provides theater classes for children and adults. LTA sells approximately 23,000 tickets annually, operating entirely on that income.

"They are critical to the arts community here in Alexandria," said Pat Miller, chairman of the Alexandria Commission for the Arts. "They bring in thousands of people to Alexandria and they play a major role in the community. They have a good educational outreach for children, and very loyal people who attend this theater. They recruit others to go, too. That keeps their audience strong and growing, and it means a lot to the restaurants in the area who benefit from having all those theatergoers coming here."

To celebrate, the troupe will kick off its diamond jubilee season with an unusual gala celebration Saturday evening. The event will pay homage to the theater's past with a walking tour called "Footprints of LTA." People will hike by the old Lindsey residence, pass Ramsey's Alley, where the company had its first building, and head over to Gadsby's Tavern, which was home to LTA for many years. Gadsby's will host a sparkling reception with displays and presentations before the celebrants amble back to the theater on Wolfe Street for dessert and an old-fashioned show-tune singalong.

Two weeks later, on July 26, LTA will begin a reprise of "1776," the musical the group considers its signature show, for an extended celebratory run. The public is invited to attend a free "under the stars" performance of the show Aug. 21 at Fort Ward Park.

"In the earlier years, from the 1930s through the 1960s, especially, it was almost like a social club, with entire families involved," said David Hale, current treasurer and a member since the early 1970s. "The wives ran the theater back then, I think, and the husbands came out to build the sets. Many of the husbands, especially back then, were bankers, attorneys, brokers and various other professionals, so not only did they build sets, they also knew how to build and run a business. They established stock portfolios to stockpile building funds, and they were very good at donation drives."

That financial acumen has provided the basis for LTA's long-term health. After first renting space (and rehearsing for a time in Cunningham's Funeral Home), by 1939 the company was able to purchase a ramshackle former blacksmith's shop in Ramsey Alley, between Lee and Fairfax streets. There was room there for rehearsal space and for set and costume shops. And, ever mindful of generating income, the theater rented out the land around the building as a parking lot. Performances were staged in a variety of venues in those early years, including the basement of St. Mary's Church and the Lyceum.

LTA archivist Kim Smith-Salmon was surprised to discover recently that famed playwright Thornton Wilder visited when the group staged his seminal play, "Our Town," in 1939. "It's amazing that Wilder visited us," Smith-Salmon said. "I think that's pretty cool. Being so close to the nation's capital, we usually hear about the big politicians who visit us, not playwrights and people like that."

World War II halted performances, but LTA continued to collect dues from its loyal membership, as well as the income generated from the parking lot, and the financial portfolios remained healthy. When production started again, performances took place at a USO on Cameron Street before the troupe settled in for a long run upstairs, and then later in the courtyard, at Gadsby's Tavern.

The shows LTA performed at Gadsby's were mostly re-creations of an evening of entertainment from the 18th century that could have been viewed by George Washington. When the shows moved outdoors to Gadsby's courtyard, a rickety stage was rigged over wooden sawhorses.

By the Kennedy era, LTA was ready for its own New Frontier, which meant a permanent home. There was controversy, as some members feared taking on such a major investment. But LTA decided to build the place it still calls home, a quaintly elegant (with chandeliers), Colonial-style theater with 219 seats at 600 Wolfe St. The debut show on Nov. 18, 1961, was the comedy "Send Me No Flowers."

Several wings were added during the 1960s for dressing rooms, costume creation and maintenance, a rehearsal hall, a set-building shop, and the formal Council Green Room. Space is also used for the classes LTA conducts for children and adults in a variety of performance-related disciplines.

Presidents have played their own role at LTA, Hale said. "When the second Bush administration first came in, President Bush's sister-in-law Maggie Bush, an actress who is very close to Laura, was cast in a play," Neil Simon's "Proposals,", Hale said. "Laura decided she wanted to see the play, and so George did, too. What happened was that it became a huge buzz in The Post Style section because the president had not been out much at that point, not even to the Kennedy Center. After that, it seemed like every Republican couldn't buy enough tickets, and the show sold out. After that, the theater really took off."

LTA has remained unusually stable over the years, with ticket sales usually approaching 100 percent for musicals, 93 percent to 97 percent for comedies, and 80 percent for dramas. The theater has an annual operating budget of $490,000. Treasurer Doyle said accepting credit cards at the box office some years ago helped increase the group's financial stability, as has a gradual transformation from a dues-paying organization of 1,200 members to one relying on season subscriptions.

There are still 400 base members, however, and they actively support the theater. That's especially important in the current economy when most theaters are suffering from lagging ticket sales. When LTA's board of governors recently decided the 17-year-old theater seats were noisily wearing out, they put out a call for donations rather than tap into operating funds. In a short time, they had almost $40,000, and the new plum-colored, non-squeaking seats are in place to welcome patrons when "1776" opens.

Unlike most community-based theater groups, LTA does not accept government grants. Archivist Smith-Salmon noted that past fundraising activities included such undertakings as elaborate masked balls, square dances and art shows.

Shows run Wednesdays through Sundays for the public, with tickets ranging from $15 to $21, but LTA also has a public service effort on Tuesday nights "to give back to the community," as explained by current president Carolyn Winters. "On Tuesday nights, we have nonprofit nights," she said. "Nonprofit organizations buy tickets at reduced rates, then sell them to their members and supporters at higher rates as a fundraiser. It has been a very successful program and has helped many local organizations over the years."

Despite the fact that the artistic and technical quality of LTA's shows is occasionally quite high, and usually good, Little Theatre of Alexandria is classified as a community theater because it does not pay its actors. Even though LTA has a permanent theater facility and a small paid staff, even though it pays musicians who perform in musicals and enjoys a large, permanent group of active members, the "community" status signals "amateur time" to some.

But sometimes, the Alexandria group can outpace its better-known, big-time rivals in the professional world. A few years ago, LTA produced a version of the musical "Cabaret" that was quite dark and edgy, and definitely not for the kids. It was hailed by critics as stunning and moving. Shortly afterward, the District's nationally recognized Arena Stage produced the same show, also promising to be dark and edgy. To many of those who saw LTA's version, Arena's production was lackluster.

Regardless of what is happening on the stage, the narrow hallways and smallish rooms backstage buzz with activity. While one show is onstage, one or two more may already be rehearsing out of sight of the audience. Sets are being designed, along with lighting and sound elements.

Backstage last week, the impression was of an assembly line. "When a show closes on a Saturday night, on Sunday the cast and crew strike the set," said Frank D. Shutts II, a former LTA president who is directing "1776." "Usually on Monday, we begin building for the next show, and we only have two to three weeks to build it before final rehearsal week gets underway onstage for the next show."

A downside to the tight schedule is that the theater has no opportunity to extend a hit show and sell more tickets.

As it embarks on its 75th year, one LTA custom is missing. "It's been a tradition forever, but no one seemed to actually like the punch," said Carolyn Winters, laughing. "It has actually caused controversy because the newer volunteers for ushers didn't want to make the punch, didn't want to serve the punch and didn't want to clean up after the sticky punch. We finally decided this past season to see what would happen if we did away with the punch. Some of the older members were a bit upset, but now that everybody has seen how clean the kitchen is, and this is the first time we don't have ants in the kitchen, where the punch gets all over everything, the change seems to be working."

No punch. Bottled water. Progress after 75 years.