A publication of the Des Plaines History Center VOLUME 45, NO. 3 JULYSEPTEMBER 2011

COBWEB

Des Plaines Theater Guild A 60-year Legacy

The cast of On the Twentieth Century September, 1993

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By Nancy Chamberlain It all began. In the early 1940s, a group of aspiring thes-pians at the First Congregational Church, led by Harlan and Lucille Roden, began meeting in members homes for play read-ings. The original group became Mask & Wig, with 40 members putting on plays in the church facilities. Robert Dooley, grandson of Clarence E. Earle, Des Plaines early pioneer doctor, remembers joining the Mask & Wig youth group:

It was 1940; I was in 7th grade. Our first production was The Emperor's New Clothes, and I played the emperor. My good friend Bill Jacobs was one of the rascals. Our second show was Tom Sawyer's Treasure Hunt. I played Tom and Bill was Injun Joe.

Life-long friends, Bob and Bill practiced law together in Des Plaines from 1953-66. Bob took Bill to one of the Guild rehears-als and introduced him to Shirley Spiegler, whose father owned the local department store. A few years later, she and Bill were married. Rand Park 1946-1963 In 1946, Mask and Wig came under the sponsorship of the Des Plaines Park Dis-trict. The group was renamed the Des Plaines Theatre Guild (DPTG). The Rand Park Field House gym became the venue for their plays. Wedding Spells opened November 21, 1946.

The new Guild offered a subscription ticket at $1.50 for three plays plus a bonus of three one-act plays. Operating funds came from the actors who also had to take down the stage after their two weekend performances. Originally, the theater consisted of 40 chairs set up on the basketball court, with the stage at one end of the gym while re-hearsals went on at the other end. The dressing area was an unvented chair storage room. In 1950, a small theatre was added upstairs in the west wing. The stage filled the room, with no backstage area. Actors would exit to the outside, cross the veranda and go through the Park Board meeting room on the East side to enter on the opposite side of the stage. The active years. DPTG mounted at least five plays a sea-son, many to sold-out houses. They ran acting and directing classes and workshops. The Guild performed for various fund rais-ers, which meant members had to sell tick-ets for those events. Their entertainment group put on a cabaret act for local organi-zations for a fee. They constructed July 4th parade floats and participated in the Des Plaines 125th anniversary pageant. In 1971, the Guild began to produce annual plays written for children, put on by adult actors. They held cast parties and a host of social events including the annual spring awards banquet, Halloween and Christmas parties, dinners and picnics; and they even organ-ized trips to see plays in Chicago.

Lee Street 1963-1990 September 13, 1963, Critics Choice opened in the new Guild Playhouse. Having outgrown Rand Park upper west, Guild members spent 12 years dreaming and planningeventually spending over $10,000to turn the old Masonic Temple dance floor into a modern, sloped-floor theatre accommodating 300 seats from the Pickwick Theater in Park Ridge. Guild members applied over a hundred gallons of paint and varnish to the space. Over the years electrical lines were brought in, and other upgrades added. Two turnta-bles were erected over the stage trap door to help in changing scenes. Two platforms erected for Camelot became permanent stage additions. During Man of La Mancha, a ramp was built between the balcony and the left platform. Casting was not limited to Guild members but was open to everyone. Cast members were expected to donate two days of be-hind the scenes work on each production. They did their own makeup and provided some costume elements. Incredible volunteers.

When asked about the Guilds longevity, charter member Ed Sauer credited prepara-tion and financial backing along with sub-stantial season subscribers and an active membership.

The life blood of any organization is its members. The Guild attracted actors who wanted to be part of quality theater, along

Des Plaines Theatre Guilda 60 year legacy

Playing croquet in Little Mary

Sunshine. September 18, 1970.

From left: Sue Wille, Beth

Vandenboom, Barbara Curren,

Marcy Vosburg, Jackie Shadinger,

and Karol Verson.

Cobweb JULY-SEPTEMBER 2011 3

Names that are part of this history. Don Gloor, Joe McDermid, Ed Sauer, Mert Sta-ley, the Beddias, Bermans, Cohens, Kandlebinders, Mangelsdorfs, Shadingers, Strongs, Unells, Vandenbooms, Joann Calzaretta and sons; Marilyn Collignon, daughter Lisa, son Don & his wife Christine. Dick & Carol Kempiak and their four children; John & Mariann Marquette and their children (see photo). And so many more.

with those who loved the smell of grease paint behind the scenes. Many couples and whole families who loved the theatre gave their time and talents to make DPTG a success.

The Guild was the first to ...Operate a professional summer theater, Chevy Chase in Wheeling in 1954. They produced 10 plays, each running one week. Many Guild actors gained professional status during this season, earning their Eq-uity cards and enjoying professional ca-reers. ...Sponsor a nationally publicized playwrit-ing contest. In 1961, October Festival was chosen from 120 entries and had its world premiere in May 1962. ..Produce professional plays after their Broadway runs: The Boys in the Band in Feb-ruary 1972 after 1000 performances on Broadway and a hit motion picture; Baby in 1988, and Sweeney Todd in 1990.

...Other firsts were The Whos Tommy. A

Chorus Line. The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and The Elephant Man.

DPTG also presented several original plays

over the years. Honors. In 1963, DPTG won the Illinois Commu-nity Theatre Association award to repre-sent Illinois in the regional competition of

the Festival of American Community Theatre, held in Wisconsin. When Pioneer Press began to award annual kudos for lo-cal theatre groups, the DPTG won Best Theatre Company in 1991 & 1992 and Best Play Selection in 1996, along with awards for individual performances and plays. Prairie Lakes 1991-99 The Des Plaines Park District built Prairie Lakes, on Thacker near Algonquin, in Au-gust 1991. In order to add theater space to their new facility, the Park District needed a permanent tenant to justify the expense. The DPTG board was reluctant to give up the access they had at the Lee Street build-ing. But they also needed more space, air-conditioning, ADA accessibility and park-ing.

Initially it was a perfect fit. The Guild helped design the Prairie Lakes Theater, which seats 200 on the main floor and 100 in the mezzanine. They had first choice of dates for their season. The state-of-the-art theater has air-conditioning, dressing rooms, storage and workshop space, com-puterized light board and great parking. Attendance in 1992/93 was the highest ever, topping out at 14,000. But things changed. Money problems, diminishing audiences and fewer volunteers brought about the end for the Guild. Rent at Prairie Lakes was double the rent at Lee Street, and the rights to produce current plays were priced beyond the scope of most community theater groups. Ticket prices were in-creased but shows had to sell out to make a profit. The faithful audience, comprised mostly of seniors, began dwindling. Those who re-mained couldnt find Prairie Lakes, com-plained about the poor acoustics, and con-fused the Bog Theatre, which took over the Lee Street space, with the Guild at Prai-rie Lakes. By November 1998, attendance was down to 50 people for the Guilds per-formances of Inspecting Carol. Of greater significance, most of the volun-teer pool was disappearing. It takes a lot of people to put on a show. For every actor on stage, you need six people behind the scenes. In the summer of 1998 the board realized they couldnt afford to put on Forum, the musical planned for January 1999. Di-rector Frank DelGuidice suggested doing The Fantastics but even that was too expen-sive. The Guild got approval to do The Foreigner but rights were pulled while the group was in rehearsals. Finally the Guild got the rights to It Had to Be You, with a cast that had played it the previous sum-mer. Even after closing shop, several dedicated members, led by Marilyn Collignon and Renee Kujawski, hoped to resurrect the group but it was not to be. Money from the Guild treasury went to scholarships for theater majors in financial need. Gone but not forgotten, the ghosts of dedicated Guild members left a legacy of excellence. Their history is preserved in the Des Plaines History Center archives.

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Louis Lanciloti first appeared in the Guilds Sweet Charity September 1983. While running his own construction business, he did quite a bit of movie work in the Chicago area, most fa-mously as Robert De Niros barber in The Untouchables in 1987. The movie opens with Louie giving De Niro a shave (and yes, as he told it, he did accidentally nick that famous actors face.)

Above: Dont Drink the Water 1988. Louie Lanciloti and Linda Kay Williams

Karen Mason appeared at the Guild in the 1970 production of Little Mary Sun-shine. A reviewer said, her twinkle steals the show. She was in several Guild plays before heading to Broadway. She fre-quently brings her cabaret act back to Chicago where last fall she was reviewed as: not so much singing a song as possessing it.

Before they were famous

In 1955 Jim Lockhart, who appeared

in See How They Run, was accepted by the American Theatre Wing to study in New York. He produced an off-Broadway original musical in 1956.

Michael Kalinyen was a hit in the Guilds Most Happy Fella in 1974, toured with a Broadway production of Sweeney Todd and was resident tenor at the Sky-light Opera Theater in Milwaukee.

About the author, Nancy Chamberlain: I did PR for the DPTG from 1987 to 1991 pro-ducing news releases, programs, and the newslet-ter Encore. I also choreographed several musicals. It was a special time for me with lots of wonder-ful memories. While I was volunteering at the History Center, doing research and writing articles, boxes of DPTG history were donated. I joyfully volun-teered to archive the collection. This history comes from hours of reading old newsletters, press clippings, programs, news releases and cor-respondence now organized by season. It was a real labor of love. If there are any former Guild members whod like to share stories and maybe get together, please call Nancy at 847-229-0776.

Above: Little Mary Sunshine, September 8, 1970

Karen Mason and Doug Patterson

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Its that time of year again!

Attention all Cookie Bakers

If baking is your passion, we would love to have you in our baking

brigade. The History Center will be participating in sev-eral events within the holiday months.

Cookies must be dropped off at the History Center: Thursday, December 1st: 9:00 to 4:00

Friday, December 2nd: 9:00 to NOON Please call Adam, Lori, or Shari at 847.391.5399

if you are available to help us. We appreciate you!

Entertainment Books for Sale!

The History Center is proud to be selling

entertainment books. Each book is $25.00 with partial sales

benefiting the History Center. Makes a great gift!

Consider purchasing one for yourself and save up to 50% on your dining

favorites.

We sell them $10.00 less than Internet price

History: Did you know Other than the Des Plaines River,

the fertile valley was what

attracted the early settlers.

What attracted you to

Des Plaines?

What made you settle here?

We would love to hear YOUR

Answers. E-mail Lori at

lbarrett@desplaineshistory.org and

we will post your answers,

anonymously of course, at our

website and in the next issue of

the

Cobweb!.

Source: Donald S. Johnson. Des Plaines: Born

of the Tallgrass Prairie (CA: Windsor Publica-

tions, 1984).

Yesterdays Museum Store

We have lots of new goodies in our Yesterdays Museum Store. Halloween items are discounted,

and we have many darling stocking stuffers. Stop in for a little something for your mail carrier

or a co-worker in your office.

6 Cobweb JULY-SEPTEMBER 2011

The First Library in the World

Celus Library: Ephesus,

Turkey

Image: Corbis

As a Des Plainesite and a student, I spend quite a bit of time at the Des Plaines Library.

I remain in awe of the Library with its vast

rows of knowledge standing at attention.

Pretty much extinct is the card catalog sys-tem. Remember searching for a book using

those cabinets with the little drawers and

flipping through the index cards? We have

one here at the History Center.

The first library to be introduced to the world

was the Royal Library of Alexandria, Egypt,

built in the third century. The Great Library

may have been conceived in the reign of

Ptolemy I (283 BCE) or his son Ptolemy II

(246 BCE).

Egypt was considered a center of great schol-

arship and the greatest repository for manu-

scripts. Although Ptolemy pledged at least

500,000 manuscripts, his actual bequest fell

short of that number. As legend has it, Marc

Antony donated 200,000 manuscripts which

he stole from the library at Pergamon and

gave to Queen Cleopatra as a wedding gift.

Although the Royal Library suffered severe

damage, there existed two other libraries

within the city: the library of the Serapeum

Temple and the library of the Cesarion

Temple.

Well, it must have been nice to have three

libraries...must have been nice to be Queen

Cleopatra (for awhile anyway).

Think of it though...imagine our library with

scrolls instead of books.

Lori Barrett, Intern

Source: Phillips, Heather A., "The Great Library of

Alexandria". Library Philosophy and Practice, August

First Des Plaines Public Library, 1907-1936, constructed with funds from An-

drew Carnegie and the Des Plaines Womans Club. Photo by Nielsen Studio, Des Plaines.

As with many great tragedies, rumors abound of the librarys destruction. The most common rumor was of an accident during Julius Caesars visit in 48BCE. This was the rumor used in the 1963 film

version of Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor.

Cobweb JULY-SEPTEMBER 2011 7

Maine Township

Highway Department

Thank You Business Sponsors!

Recognizing the Many Supporters

of the Des Plaines History Center By Shari Caine, Executive Director

By the way, when you stop by, please

introduce yourself to our two interns

Lori and Adam. Lori comes to us from

Roosevelt University and is working on

her Masters in Ancient and Early European History and World War II.

Adam joins us from DePaul University

and is graduating this month. His focus

is Ancient Roman, Renaissance, and

Early American History. Got a history

question? Weve got the answer!

Our Interns

As we approach the final weeks of the year, it's time to thank all those who have been generous and supportive of the Des

Plaines History Center in 2011. Our members, donors, volunteers, staff members, interns and trustees--all have made contri-

butions of time and financial support so that we can continue doing what we do. Please accept our most sincere thanks and

gratitude.

Also, thanks to the many members of the History Center and larger Des Plaines community who expressed their sympathy

regarding the loss of our past Director Joy Matthiessen and attended her memorial service in September. Your cards, kind

words, and memorial gifts are greatly appreciated. We will not forget Joy's many and long-standing contributions to the His-

tory Center.

Among the many other changes at the History Center this year, we say farewell and best wishes to our former staff member

Susan Golland, who has moved on to a bright new opportunity developing exhibits at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in

Chicago. We know that her talents will be put to great use there! Meanwhile, we welcome our two interns, Lori Barrett and

Adam Manta, who are helping carry on Susan's work as we wrap up the year.

Finally, we would like to thank the Des Plaines Park District and the City of Des Plaines for their renewed contributions the

History Center through funding and the Interlocal Agreement. This support is a testament to the strength of the community

and its interest in preserving and sharing its own history.

Be sure to come to the History Center on Sunday, December 4, for our Holiday Open House from 1-4pm, as we celebrate the

season and once again welcome the Des Plaines Art Guild's "Art Guild 10" show and reception. We hope to see you there!

Address Service Requested

If you are reading this and arent a History Center

member, join today!

Smile: Weve been making history fun for over 40 years and were still going strong!

Photos: Above left, members of St. Marys Training School basket-ball team, 1940 (P4124). Front page: Cast of On the Twentieth Cen-tury, 1993 (Des Plaines Theatre Guild Collection) Des Plaines History