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SANDY POST, SECTION TWO, June 1, 1978
‘Happy Birthday,
Wanda June’
opens The Theatre
What started out as an unlikely
dream in the minds of a few area actors
has grown into a thriving reality in a
few short months with promises of
bigger and better things to come
“ We weren’t sure about the idea at
firs t,” said Larry I^M arsh “ But it
looks like it’s taken hold now I think
we’reon our way.”
What LaMarsh, wife Laura, Harry
McClane and a cast and crew of about
15 people are on their way to is the
establishment of Sandy’s first com
munity theater group
Going by the name of the “ One Way
Theater,” the loosely knit but dedicated
group of amateur actors has one sue
cessful show behind them with a second
soming up in a week
The children's play, “ Beauty and the
Beast,” was the group's first produc
tion. It ran for 12 successful per
formances, mainly at area schools, and
gave the players the incentive they
needed to carry on
“ We had a fantastic response at the
schools for Beauty and the Beast,’ ”
said Laura LeMarsh, who along with
husband, Larry, initiated the idea for
the group
The current project is “ Happy Birth
day, Wanda June,” a comedy by Kurt
Vonnegut Jr. better known for his
best-selling novels than for the single
work he wrote for stage
The play w ill mark the grand opening
of The Theater on Proctor Boulevard
next Friday and Saturday, June 9 and
10. Two matinee performances are
scheduled for June 17 and 24
LaMarsh is cast as Harry in the lead,
based on a caricature of Ernest
Hemingway. His wife, Penelope, is
played by Marlene Tebo
McClane, who has been involved in 28
plays in amateur theater, is director for
“ Wanda June.” His physical ap
pearance on the set — with unlettered
baseball cap turned backward and
casual dress — would not likely be
mistaken for a John Huston. But *.ie
appears to have drawn the cast of nine
together for what could be a strong
“THE BEAST of Yugoslavia" (left) and
former wife of Harry, both now
show.
“ I think we might be able to do
something,” Mcl^ane said “ We've had
our ups and downs getting things
together in the past few weeks, but it
seems to be coming together now ”
Director McLane points out that
“ Wanda June" does contain language
that might be offensive to some. “ Let’s
say it might be a PG’ if it were a
movie,” he said.
The idea for the theater group in
Sandy came out of an acting class
taught by Larry and Laura LaMarsh at
the Sandy Community School last
winter A second class with 13 people
was held in early spring and produced
"Beauty and the Beast ”
From the core group of actors and
technical people who worked on
“ Beauty," One Way Theater was
formed.
La Marsh and the rest of the players
hope to draw in people from the area
who have an interest in live theater
“ Our goal is to establish the group as
a community theater with input from as
many people as would like to join.
We re not a bunch of professionals with
preset ideas,” La Marsh added
“ If someone comes along and has an
idea for a play, we ll sit down and talk
about it and see if it can be worked
out," he added. “ We’re not a closed
group.
"We think there’s a lot of talent in this
area I hope we can tap into it.”
One Way Theater has found a home
for its production in The Theater, as it
is known New owner John Kent is
having the auditorium renovated and
has opened his doors to the theater
group The arrangement appears to be
working to the advantage of both
A permanent stage has been built at
the front of the theater Kent has plans
to feature a variety of live per
formances. possibly including the
Portland Symphony Orchestra, as well
as a regular run of new and old movies
“ We re all working for the same
goal," I^aMarsh said. “ We re trying to
bring good, live entertainment to
Sandy
deceased, recount som e of the lead
character’s personal flaws...
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DIRECTOR HARRY McClane keeps the action flowing in a rehearsal
S to ry/p h o to s b y John K lin e
NO8A
SON interrupts an intimate scene during rehearsal.