Wayside Theatre is a former regional theatre located at 7853 Main Street in Middletown, Virginia, United States. The theatre company began after businessman and philanthropist Leo M. Bernstein purchased the property, along with the nearby Wayside Inn and other buildings in the surrounding area. The building had previously operated as a movie theatre from the time it was constructed in 1946 until 1961. The professional theatre company staged its first performance in 1963 and operated for 50 years before abruptly closing in 2013 due to financial troubles. At the time of its closing, Wayside was the second oldest professional theatre in Virginia.
There is often confusion about the early history of Wayside Theatre, with most people having been told the theatre was founded in 1961 and that the original company was called the Maralarrick Players. No evidence has been found for any group by that name performing at Wayside and the first performance of the theatre company took place in June 1963, as was noted by news articles at the time. During its history, Wayside Theatre was led by eight artistic directors, the first being Larry Gleason. The last, Warner Crocker, served as artistic director for the longest period.
During its opening season, Peter Boyle was among the actors who performed at Wayside. In the following years, other actors who would eventually become stars in film, television, and on Broadway appeared at Wayside Theatre, including Chris Sarandon and his then-wife Susan Sarandon, Cathryn Damon, Donna McKechnie, Sam Gold, and Clark Middleton, among others. Kathy Bates appeared in Wayside's traveling company, Wayside Theatre on Tour, early in her career.
Most of the productions at Wayside were well received by critics. For the majority of its history, Wayside hired from the Actors' Equity Association, except during periods of financial troubles in the 1980s and from 2011 until the theatre closed. The small building was not designed to be an acting theatre. There were renovations throughout the years, but a planned expansion that would have added a second theatre and additional backstage space was cancelled due to effects from the Great Recession.
The economic downturn later spiraled into a worsening financial situation for Wayside. After years of lower ticket sales, a reduction in grants and other funding, and the expenses of a needed renovation that was completed in 2008, Wayside board members closed the theatre in August 2013. Since that time, the theatre has remained mostly vacant. The building is one of many contributing properties to the Middletown Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Virginia Landmarks Register in 2003.
History Pre-theatre site history The site at 7853 Main Street in Middletown, Virginia was first owned by John Campbell in the late-18th century and later transferred to Jacob Danner. A building was constructed on the property which housed a tavern and store, the Danner Hotel and the Storehouse. The building later became the Shenandoah Normal School before the teaching college relocated to nearby Reliance, Virginia. In the early-20th century, the town hall and town jail, a dry cleaner, and a barbershop occupied the building. In 1941 the property was destroyed in a fire. At the time, it housed Little & Larrick's Store, a restaurant owned by Ed Goode, and a store owned by Ed Sperry. The site remained empty for the next three years.
In 1946 Herschel C. Borden constructed the current building, which was known as the Bordon-Lee Theatre or Middletown Movie Theatre until 1961. The building was subdivided, with the first floor containing the movie theatre, a pharmacy, and a store. The second floor contained an apartment in the back of the building where Borden lived for several years. There was also an office in the front portion of the second floor where Bob O'Neil practiced law. The office was later converted into another apartment. The space where the pharmacy was located later housed offices for the town government and police department. During this time the basement level housed a barbershop, a beauty shop run by a reported alcoholic who later disappeared, and an alleged betting parlor. The film projection system and theatre seats were sold to local movie theatres around two years after Joe Dwyer purchased the property in 1959.
On February 22, 1962, Dwyer sold the property to Leo M. Bernstein, a real estate developer, banker, and philanthropist from Washington, D.C. Bernstein had previously purchased and restored the nearby Wayside Inn, a historic building and the namesake of Wayside Theatre which opened as a tavern in 1797, and restored numerous other properties in the area including the Hotel Strasburg, Stonewall Jackson Museum, and Crystal Caverns in Strasburg, the Battletown Inn in Berryville, and the Burwell-Morgan Mill in Millwood.
Theatre company Opening season
Many sources, citing the Wayside Theatre's playbills, list the theatre's founding taking place in 1961 as the Maralarrick Players (sometimes spelled Marralarrick Players). According to James H. Laster, a historian, retired professor, and former Wayside Theatre actor who has extensively researched the theatre's history, there is no evidence of any group named the Maralarrick Players ever performing at the building. Two possible explanations are there was a local stock company that performed in 1962 or the group was based out of the Wayside Inn, but Laster has stated: "Therefore, to date, no documentation can be located that gives any definitive information about the Marralarrick group, what they performed, the name of their director, or how they came to be in Middletown."
After Bernstein's purchase, extensive renovations took place for the building to house a theatre company. Advertisements announcing the theatre's opening began appearing in newspapers in 1963 with one advertisement stating "See these Broadway shows performed by a professional New York cast, including [Mitch Miller's daughter] Andrea Miller." The theatre opened on Tuesday night June 18, 1963, the beginning of an 11-week, 9-play season. The first play performed at the theatre, featuring members of the Actors' Equity Association, was Neil Simon's Come Blow Your Horn. Larry Gleason, Wayside's first artistic director, had previously worked at Arena Stage and the Theater Lobby. Gleason's former coworker, Zelda Fichandler of Arena Stage, was a member of Wayside's advisory board.
Attendees during the first season received a 12-page playbill. In addition to the company's biographical information, the playbill included a statement by Gleason:
Mitch Miller, who at the time hosted the television show Sing Along with Mitch, drew considerable attention from local media when he visited the area to see his daughter perform. Before the season began, Andre had served as marshall of that year's Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival Fireman's Parade. She and fellow actor Jane Lowry shared a room at the Wayside Inn during the season while many of the company and staff lived in apartments above the theatre.
After Come Blow Your Horn, plays performed during the 1963 season included Charley's Aunt, Summer and Smoke starring Peter Boyle and Lowry, Bus Stop, Light Up the Sky, The Fantasticks, The Drunkard, Misalliance, and Two for the Seesaw. The first year was so successful that Gleason extended the season by one month, adding four plays to the roster. Among these additions were Under the Yum-Yum Tree, Dial M For Murder, and Bell, Book and Candle. After the last performance of the season, attendees walked onto the stage to congratulate the actors.
1964-1969 The theatre was renovated between the 1963 and 1964 seasons. The exterior was painted white and decorative elements including shutters, awnings, urns, and a spiral staircase were added to the façade. The interior was renovated by stage designer Thomas (Tom) McKeehan. The stage was expanded, which allowed a larger array of performances, a new lighting system was installed, and additional seats were added, bringing the total seat capacity to 276.
Owen Phillips, who had previously served as production director of the Barter Theater, was named Wayside Theatre's new artistic director for the 1964 season, the first of four seasons he would lead the company. To promote the theatre, Phillips appeared in front of local civic groups and spoke at public events. Echoing the plans made by Bernstein, he advertised the theatre as a place to visit during the busy tourist season, which runs from May through autumn in the area surrounding Skyline Drive. A bus tour company from Washington, D.C., offered a weekend excursion package that included a stay at the Wayside Inn, a ticket to the theatre, and meals, along with visits to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, all for $33.25 per person. Attendees at the opening night of The Pursuit of Happiness in 1964 included Luci Baines Johnson, daughter of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Similar to what happened in 1963, the 1964 season was extended, this time to November.
Between the 1964 and 1965 seasons a new arc spot light was installed and a grand curtain was added. A gallery featuring works from local artists was added to the second floor. Along the hallway to the gallery were photographs of previous performances at the theatre. The gallery was later moved downstairs to the space that would later become the Curtain Call Cafe in 1968, which was decorated with Tudor-style wood paneling and glass lamps.
During the remainder of the decade, the theatre's reputation grew considerably. Local media provided reviews of each new play and Bernstein assisted in promoting the inn and theatre. Bernstein brought a group of government officials and business leaders from Washington, D.C., to attend a performance in 1965. That same year Bernstein and Phillips established the Wayside Foundation for the Arts. Ownership of the theatre was transferred to the nonprofit for $1 while Bernstein retained ownership of the inn. Harold Herman and Lindé Hayen were among the theatre's actors in 1965. They would later establish the theatre program at Shenandoah College and the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music, before the two schools were merged to form Shenandoah University.
The opening night for each season was a black-tie event, often attended by notable members of the media along with government officials from Washington, D.C. Attendees at these events included journalist Merriman Smith, Senator Estes Kefauver, Dutch Ambassador Carl Willem Alwin Schurmann, and White House official James W. Symington. Special events held at the theatre during this time included a fundraiser for the restoration of Middletown's St. Thomas Chapel and a mobile art gallery outside the building featuring works donated by Paul Mellon to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. An acting workshop was also created with Phillips and the theatre's actors serving as teachers. Attendees, apprentices, and locals would stage a performance at the conclusion of the workshop.
Phillips left Wayside at the conclusion of the 1967 season and returned to the Barter Theatre. He is credited with the success of Wayside during its early years. Gerald Slavet was hired as the new artistic director and, like Phillips, appeared before local civic groups to advertise the theatre. Slavet's group ensemble, The Garrick Players, were among the actors during his first year after the five members had been evicted from their space at Grace Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. The 1968 season was postponed due to the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the national observance that followed. Prior to the season opening, directed by James Waring, the theatre's lighting and sound equipment had been rebuilt and Herb White, who Bernstein hired to restore the inn, also remodeled the theatre.