STRATFORD, Conn. (AP) - For years, the American Shakespeare Theatre on Elm Street played host to men and women who honed their skills on their way to becoming part of America’s theatrical history.
This summer, if all goes according to plan for a local couple driven by memory of their son, the White House on the grounds of the theater might once again be a proving ground for gifted actors from around the country.
The couple, Chris Rooney and Sue Wright, are planning to refurbish the White House and turn it into a home for the Shakespeare Academy @ Stratford, an intensive Shakespeare-themed acting program that will take place from July 11 to Aug. 11. The six-day-a-week program will culminate in the performance of two Shakespearean plays in early August.
The repairs are being funded through the Mighty Quinn Foundation, created by the couple to honor their son, Quinn Rooney, who died of brain cancer in 2012 at age 19. Quinn Rooney enjoyed acting and wanted there to be a place where young people could learn about Shakespeare’s plays.
But long before the first lines will be uttered in the first rehearsals of the plays, there is hard work to be done. Many rooms of the house have to be cleaned or fixed up and the heating system needs to be repaired.
“It’s a beautiful thing, and in its day it was quite a place,” Chris Rooney said. “Right now, it’s a fixer-upper’s dream.”
The cleaning work began last week, starting with some scrubbing and moving of several boxes that contain all the theater’s files, including pieces of history like a typewritten biography of actress Katharine Hepburn, who was there in 1960.
Volunteers have worked to clean out some of the things inside the White House and a developer installed windows and other equipment about 20 years ago. But Eddie Goodrich, the chairman of the Stratford Arts Commission, acknowledged that there is still much to be done.
“This is like wrestling a bear, but we’re taming it,” Goodrich said.
Wright said the acting program’s performances will be free to the public, but people will be able to make donations. The pupils will perform Cymbeline and Hamlet, two plays that Quinn Rooney enjoyed.
“Quinn would be very, very happy,” Sue Wright said. “It was his vision and we’re carrying it through.”
One of the cleaning volunteers, Mary Newman-Clark, has lived right across the street from the White House for 20 years. She said she never saw the theater in its prime, but she’s heard stories about it from neighbors who did.
Their fond recollections inspired her to come to the house, grab a pair of gloves and scrub away years of dirt and grime from a downstairs bathroom on a recent day.
“I’m not theatrical, but we need it,” she said. “It used to be busy, a good busy. We need good busy.”
There are many ways for area residents to help with the project and the summer acting program. People who want to help refurbish the house can come to the theater grounds at 1850 Elm St. around noon on Saturdays during the spring.
The Mighty Quinn Foundation also accepts tax-deductible donations either on its website, www.mightyquinnfoundation.org , or in the form of checks mailed to 320 Shore Road, Stratford, CT 06615.
The Shakespeare Academy @ Stratford is also looking for host families to provide housing for its summer students. People who are interested in opening their home to a student can email Wright at info@mightyquinnfoundation.org.
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Information from: Connecticut Post, https://www.connpost.com
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