DONATIONS and
THE LEE O'CONNOR MEMORIAL FUND
Lee O'Connor taking a rehearsal break by sitting on the steps of The First Presbyterian Church of Cape May. Thank you for taking the picture, Thomas Raniszewski.
Classic American Tales is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. When making a donation for General Operating Support, please make checks out to Classic American Tales. Please make checks out to The Lee O'Connor Memorial Fund
if donating to this specific Fund.
Mail all checks to Classic American Tales, 121 Fourth Avenue, West Cape May, NJ 08204.
Letters of Thanks will joyously be sent in return for these donations, so contributors have proof for a tax deduction!
if donating to this specific Fund.
Mail all checks to Classic American Tales, 121 Fourth Avenue, West Cape May, NJ 08204.
Letters of Thanks will joyously be sent in return for these donations, so contributors have proof for a tax deduction!
Inside the AME Church today.
BACKSTORY for THE LEE O’CONNOR MEMORIAL FUND:
THE QUEST FOR A PERFORMANCE SPACE
By Gayle Stahlhuth
When Warren Kliewer founded East Lynne Theater Company in 1980, it was the first Equity professional theater in the country dedicated to America’s theatrical heritage. He began producing early American plays and new works based on literature and historic themes in Jersey City and Rutherford, NJ. Touring shows performed in Cape May from 1987 to 1988, prompted an invitation by then Executive Director Michael Zuckerman of Cape May MAC, for ELTC to produce shows in Cape May. From 1989 to 1995, Warren produced three shows yearly at The William Carlos Williams Center in Rutherford and in various locations in Cape May. Since 1996, ELTC’s production seasons have only been in Cape May.
ELTC Board President Frank Smith asked me to be the next Producing Artistic Director in 1999 after Warren passed away. I’d been associated with the company since 1981 as a performer, playwright, and board member, while my husband, Lee O’Connor, became one of ELTC’s stage managers. It was because of working for ELTC in Cape May that Lee and I fell in love with this seaside resort and purchased a home here in 1993. When I took on the running of the company, it was in debt and homeless. Luckily, I convinced those at the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May to be the theater’s performance space. It was here that Lee, as Technical Director, and I brought over 120 different shows to life until 2021, when Lee died from cancer. I continued running the company through 2022, but after years of 40-60-hour work weeks, and now without the help of even a new Technical Director, I had no choice but to leave the company Frank, Lee, and I helped to save. At the same time, for 23 years, I served not only as Producing Artistic Director, but as Managing Director, Marketing Director, House Manager, Prop Manager, Grant Writer, and the list goes on and on. Lee’s and my home in West Cape May was not only ELTC’s office, but housing for actors working with the theater.
For years, it had been the dream of ELTC’s founder, Warren Kliewer, his wife/widow Michèle LaRue, Frank Smith, Lee and me, and many fans of ELTC in Cape May and beyond, to see that ELTC had its own venue.
In 2003, the Franklin Street United Methodist Church, with a Black membership, was up for sale after the congregation merged with the First United Methodist Church of Cape May. An ELTC board member made the first offer of $750,000 for the church and the parish house with the idea that these buildings would be the permanent home for ELTC. While the company slowly began to plan a theater and an office with housing for actors, another purchaser emerged who wanted to turn the church into three condominiums. A bidding war ensued, and ELTC lost. Obviously, this was a blow to the company. As much as we appreciated being in the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, it meant that ELTC would continue to set up and strike sets weekly for Sunday services, while continuing to search for a permanent home.
Shortly after the historic AME Church caught fire in 2019, many in Cape May asked if I thought this could be a home for ELTC, and I exclaimed “yes!” Now, thanks to the efforts of Mayor Zack Mullock and the City of Cape May, the historic AME Church will be ELTC’s new home. For half of the year, it will also be a valued place in the community where others may hold events when ELTC shows are not in full production.
Overjoyed that ELTC now has the opportunity to create a performance space to call its own, in, ironically another building that had been a Black-managed church, it is my hope that the conversion from church to community center/performance space is created to be a centerpiece of design concept and function: a place where all are welcome to perform, create, observe, play, and discuss both simple and complex topics; a place for plays, music, dance, art exhibits, and more. It should be a place in which the founders of the AME Church would be proud.
Members of Center for Community Arts first took me inside the AME Church shortly after the fire in 2019 because they wanted my opinion on whether or not it could be converted to a theater. I said, “yes,” but also noted that if the pulpit and organ area would remain intact, dressing rooms would have to be added in the back – what I call “the bump-in-the-back.” If the dressing room space is not added, then the AME Church will be converted into a lecture hall, but not a place for full performances involving several actors, and stage scenery. The structure designed by theater architect Michael Schnoering is beautiful and functional, and I truly hope that all or as much as possible of this design can be kept. His design included both dressing rooms and storage space, something a theater never has enough of. Cape May Stage had to add a “bump-in-the-back” for its dressing rooms and the structure did not lose its historic significance.
Lee O’Connor loved actors, as do I, of course, and know how important it is to make them as comfortable as possible when performing. This starts with the dressing rooms. In fact, everyone who has designed and built theaters will tell you that the work starts backstage, and then moves forward. Hence, the “bump-in-the-back” should be the first item upon which to focus, after water and electric. Until the needs of the space are fully realized, folding chairs in different configurations and simple sets can suffice for theatrical performances.
I would like to see The Lee O’Connor Memorial Fund used to help create the “bump-in-the-back” as designed, as much as possible, so it will be both beautiful and functional, and production needs will not overwhelm the space and lead to costly additions in the future.
THE PAST AND FUTURE OF FRANKLIN STREET
Those who built the Allen African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church on Franklin Street in 1888, probably had no idea it would be part of a hub of Black culture in Cape May by 2022.
On Lafayette Street, near Franklin Street, is one of Cape May’s oldest homes. Built before 1850, the house and nearby land was given to the Macedonian Baptist Church, which had been organized by the Black Baptist community in 1895, by then owner George Howell in 1909. The church used the house for a home for its ministers and built their church next to it at the corner of Franklin and Lafayette Streets. Later, the congregation sold the land behind their church to the City of Cape May so that a Black elementary school could be built. The school opened in 1928 and is currently being converted into a public library by the City. The Macedonian Baptist Church is still active today. The parish house, which had been desperately in need of repairs, was refurbished and reopened as The Harriet Tubman Museum in 2020.
I think the vision Mayor Zack Mullock has for the Franklin Street area – streetlights and all – is stupendous.
OTHER LOCATIONS THAT ELTC PURSUED FOR A PERMANET HOME IN CAPE MAY
Since 1990, the quest for ELTC to have its own permanent venue was part of the Long-Range Strategic Plans until 2018, when it was decided that funds were better spent on searching for an Associate Artistic Director to help the Producing Artistic Director. Since no search committee was formed, I added this search to my list of duties and had started interviewing candidates until our home in West Cape May was destroyed by fire in April 2018. Other demands, including finding a place for Lee and me to live became priorities.
Throughout the years, here is the list of locations pursued by ELTC, not including the Methodist Church already mentioned above.
1. When The Shire closed on The Washington Street Mall, ELTC was among the first to bid on the space, but was outbid.
2. Since ELTC was producing shows in Shelton College, converting the library into a theater was being considered, when The Christian Admiral Hotel closed. Shelton College had to close, too, since both were owned by the same organization.
3. The building, now gone, and the land around it at the corner of Elmira and Broad Streets. Unfortunately, the land was “dirty,” and cost a great deal to have it cleaned, something the owner would not do before selling.
4. What used to be a church that is now Panico’s Restaurant, plus the building next to it in West Cape May.
5. The Beach Theater. Discussions were under way that included a 6-month performance space for ELTC.
6. One of the buildings at the old Ponder Lodge, obviously before all the buildings came down.
THE QUEST FOR A PERFORMANCE SPACE
By Gayle Stahlhuth
When Warren Kliewer founded East Lynne Theater Company in 1980, it was the first Equity professional theater in the country dedicated to America’s theatrical heritage. He began producing early American plays and new works based on literature and historic themes in Jersey City and Rutherford, NJ. Touring shows performed in Cape May from 1987 to 1988, prompted an invitation by then Executive Director Michael Zuckerman of Cape May MAC, for ELTC to produce shows in Cape May. From 1989 to 1995, Warren produced three shows yearly at The William Carlos Williams Center in Rutherford and in various locations in Cape May. Since 1996, ELTC’s production seasons have only been in Cape May.
ELTC Board President Frank Smith asked me to be the next Producing Artistic Director in 1999 after Warren passed away. I’d been associated with the company since 1981 as a performer, playwright, and board member, while my husband, Lee O’Connor, became one of ELTC’s stage managers. It was because of working for ELTC in Cape May that Lee and I fell in love with this seaside resort and purchased a home here in 1993. When I took on the running of the company, it was in debt and homeless. Luckily, I convinced those at the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May to be the theater’s performance space. It was here that Lee, as Technical Director, and I brought over 120 different shows to life until 2021, when Lee died from cancer. I continued running the company through 2022, but after years of 40-60-hour work weeks, and now without the help of even a new Technical Director, I had no choice but to leave the company Frank, Lee, and I helped to save. At the same time, for 23 years, I served not only as Producing Artistic Director, but as Managing Director, Marketing Director, House Manager, Prop Manager, Grant Writer, and the list goes on and on. Lee’s and my home in West Cape May was not only ELTC’s office, but housing for actors working with the theater.
For years, it had been the dream of ELTC’s founder, Warren Kliewer, his wife/widow Michèle LaRue, Frank Smith, Lee and me, and many fans of ELTC in Cape May and beyond, to see that ELTC had its own venue.
In 2003, the Franklin Street United Methodist Church, with a Black membership, was up for sale after the congregation merged with the First United Methodist Church of Cape May. An ELTC board member made the first offer of $750,000 for the church and the parish house with the idea that these buildings would be the permanent home for ELTC. While the company slowly began to plan a theater and an office with housing for actors, another purchaser emerged who wanted to turn the church into three condominiums. A bidding war ensued, and ELTC lost. Obviously, this was a blow to the company. As much as we appreciated being in the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, it meant that ELTC would continue to set up and strike sets weekly for Sunday services, while continuing to search for a permanent home.
Shortly after the historic AME Church caught fire in 2019, many in Cape May asked if I thought this could be a home for ELTC, and I exclaimed “yes!” Now, thanks to the efforts of Mayor Zack Mullock and the City of Cape May, the historic AME Church will be ELTC’s new home. For half of the year, it will also be a valued place in the community where others may hold events when ELTC shows are not in full production.
Overjoyed that ELTC now has the opportunity to create a performance space to call its own, in, ironically another building that had been a Black-managed church, it is my hope that the conversion from church to community center/performance space is created to be a centerpiece of design concept and function: a place where all are welcome to perform, create, observe, play, and discuss both simple and complex topics; a place for plays, music, dance, art exhibits, and more. It should be a place in which the founders of the AME Church would be proud.
Members of Center for Community Arts first took me inside the AME Church shortly after the fire in 2019 because they wanted my opinion on whether or not it could be converted to a theater. I said, “yes,” but also noted that if the pulpit and organ area would remain intact, dressing rooms would have to be added in the back – what I call “the bump-in-the-back.” If the dressing room space is not added, then the AME Church will be converted into a lecture hall, but not a place for full performances involving several actors, and stage scenery. The structure designed by theater architect Michael Schnoering is beautiful and functional, and I truly hope that all or as much as possible of this design can be kept. His design included both dressing rooms and storage space, something a theater never has enough of. Cape May Stage had to add a “bump-in-the-back” for its dressing rooms and the structure did not lose its historic significance.
Lee O’Connor loved actors, as do I, of course, and know how important it is to make them as comfortable as possible when performing. This starts with the dressing rooms. In fact, everyone who has designed and built theaters will tell you that the work starts backstage, and then moves forward. Hence, the “bump-in-the-back” should be the first item upon which to focus, after water and electric. Until the needs of the space are fully realized, folding chairs in different configurations and simple sets can suffice for theatrical performances.
I would like to see The Lee O’Connor Memorial Fund used to help create the “bump-in-the-back” as designed, as much as possible, so it will be both beautiful and functional, and production needs will not overwhelm the space and lead to costly additions in the future.
THE PAST AND FUTURE OF FRANKLIN STREET
Those who built the Allen African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church on Franklin Street in 1888, probably had no idea it would be part of a hub of Black culture in Cape May by 2022.
On Lafayette Street, near Franklin Street, is one of Cape May’s oldest homes. Built before 1850, the house and nearby land was given to the Macedonian Baptist Church, which had been organized by the Black Baptist community in 1895, by then owner George Howell in 1909. The church used the house for a home for its ministers and built their church next to it at the corner of Franklin and Lafayette Streets. Later, the congregation sold the land behind their church to the City of Cape May so that a Black elementary school could be built. The school opened in 1928 and is currently being converted into a public library by the City. The Macedonian Baptist Church is still active today. The parish house, which had been desperately in need of repairs, was refurbished and reopened as The Harriet Tubman Museum in 2020.
I think the vision Mayor Zack Mullock has for the Franklin Street area – streetlights and all – is stupendous.
OTHER LOCATIONS THAT ELTC PURSUED FOR A PERMANET HOME IN CAPE MAY
Since 1990, the quest for ELTC to have its own permanent venue was part of the Long-Range Strategic Plans until 2018, when it was decided that funds were better spent on searching for an Associate Artistic Director to help the Producing Artistic Director. Since no search committee was formed, I added this search to my list of duties and had started interviewing candidates until our home in West Cape May was destroyed by fire in April 2018. Other demands, including finding a place for Lee and me to live became priorities.
Throughout the years, here is the list of locations pursued by ELTC, not including the Methodist Church already mentioned above.
1. When The Shire closed on The Washington Street Mall, ELTC was among the first to bid on the space, but was outbid.
2. Since ELTC was producing shows in Shelton College, converting the library into a theater was being considered, when The Christian Admiral Hotel closed. Shelton College had to close, too, since both were owned by the same organization.
3. The building, now gone, and the land around it at the corner of Elmira and Broad Streets. Unfortunately, the land was “dirty,” and cost a great deal to have it cleaned, something the owner would not do before selling.
4. What used to be a church that is now Panico’s Restaurant, plus the building next to it in West Cape May.
5. The Beach Theater. Discussions were under way that included a 6-month performance space for ELTC.
6. One of the buildings at the old Ponder Lodge, obviously before all the buildings came down.
