Playhouse marks 30th year with special 'Sound'

When the Stained Glass Playhouse presents "The Sound of Music" beginning Friday, the occasion will mark the organization's 30th season in the old sanctuary of Marvin United Methodist Church on Indiana Avenue.
By KEN KEUFFEL
Published: July 17, 2011
Photo Credit: BRUCE CHAPMAN/JOURNAL

The Stained Glass Playhouse cast rehearses for "The Sound of Music." This is the playhouse's 30th year. The director credits the affordability and community appeal as factors in the group's success.

          Patrons can count on seeing four shows a year in a 90-seat venue, most being revivals of tried-and-true musicals and plays. What accounts for such staying power?
Alvin Tyndall, Stained Glass' artistic director, provided intriguing answers. "We're very inexpensive," he said. "We have the lowest ticket prices anywhere: $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and students. … We want everybody to be able to come. We want to get more people to enjoy theater. It's not a matter of restriction by pocket book."
           Remarkably, Stained Glass relies on ticket sales for most of its operating income, keeping costs down by paying virtually no one — directors sometimes receive a modest honorarium — and by recycling sets and costumes. Many materials are loaned or donated rather than purchased.
            The company got started when church members wanted to present concerts and youth productions in a venue other than the church sanctuary. The church's current sanctuary is next door to its old one, which was converted into a performance venue.
             Stained Glass Playhouse benefited from an unusual set of theater-related talents and connections in its founding members, several of whom are still active with the company.
             It started out as a part of Marvin United Methodist. It then became a separate entity. In return, Stained Glass donates a portion of profit from ticket sales to the church. When refreshments are served during intermission, they are free. But patrons can make a donation to a church cause. A desire to be inclusive has contributed to Stained Glass' longevity. Stained Glass gets no financial support from Marvin United Methodist, but it uses the church's old sanctuary for free.
             "We think we involve a large part of the community, all kinds of people, not just a certain clique of people, not just a certain economic level of the community," Tyndall said.
             Tyndall, who is directing "The Sound of Music," said that a homeless person has appeared in Stained Glassshows and worked behind the scenes. The homeless person worked with the likes of Cameron Williams, a physician from Lewisville. Williams, a veteran of community-theater shows in the area, will play Capt. Georg von Trapp in "The Sound of Music."
             Numerous neophyte actors try out for Stained Glass productions, having likely been encouraged by whatTyndall calls an "open" audition process that keeps the playing field as even as possible. Kate Kellum, a rising junior at Reagan High School, will make her acting debut as Liesl in "The Sound of Music.""I love singing and acting," she said. "I'm a huge 'Sound of Music' person. I thought, why not? I work in the mornings and then I come here. I love it."Until the opportunity to perform in "The Sound of Music" came along, Kellum had only taken drama classes at Reagan. Now she will "definitely do" school shows as well.
            The repertory of Stained Glass likely has something to do with its enduring appeal. Each February, for example, the company presents a show in celebration of Black History Month. This year's show will be "A Raisin in the Sun," Langston Hughes' classic. Other Black History Month shows have included "Miss Evers' Boys" and "Mahalia."
           "It's an opportunity to involve a group in the community who kind of felt left out," Tyndall said. "We really appeal to that community. We've been delighted at the number of people who've become a part of it."


kkeuffel@wsjournal.com (336) 727-7337