Nicholas Martin’s Last Goodbye
Wraps Three Years as Artistic Director in Williamstown
By: Charles Giuliano - Aug 13, 2010
No the fat lady has not started to sing. There are a few more weeks to go in the Berkshire Summer Season of 2010. But last night was the last of eight weekly openings of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. We will have to find something else to do on Thursday nights.
We caught up with artistic director, Nicholas Martin, for a Last Hurrah.
Today he is packing up for a departure on Saturday. As he explained to me the young actor who assists him, he had a stroke that confines him to a wheel chair two years ago, had thrown out his knee while dancing. So that made it more difficult to get around. He has a doctor’s appointment in New York this week.
Martin will soon be heading to Boston. He has been invited by his old stomping ground, The Huntington Theatre, to direct the 1955 William Inge play Bus Stop. It opens mid Sepember. Perhaps you recall with film with Marilyn Monroe.
I wanted to give him a hug and kiss before he leaves. He was embarrassed. So was I. Not my habit to go around kissing guys. Particularly when they are my age.
But in these past three years Nicky has truly been a friend. Not just to me but to a whole community of artists who value the venerable traditions of the Williamiamstown Theatre Festival. Before his too brief three year tenure WTF had fallen on hard times. The board was discouraged and audiences were staying away in droves. There was a stiffness that prevailed. That stuffy, remote Williamstown thing.
With his infectious warmth and humanity, which enlightens and inspires others, Nicky changed all that.
Last night we found him at the back of the house waiting for the first act of The Last Goodbye. The rock musical brilliantly conflates the rock music of the late Jeff Buckley, who died at 31 through accidental drowning, and the poetry of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. After the first act he was wheeled over to the Main Stage for the opening night of The Fifth of July. During intermission and after the show he was swarmed by well wishers.
In the lobby Joe Finnegan, who came on board this past year as Manager of WTF and really turned around the administration and marketing of the Festival, told me of the great success of The Last Goodbye. I loved it but some of my peers, whom I respect, were less enthused. The audience has voted with viral word of mouth. The late Jeff Buckley has an enormous fan base but this reached well beyond that.
“The Last Goodbye is completely sold out” Finnegan told me. “Because it is a musical and more expensive to produce we are charging slightly more for tickets. But it has set the record for most revenue in the Nikos Stage.”
Mostly I thanked Nicky for remarkable access to actors and a sense of real involvement with WTF. He has always been quick and generous with a quotable comment. This summer he brought an all star cast to his production of Our Town and I was able to spend time with Dylan Baker, Jessica Hecht, and Campbell Scott.
“The best one was Campbell Scott” Nicky said. “You got a lot out of him. It’s amazing that he spent that much time with you (two hours).”
Campbell told me that they had met acting in Hamlet. I asked if this were true.
"Absolutely" he said. It seems that he had a career on stage for many years before turning to directing.
On his way to an opening night several weeks ago we ran into Nicky in the parking lot. I asked how rehearsal for Our Town was progressing. "I am working hard to give you the Our Town that you are looking for" he said.
Many of the critics did not agree and the reviews ran from mixed to harsh. I wondered how that impacted him when he viewed the production, as he told me early in the season, as the crowning ambition of his WTF legacy.
Yes, Nicky reads the reviews. Many actors don’t. But as artistic director it is part of staying on top of things. And they can hurt.
He told me he was pissed off at the “Disrespect for our production of Our Town. Like the comments that I had cluttered up the stage. What nonsense. I remember a production of the play here at WTF some years ago with Paul Newman in the part of the Stage Manager that Campbell performed this summer. Now that was the worst set I can remember here. But Paul was great.”
Once again last night there were superb sets for the first and second act of The Fifth of July. As Astrid commented to me “If you want to see great sets come to WTF.” Indeed the production values in Williamstown are generally on a par with Broadway. In the face of budget cuts Martin opted to reduce the number of shows last year in order to maintain the quality of productions. That improved this season with four plays on the Nikos Stage and four on the Main Stage. This season he managed to bring back a musical in Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. His first season opened with the Huntington’s production of She Loves Me. Last summer no musical was scheduled. This season there were two Forum on the Mainstage and the world premiere of The Last Goobye on the Nikos Stage.
So, was this Martin’s Last Goodbye? Not really.
“I’ll be back next summer for one show” he said. It seemed that he was much relieved from stepping down from the many demands as artistic director.
“Will it star Nathan Lane” I asked? As had been reported by Larry Murray.
“Oh your cohort weedled that out of me” he said as I pressed for an answer. “You never know. Nathan may be available but also may just want to take a break from Broadway. It is something we will surely try to pursue. It always comes down to the last minute.”
That’s just a teaser for next season.
One thing is absolutely certain however. This WTF season has been absolutely fabulous. Sure it was rough last season, even Martin agreed on that observation. But this summer all of his theatrical friends and family rallied round the flag. He put the great WTF back on track. Surely Martin leaves WTF in far better shape than he found it.
Nicky, break a leg in Boston with Bus Stop. We’ll be sure to see it. And y’ll come back y’heah.