By Candice O’Grady
It wasn’t by choice that The Tara Players, an Irish theatre group, moved out of its home in St. Patrick’s Hall on Gloucester Street last year. It was out of necessity.
The old parish hall, which the theatre group had used for more than 25 years, was slated for demolition.
The move has caused growing pains for the non-profit group, which stages three full-length and a one act play each year.
The experience was more than just a change in location, says Tom Taylor, director of the group’s upcoming play A Life. Having been involved with the award-winning company since the late 1970s he says that their new locale, the Bronson Centre, has a different ambiance.
“We worked pretty well with full use of (St. Patrick’s Hall) three nights a week,” he says. “The new facility is quite nice and large, but you’re more like a tenant in it . . . It’s like growing pains, we just need time to adjust.”
Adjusting to the Bronson Centre has meant changing the way the company rehearses says David Parry, the current president of The Tara Players.
The veteran actor, who has played 25 characters and directed 13 plays since he joined the group in 1980, explains there is little time to practice on the actual set because they share the stage with many other groups.
“We used to get on stage very early in the rehearsal process and now we don’t get in until a couple of days before the performance. We’ve just been spoiled rotten over the past few years,” he says laughing.
Another challenge facing The Tara Players is putting enough “bums in seats,” says Allan Meltzer, an actor with the group. While St. Patrick’s Hall accommodated around 300 viewers, the Bronson Centre seats 900.
With a loyal audience of 200 to 300, The Tara Players have come up with creative solutions to deal with empty seats and the acoustics of such a large theatre
For the last production, the group hung curtains from the balcony to the floor on both sides of theatre leaving the centre rows uncovered. Meltzer says this made the space more personal, although its size is an ongoing issue.
“The problems with the acoustics are caused by the size of Bronson Centre,” says Meltzer. “I don’t think it’s built for a small theatre group like ours . . . We need a small intimate place.”
There are also benefits to the newer and larger building Meltzer says, pointing to the makeshift dressing rooms, real wings and professional sound and lighting systems.
Performing in a draft-free theatre is another improvement, says Parry, explaining the wind would gust so loudly through the parish hall that it was considered an actor in their plays.
“We used to say that there were a lot of characters in (St. Patrick’s Hall),” he jokes. The winter wind was also so cold in St. Patrick’s Hall, Parry adds, that the cast would practise in their coats and toques.
The Bronson Centre is only a temporary home though, says Parry. The Tara Players are looking at joining forces with other Irish groups to purchase a site downtown.
But for now, the show must go on. Taylor’s upcoming play, A Life written by Hugh Leonard, traces the lives of two couples over 20 years. The show will run from April 28 to May 8.