By J.E. Ballantyne Jr.
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – As people grow older, they constantly hear about the elder years being the “golden years.”
Well, anyone who is going through those years knows that saying to be untrue for the most part – but there are exceptions. One of those exceptions is the Youngstown Playhouse.
The city’s oldest community theater is celebrating its 100th anniversary season. That certainly qualifies as being within those “golden years.” Few organizations or businesses can claim that milestone. Again, the Playhouse is the exception.
So how did the Playhouse arrive at this point while remaining active and relevant?
There really isn’t one single answer to that question. The Playhouse could have been declared deceased on numerous occasions but it kept reviving itself with the help of the entire community. People want this theater to survive. It is part of what makes Youngstown what it is.
Youngstown and the Playhouse started at opposite ends of the spectrum.
The city was booming in 1924, the year the Playhouse opened its doors in a decrepit horse barn on Lincoln Avenue on the North Side, where Youngstown State University is now.
But it didn’t take the Playhouse long to catch up with the rest of the city. The Playhouse attracted the influential and wealthy upon the first rise of its stage curtain.
But it also attracted people from all walks of life, regardless of income or status. It drew the masses who wanted to have their own community theater.
Broadway directors like Arthur Sircom, James Cameron, Dean Norton and Ella Gerber elevated the Playhouse to national prominence at a time when the term “community theater” was relatively new.
Productions of “John Loves Mary,” “The Most Happy Fella,” “Johnny Belinda” and “Dark of the Moon” put the Youngstown Players – as they were known then – on a fast-track to national recognition.
It would not be long before “The Players” would outgrow the antiquated barn, hastened by two fires at the building and “move Uptown” to the newly acquired Ohio Theater on Market Street on Youngstown’s South Side.
This theater was an abandoned movie house that sat at the intersection of Cleveland Avenue and Market Street, in what is now an empty lot next to the CCA Building on the east side of the street.
Life on Market Street was good for The Players. It afforded them much more space than their original location plus it placed them in a more developed part of the city at the time.
Many new faces joined The Players at this juncture, actors who were destined for prominence. The list included Billy Saluga, Gene DeCaprio and Joseph Scarvell, to name a few.
The Market Street location also saw the debut of James Cameron, who was one of the most influential Playhouse directors in the theater’s 100 years.
Cameron followed in the footsteps of another larger-than-life Playhouse director: Arthur Sircom.
Both gentlemen were Broadway directors who expected the same quality of performances from Playhouse actors that they got from professionals in New York.
They elevated the Playhouse to national recognition and made innovations at the theater that exist to this day – and that led to the construction of the current theater off Glenwood Avenue.
But like most Playhouse directors, Cameron and Sircom eventually moved back to their Broadway roots, opening the door for an individual who would rank as the most influential of all: Bentley Lenhoff.
Lenhoff did not have a Broadway background. But, he did have a very solid artistic and business background in theater. In his 21 years as executive director, he not only led the theater through its heyday but created a lasting legacy. He stepped down in 1985 but returned for the 2004-05 season to help right the theater’s ship during a troubled time.
Since the Lenhoff tenure, the Playhouse has gone through many changes – some good, some bad. There were times when the Playhouse seemed to not only be on its last legs but also seemed to be teetering on the brink of doom. One slight wisp of air could have sent it over the edge but that wisp was always countered by the community’s love for this theater.
When the last gasp was about to happen, miracles always seemed to happen to save the theater.
Some “near closings” were not the fault of the Playhouse. The Covid-19 pandemic could have spelled doom for the Playhouse, as it did for many theaters across the country. With entertainment venues being shut down for an extended period of time, many theaters succumbed to the loss of revenue.
The Youngstown Playhouse, however, was better prepared for this devastating event – probably because of its previous problems. Led by board president John Cox, the Playhouse acquired grants to help stabilize its finances. It not only emerged from the pandemic but found itself financially stronger than it had been in years.
The Playhouse’s fortunes mirrored the city’s, which was dealt a severe blow when the steel mills began closing in the late 1970s. But it learned how to survive those tough times.
It has since positioned itself as one of the top community theaters in the country – as well as one of the oldest in continuous existence.
The Youngstown Playhouse’s centennial celebration is part of a journey that hasn’t been perfect. But to paraphrase a line from “Follies,” the Stephen Sondheim musical, “We’re still here.” That is something that many theaters never got the chance to say.
The Playhouse has been the springboard for many who went on to professional theater careers: Joe Flynn, Elizabeth Hartman, Ed O’Neill, Michael J. Moritz Jr., Eduard Fuller, Joey Monda and many others.
Why has the Playhouse, and so many of its alumni, been so successful? Talent and commitment are part of it. But the rest comes from the residents of Youngstown and the surrounding areas who have made the Playhouse an essential part of this community.
A theater’s success isn’t just what you see on stage. It is also found in the love of the community that keeps it relevant and active.
For the Youngstown Playhouse, that is a community that wouldn’t let the theater die and that appreciates its role in the culture of the community.
That is the legacy of the Youngstown Playhouse.