Be a "Matthew"

by Chris Peterson

Chris Peterson is the Founder of OnStage Blog which launched in 2014.

The other day I was cleaning out my basement and I stumbled across some extra copies of the script from a play I directed a number of years ago. The play was “Hollywood Arms” by Carol Burnett and Carrie Hamilton. It was produced at a small theatre in Milford, CT which shook when a train passed by since it was right next to the tracks. Up to that point, I was pretty consistently involved with community theatre in that area but with a new job and a newborn son, I knew this would be my last show for a while.

There were some obstacles to overcome with that production. I was having trouble figuring out how to stage it, I wasn’t thrilled with what I was coming up with, and commuting from MA to the theatre on a nightly basis was taking its toll. But the one group that was keeping my spirits high was the cast. This glorious collection of talent was amazing to work with. Some of them were kids at the time, some of them were just getting back on stage, some didn’t have that much experience at all but they were lovely to work with. loved watching them.

One particular person in that cast I loved working with was a young man named Matthew. This was the first production in the area he would be involved. I had just met Matthew but within a couple of weeks of rehearsals, I realized very quickly that he was the type of person you would want in every production.

Matthew pitched in to help with the production any way he could. He helped build the set, volunteered to help with backstage tasks, he invited as many people he could to come see the show. He would even entertain the kids during tech rehearsals. His roles didn’t have a lot of lines, but that didn’t matter to him. He would tell me often that he was thrilled to be there and saw this as an opportunity to get to know the area and wanted to get more involved in the future.

Matthew was the type of person a community theatre director wants in every one of their shows. It didn’t surprise me to see that in the years to come, many other local theatres saw that as well as he was cast in a bunch of productions. And every single person I spoke to about him, simply raved about his dedication and participation in their shows.

So the point of this piece is to encourage all of you, if you’re able, be a “Matthew”. Getting community theatre productions off the ground can be a heavy lift and sometimes more help is needed. When folks step in and make themselves available in any way, it not only aids in the process but it can establish you as an invaluable person to have.

Is this possible in every situation? No. Will being a “Matthew” guarantee that you’ll land every role you want? No. Will not being a “Matthew” hurt your chances of getting cast in the future? Of course not. But if you have the opportunity to be a source of positivity on a production, I encourage you to be it.