Nimoy, neighbor provide continued theater inspiration

By: 
Miriam Nelson
News Editor

I had the opportunity to sit with a former neighbor at the community theatre show this weekend, and it gave me great comfort knowing she’s still able to attend and enjoy events in the area. She and Mom were friends, neighbors and co-workers for many years. Sitting next to her was the next best dose of comfort for me as neither Mom nor Dad were ever able to see any of the shows I directed.

They would have attended every show and would have been our greatest cheerleaders, being sure to appreciate the efforts of everyone from the ticket takers to the cookie hostess to the sound effects to the public relations,to the actors and the director. More than anything, I think my parents instilled in me the belief that it takes everyone working together to make anything work well. There are no small disposable jobs.

I have a cousin in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, who is 79 and taking lessons on learning to use his cell phone and tablet and all the ways of modern high tech communication. I help him practice his skills by being on the receiving end and replying to his different messages. This week was challenging, my email was overloaded and not accepting any messages and I didn’t realize it until he called to ask why I hadn’t replied.

You can have all the variety of communication available to you but nothing can replace the connection you can make with a real conversation.

We share a love of theater. Sioux Falls is admittedly much larger than my beloved Wittenberg and has a community theater and professional theater and a dinner theater. He’s a patron of all three.

He told me of the time Leonard Nimoy came to town with his one-man show and performed it at the community theater. After the show he spoke with the audience and told them how important it was to support the community theater because they are the people who do it for the love of the it.

My cousin understands the challenges of keeping an all-volunteer theater in a small town going, and he was impressed when I told him we’ve actually drawn people from farther away than our school district area.

Every night that I get the opportunity to welcome the audience to our shows is a great night for me because I know they are coming to support us. Drawing inspiration from Nimoy helps, but sharing a seat next to a favorite neighbor brings the experience to a whole new level.