Oakley Hall III

Oakley "Tad" Hall III (May 26, 1950[1][2] February 13, 2011[3]) was an American playwright, director, and author. The co-founder and first artistic director of Lexington Conservatory Theatre, in 1978 he suffered a traumatic brain injury in a fall from a bridge; he spent decades in recovery and in the process of creating a new life.

Early life and education

Hall was the eldest child of novelist Oakley Hall and photographer Barbara E. Hall, and the brother of Sands Hall. In 1963 he enrolled at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, where he first became involved in theatre. After being expelled, he returned to Los Angeles to live with his father, where he enrolled in the newly formed University of California, Irvine.[4]

At Irvine, Hall met future collaborators Bruce Bouchard and Michael Van Landingham. He acted in numerous productions as part of the prestigious Irvine Repertory Theater, including a minor role in Clayton Garrison's production of Marat/Sade by Peter Weiss, alongside lead actors Bob Gunton and Robert Cohen as well as Dark of the Moon by Howard Richardson and William Berney. In fall of 1968, Hall, Bouchard, and Steven Nisbet (another future Lexington collaborator) received scholarships to study at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater.[5][6][7]

In 1969, at age 18, Hall made national news in refusing the draft, mailing back his draft card and citing US war crimes in Vietnam for his reason in doing so.[8]

In 1970, he starred in a short film ‘’Dionysus and the Maenads’’, conceived by writer Blair Fuller.[9]

In 1974, he completed an MFA in writing from Boston University, studying under John Cheever.[10]

Career

By age 28, he was a rising star in the New York theatre scene. In 1977, his play Mike Fink was optioned by Peter Clough and Mandy Patinkin, with a reading starring Patinkin and William Hurt produced for Joseph Papp at the Public Theater.[11][12][13] Oakley founded and was the artistic director of the Lexington Conservatory Theatre in upstate New York, where his plays Grinder's Stand and Beatrice (Cenci) and the Old Man, and his stage adaptation of Frankenstein, enjoyed their première productions.[14][15]

In 1977, Hall received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.[16]

In 1976–1977 Hall translated and adapted Alfred Jarry's bizarrely comic and revolutionary 1896 French play Ubu Roi (called Ubu Rex) and its sequels, and directed them in New York City Off-Off-Broadway and at the Lexington Conservatory Theatre.[17] The adaptations starred Richard Zobel, who also produced the play and created the masks for it.[18]

In 1979, Lexington Conservatory premiered his play Grinder's Stand, a historical drama written in blank verse exploring the mysterious death of Meriwether Lewis. Directed by Peter Clough, the show starred Court Miller, Michael J. Hume, Richard Zobel, Sofia Landon Geier, Richard E. Council, Red Sutton and Bruce Bouchard. "If you care, really care, about theater you will get to Lexington to see Grinder's Stand between now and Sunday," said critic Dan DiNicola. "More than any other new play I have seen, it has the potential to become a richly significant piece of American drama."[19]

The publication of Otis Bigelow's play The Prevalence of Mrs. Seal is dedicated to Hall.[20]

Accident

Playwright Oakley Hall III on the Rt 42 Bridge in Lexington, NY

In 1978, Hall suffered a traumatic brain injury in a fall from a bridge. He eventually returned to California to live in Nevada City near his family; there his play Grinder's Stand, which he had been writing at the time of his accident, was produced by The Foothill Theatre Company, directed by Philip Sneed. The story of this production, entwined with Oakley's fall and the slow process of creating a new life, are movingly told in Bill Rose's award-winning documentary, The Loss of Nameless Things.[21]

Later life

In 1990, Hall submitted his play A Dying Art for consideration at the Reality Theatre Company's new play festival in Columbus, Ohio. It was selected for a staged reading that year. After revisions working with producing director Frank A. Barnhart and Artistic Director Dee Shepherd, it received a full production at the theatre in 1991, where it was noted as a highlight of the festival by The Columbus Dispatch.[22] Richard Ades of The Other Paper described it as "a clever and gleefully perverse black comedy," noting that "it's well-served by Dee Shepherd's intense direction, and set designer Chris Jones's crumbling wall backdrop is more than adequate for a play too self-consciously theatrical to be mistaken for real life."[23]

In 2002, Foothill Theatre Company in Nevada City, California received a $6,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support the development of Hall's 1979 play Grinder's Stand.[24]

Hall dated poet Molly Fisk in the 2000s. Her poem "A Theatrical Death" is dedicated to him.[25][26]

Hall made a lifelong study of the pre-surrealist playwright Alfred Jarry, and over the years translated several of Jarry's plays from the original French. In 2008, he moved to Albany, New York to live with Hadiya Wilborn, who fostered a collaboration with acclaimed puppeteer Ed Atkeson. This resulted in a production of Jarry's Ubu Rex, performed by the Firlefanz Puppets at Steamer No. 10 Theatre in Albany, New York, directed by Oakley, with actor Steven Patterson in the title role.[27] In the fall of 2010, Moving Finger Press published Oakley's novel, Jarry and Me, in which Oakley intertwines a memoir of his own life with a sly "autobiography" of Jarry. One of the last sentences of the book is, "Jarry dies with a grin on his face." That summer, he returned to the Community of Writers conference, co-founded by his father, as an author presenting his new work.[28]

On February 13, 2011, Hall died of a heart attack at his Albany home. He was survived by his two children, Oakley and Elizabeth.

The Highlander Theater Company of Chase Collegiate School in Waterbury, Connecticut performed Oakley Hall III's Frankenstein in March 2012, directed by Robert Cutrofello, currently an English teacher and playwright in Hamden Hall Country Day School. This was the first production of this play in three decades.[29]

In 2013, producer Curtis Burch announced he was developing a feature film about Hall's life, based upon the 2004 documentary by Bill Rose. Burch hoped the film would go into production in 2014. Screenwriter Fred Dekker had earlier been interested in directing it.[30][31][32]

In 2015, Catskill's Bridge Street Theatre revived Grinder's Stand. It starred William Dobbins, along with Steven Patterson. Patterson had previously been a member of Lexington Conservatory Theatre in 1977, where he appeared in Hall's Ubu Rex and Hall's version of Tis Pity She's a Whore; in 2010 Patterson also starred in Halls' Albany revival of Ubu Rex.[33][34]

Plays

Produced Plays

  • Ubu Rex (translated and adapted from the play Ubu Roi by Alfred Jarry)
  • Doorman
  • Mike Fink
  • Frankenstein (based on the novel by Mary Shelley)
  • Ubu Enchained (translated and adapted from the play by Alfred Jarry)[35]
  • A Dying Art[36]
  • Grinder's Stand
  • Beatrice (Cenci) and the Old Man (based on the 1935 play by Antonin Artaud)

Unproduced Plays

  • Melmoth the Wanderer (based on the 1820 novel by Charles Maturin)
  • The Monks of Monk Hall (based on the 1945 novel by George Lippard)
  • The Moonstone (based on the 1871 novel by Wilkie Collins)
  • The Occultation and Lumification of Mr. Ubu[37]

Productions and Notable Readings

Novels

  • The Archons 1974 (unpublished)[56]
  • Jarry and Me 2010

Cultural references

Hall has been mentioned in music, including The Tigersharks' "The Ballad of Oakley Hall III"

References

  1. "Playwright, actor Oakley Hall". Times Union. February 14, 2011.
  2. Adelman, Jacob (May 11, 2005). "Bill Rose set out to film Oakley Hall III's demise, but what he found was rebirth". San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. Joris, Pierre (February 14, 2011). "Oakley — a Grin on His Face". pierrejoris.com.
  4. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. pp. 12–14. ISBN 9780977421459.
  5. "UC Irvine to Stage Marat-Sade Drama". Los Angeles Times. November 2, 1967.
  6. "Dark of the Moon on Stage at UC Irvine". Los Angeles Times. April 29, 1968.
  7. Titus, Tom (June 6, 1968). "UCI Rep Enjoys 2nd Big Season". Orange Coast Daily Pilot.
  8. "Novelist's Son Refuses To Go Into Service". Oroville Mercury Register. April 11, 1969.
  9. Morch, Albert (October 28, 1970). "Consulate Party Fit for Films". San Francisco Examiner.
  10. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 42. ISBN 9780977421459.
  11. "Independent Lens - The Loss of Nameless Things". PBS. Archived from the original on September 15, 2006.
  12. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 118. ISBN 9780977421459.
  13. Patinkin, Mandy (1979). "Scenes from Evita". Playbill (Who's Who in the Cast): 6.
  14. Barnes, Janette (July 13, 1977). "Lexington Theatre Has It All". Stamford Mirror Recorder.
  15. "Historical Play On Lewis' Death Will Be Premiered at Lexington". The Daily Gazette. August 14, 1979.
  16. NEA Annual Report 1977. National Endowment for the Arts. September 1978. p. 71.
  17. Oakley Hall III (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 118. ISBN 9780977421459.
  18. Oakley Hall III. "UBU ROI by Alfred Jarry; Translated by Oakley Hall III" (Script and Production Notes). Firlefanz-Gallery.com. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  19. DiNicola, Dan (August 30, 1979). "'Grinder's Stand' Important New Play". The Daily Gazette.
  20. Bigelow, Otis (1982). The Prevalence of Mrs. Seal. Samuel French. p. 3. ISBN 9780573613623. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  21. "Independent Lens - The Loss of Nameless Things". PBS. Archived from the original on September 15, 2006.
  22. Grossberg, Michael (January 9, 1991). "Plays Become Reality: Works-in-progress star at Columbus festival". The Columbus Dispatch.
  23. Ades, Richard (January 17, 1991). "'Dying Art' gleefully perverse". The Other Paper.
  24. "2002 Grant Awards: Creativity". National Endowment for the Arts. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  25. Fisk, Molly. "A Theatrical Death". Cultural Daily. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  26. Adelman, Jacob (May 11, 2005). "Bill Rose set out to film Oakley Hall III's demise, but what he found was rebirth". SFGate. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  27. Buell, Bill (January 7, 2010). "Firlefanz Puppets show 'Ubu Rex' is a takeoff on 'Macbeth' but it's not for kids". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  28. Jones, Brett Hall. "Summer 2010 Special Thanks and Photo Gallery" (PDF). Community of Writers Newsletter. 2010–11 (15): 15. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  29. "Highlander Theatre Company Presents..." chasecollegiate.org. Archived from the original on 2011-06-03. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
  30. McNary, Dave (6 September 2013). "Toronto: Curtis Burch Developing Oakley Hall III Biopic". Variety. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  31. von Busack, Richard. "The Searcher". Metro Silicon Valley. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  32. "Fred Dekker Interview (Night of the Creeps)". horrorsociety.com. 2 December 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  33. Barnes, Steve (October 10, 2015). "Review: 'Grinder's Stand' @ Bridge Street Theatre, 10/9/15". Albany Times Union. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  34. Gerber, Leslie (July 28, 1977). "Tis Pity Shees a Whore (review)". Woodstock Times.
  35. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 171. ISBN 9780977421459.
  36. Grossberg, Michael (January 9, 1991). "Plays Become Reality: Works-in-progress star at Columbus festival". The Columbus Dispatch.
  37. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 205. ISBN 9780977421459.
  38. "Frankenstein, Final Play of LCT Season". Kingston Daily Freeman. August 25, 1976.
  39. Oakley Hall III. "UBU ROI by Alfred Jarry; Translated by Oakley Hall III" (Script and Production Notes). Firlefanz-Gallery.com. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  40. "Production History - Lexington Conservatory Theatre". Archive.org. Capital Repertory Theatre. 1983. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
  41. "Mike Fink". The New York Shakespeare Festival. Program. June 27, 1977.
  42. "Campus Notes - Fairfield University". Bridgeport Post. October 31, 1977.
  43. "On and Off B'way". Village Voice. December 17, 1977. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  44. "Doorman (Program)". NY Stageworks Director's Festival. NY Stageworks. December 8, 1977.
  45. "Lexington Theater Group to Open Season". Poughkeepsie Journal. March 24, 1978.
  46. "A Staged Reading of Grinder's Stand". Program. Phoenix Theatre. 1978.
  47. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 171. ISBN 9780977421459.
  48. "Premiere Concludes LCT's 4th Season". Stamford Mirror Recorder. August 22, 1979.
  49. Dinicola, Dan (May 11, 1982). "'Frankenstein' Classic But Too Faithful to Text". The Daily Gazette. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  50. Grossberg, Michael (January 9, 1991). "Plays Become Reality: Works-in-progress star at Columbus festival". The Columbus Dispatch.
  51. "A Dying Art - program". Reality Theatre. 1991.
  52. Crowder, Marcus (May 6, 2002). "'Grinder's,' a truly poetic tale of the West". The Sacramento Bee.
  53. Barnes, Steve (January 7, 2010). "The Return of the King". Albany Times Union. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  54. Simakis, Andrea (November 6, 2013). "'It's Alive!' Ensemble Theatre's 'Frankenstein' crackles with life". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  55. Haymes, Greg (13 October 2015). "THEATER REVIEW: "GRINDER'S STAND" @ BRIDGE STREET THEATRE, 10/9/15". Nippertown. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  56. Hall III, Oakley (2010). Jarry and Me: The Autobiography of Alfred Jarry. Absintheur Press. p. 42. ISBN 9780977421459.

Bibliography

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