Since 1935, Akron’s Weathervane Playhouse has delighted Northeast Ohioans of all ages with exceptional theater productions and educational opportunities. However, like every other performing arts venue, Weathervane has had to make a number of creative adjustments in 2020. Recently, we got in touch with Melanie YC Pepe, Weathervane’s Chief Executive/Artistic Director, to learn more about their celebrated playhouse and see what they’re doing to keep theater alive in a virtual world.

Can you give us some background on Weathervane Playhouse?

Weathervane was founded in 1935 in a carriage house on Marshall Avenue in Akron's Highland Square neighborhood. “The Barn,” as it was known, is long gone but the energy and devotion of our four founders, Grace Hower Crawford, Laurine Schwan, Helen Troesch and Muriel MacLachlan lives on 85 years later. Armed with an ambitious mission, Weathervane's founders opened their doors and began to produce a wide variety of shows, including comedies, dramas, musicals, Shakespeare, and an opera.

In the 1960s, a large capital campaign resulted in the construction of the current 240-seat facility, which opened in 1972, the first enterprise established in the Merriman Valley.

Over the past 86 years, Weathervane has constructed, torn down, recycled, painted and refitted stage settings for more than 800 productions. We've created hundreds of sets, lighting designs and soundscapes, thousands of costumes and stage properties, and shared the gifts displayed by thousands of performers in front of hundreds of thousands in our audiences. This effort is the result of the passion of volunteers and their dedication, just as predicted by the founders' original beliefs, and our current mission and vision.

What is the mission of the playhouse?

Weathervane's mission is to enrich quality of life and engage the community through theater and education.

Our vision is that Weathervane shall be one of the foremost community-based playhouses in the country that serves a region through theater as evidenced by:

• Consistent excellence in high-caliber, diverse, challenging theater productions that compel our community to attend, participate in, and discuss the ideas and human conditions that are presented on our stages.
• The enthusiastic commitment of hundreds of volunteers who devote their time, talent and treasure in a uniquely rewarding environment.
• Exceptional educational programming for both children and adults that provides essential life skills through stage skills.
• Financial stability that reflects both our market value and intrinsic civic worth through maximization of earned income and diversified, robust contributed income.
• Its place as a community treasure that has a profound effect on peoples’ lives.

How would you describe your community of actors and crew members?

What I love about Weathervane is how it brings people in our community together. People come from all over Northeast Ohio, and sometimes further, on different career paths, from different schools or neighborhoods, from different backgrounds and with vastly different experiences. They come together to design and create shows, and to watch them. That diversity empowers us to tell more complete stories on our stages and enriches our abilities to understand the people who share our world.

I’m inspired every day by the passion and dedication both our contracted artists – directors, choreographers and musicians – and our volunteer artists have to making theater. It’s an incredible gift to work with such an enthusiastic and committed group.

With the pandemic, you have recently had to pivot your in-person shows to virtual performances. How have you managed to do so

Over the last three seasons in particular, Weathervane has experienced exponential growth in volunteerism, students, ticket sales, and education offerings alike. As one of Akron’s legacy arts-and-culture organizations, Weathervane has been operational through more than eight decades, and although we cannot have live performances on our stages, we are determined to fulfill our mission.

In the interim, Weathervane is making movies! We started work on our first four film productions in the summer of 2020, which will be shared online. Three scripts are from Scott Mullen’s collection of 10-minute plays titled “The Airport Plays” and have been filmed at the Akron-Canton Airport. The fourth script is Frederick Stroppel’s “Judgment Call” and was filmed at Akron’s Canal Park baseball stadium.

In addition, we are producing interviews and cabaret performances. These performances review some of our audiences’ favorite shows at Weathervane and preview several productions which are being considered for future seasons.

What can viewers expect out of your 10-minute plays?

We are a community theater, and we work on the stage. We love and miss live performances, but we recognize that the theater experience isn’t one we can re-create. What we are producing now is short films. We rehearse them and block them as we would a stage production, then we use the strengths of the medium we are working in to record, edit and produce our final product.

What is your go-to audio gear on the Weathervane Playhouse set? 

Audio-Technica, of course! Weathervane is fortunate to have an internationally recognized audio company in our county. We love the quality of their products, the responsiveness of their support and universality of their products in our industry. When designers come in to work with us as sound designers, mixers or engineers, they are already familiar with Audio-Technica products and are ready to go with what we have in stock.

Our thanks to Audio-Technica for making so many great mic models. Our go-to for the virtual cabaret project recordings is, and will be, the AT4033a, which stands out with its open sound, incredible articulation and warmth. It sends the vocal clear through the mix whether close up or pulled back for a belt-note. We warn the performers that this mic picks up everything – which is great for studio recordings – but probably makes the actors nervous!

We also love the AT2020 for recording anything on the stage. These mics fit into our budget so that we can purchase multiples when we have more than one performer recording. We love the diversity of these mics and use them for a wide variety of vocal styles. Recording in a large space with tricky acoustics, these mics sound great through the monitors and on the recorded tracks.

For our recorded interviews, we have been using lapel mics with the latest-gen 3000 Series wireless.  One word: flawless.

For those interested in taking virtual classes and workshops, what does Weathervane Playhouse have to offer?

Weathervane offers virtual classes and workshops for kids ages 8 and up, and adults of all ages. Topics range from acting, musical theater, dance, scene study, sewing, makeup and many more. Check our website for the classes currently being offered, and feel free to email us for information on upcoming classes.

What comes next for Weathervane Playhouse, and how will the program change in a post-coronavirus world?

Weathervane will continue making films, sharing cabaret performances, offering classes and hosting online events. We look forward to partnering with other Akron and Summit County businesses and organizations to stay active, relevant and entertaining. I don’t know where the pandemic will take us, but I know it’s going to be the very definition of “out of the box.” Please connect with us to find out more!

So how can fans stay connected with Weathervane Playhouse for news and updates?

Visit us on our website and your favorite social media sites! We are posting updates regularly:

• Weathervaneplayhouse.com
• facebook.com/WeathervanePlayhouse
• twitter.com/WeathervanePlay
• instagram.com/weathervaneplay
• youtube.com/user/weathervaneplayhouse

Several of our short films are available for viewing – with more to come. Sign up to any of these sites to see them!