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The show goes on

“We’re going to run the whole show today, and I really don’t want to stop,” bellows Stephen Smith, assistant professor of theater, at Delaware County Community College.

It’s the beginning of another rehearsal for “Arsenic and Old Lace,” the eighth play Smith has directed at DCCC. Smith’s shoulders visibly slump a bit as an actor botches a line in one of the first monologues.

“You should know your lines by now,” Smith shouts. “Start again!”

Smith, whose mother is an actress, grew up around the theater, but he said he did not always dream of acting.

“You always kind of shy away from what your parents do,” Smith said. “I didn’t do any acting through high school or while getting my undergraduate degree at Villanova.”

When Smith graduated from Villanova University with bachelor of arts degree in English, he said he felt unsure of his future. He decided to pursue a master of arts degree in theater. After building sets for Villanova productions, he pondered whether to take up the old family trade of acting.

“A friend told me to try out for the school play,” Smith said. “I got a part, and it turned out I was pretty good at it.”

After appearing in several plays and finishing graduate school, Smith’s teacher, the Rev. Peter Donohue, who is now the president of the univesity, suggested that he pursue a masters of fine arts degree. Smith applied to the acting program at the University of Delaware.

“Now, that was a challenge,” Smith said. “The University of Delaware has one of the best theater programs in the country. Thousands of people applied, and less than 20 of us were accepted. That gives you an idea about how hard it was to get in.”

It wasn’t just the application process that was intense, he said.

“It was more than just teaching us to act,” Smith said. “They required you to stay in shape, and many of the acting classes were physically demanding. It was grueling.”

He graduated with a master of fine arts degree in acting in 2003 and was presumably ready to begin his acting career. Then came a major roadblock.

Doctors told Smith that he had cancer. Just out of graduate school he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“It was a real setback,” Smith said. “I went through chemotherapy and radiation, and I couldn’t act for a year.”

He recovered and acted in many plays at theaters in Philadelphia, New York and beyond.

In 2006 Smith began teaching theater at Delaware County Community College.

“It’s great,” Smith said. “They encourage me to stay active in the acting world as I teach classes. It works out really well.”

Along with teaching, Smith has directed many plays at DCCC. “Arsenic and Old Lace” opens on April 6.

“It’s a dark comedy with outrageous characters and a little bit of everything,” Smith said. “It should be a good show.”

The students involved with the play certainly seem to appreciate the devotion Smith shows toward these plays.

“Steve is brilliant,” said Isabella Fehlandt, 19, a communications and theater major. “He knows what he’s doing, so you have to listen to everything he says, even the small stuff. Don’t ignore a thing.”

His former students expressed appreciation as well.

“Stephen Smith is a goldmine,” said Mario Canavarro, 21, a communications and theatre major at DCCC. “He’s classically trained and could teach anywhere he wanted to, but chooses to share his knowledge at DCCC.”

Canavarro has been cast in five plays at DCCC, but has now moved on to become the first of Smith’s students to act professionally. He was cast in “Lydia” with the Amaryllis Theatre Company in Philadelphia, Pa.

“Steve helped me make the biggest decision of my acting career,” Canavarro said. “He told me that he thought I was ready to act professionally. If he hadn’t told me to do it, I wouldn’t have been cast in my first professional play. Going into it, I have a lot of confidence knowing that Steve taught me all I need to know.”

Smith, his wife, and his mother own and operate the Amaryllis Theatre Company. According to their website, the Amaryllis Theatre Company seeks to provide “universal accessibility for all artists,” part of which is casting a disabled artist in each production.

“We want to create a place for disabled actors,” Smith said. “But we don’t pick a play for this purpose or cast disabled actors only in disabled roles. We simply seek not to discriminate in any way, be it by gender, race, or disability, and cast people purely on their skill in acting.”

This all-inclusive attitude doesn’t stop with the cast and crew, said Smith. The company makes each play accessible for disabled audience members as well.

“We try to make it as easy as possible for them to fully enjoy the show,” Smith said. “This includes providing programs in Braille, offering sign language for the hearing impaired, and providing an audio service that describes to the blind what is happening on stage.”

Smith says he intends to keep teaching at DCCC and looks forward to seeing how his former students fare.

“I keep tabs on all my students,” Smith said. “A few of them have gone on to acting programs at four year schools and seem to be doing well. I can’t wait to see how they all do. That’s what it’s all about.”

Contact Adam Shorey at communitarian@mail.dccc.edu

The Communitarian Opinion Policy: The opinions expressed on the editorial and the op-ed pages do not necessarily reflect those of The Communitarian staff or college. We welcome your comments on any matter relating to Delaware County Community College, and responsible rebuttal is encouraged. Write to communitarian@mail.dccc.edu. Please write “letter to editor” in the subject box.