New theaters inspire Pilot’s man, woman of the year

Tom Titus

Local theater took on a new look in 2002 -- a pair of new looks,

to be precise.

UC Irvine completed the four-year renovation project on its main

theater facility, while South Coast Repertory built a new showplace

from the ground up, remodeling its Costa Mesa complex in the process.

Each venue offers theatergoers an exciting new experience and each

was instigated -- artistically in one case, financially in the other

-- by an individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty

over the years to initiate superior stage programs at their

respective locations.

They are two with a passionate dedication to quality theater and

they are making it happen from their separate vantage points. They

are Robert Cohen and Julianne Argyros, the Daily Pilot’s man and

woman of the year in theater for 2002.

Cohen, whose title is Claire Trevor professor of drama, has been

at UCI as long as there has been a UCI, starting his tenure in 1965

when the university was built. His resume of accomplishments -- at

UCI and elsewhere, along with his lengthy list of published books on

theater -- is far too voluminous to relate here.

Over the years -- 37 in all -- Cohen has expanded the theater

program at UCI. In the early days, he headed a repertory theater

company that tackled some enormously difficult works. One in

particular stands out in the memory.

This was the searing production of “Marat/Sade,” in which Cohen

(in a rare stage appearance) played the French philosopher Jean Paul

Marat, while the Marquis de Sade was portrayed by an actor who would

go on to create the role of Juan Peron in Broadway’s “Evita” and

carve out an impressive career in motion pictures -- Bob Gunton.

This year, Cohen brought two vastly dissimilar projects to the

stages of UCI theaters -- an epic production of Bertolt Brecht’s “The

Good Person of Szechuan” in the spring and a magnificent staging of

the hit Broadway musical “My Fair Lady” just last month.

The latter was particularly significant, as it marked the grand

reopening of the former Village Theater, now known as the Claire

Trevor Theater -- named in honor of the Academy Award-winning actress

whose generosity made the project possible.

In 1999, shortly before her death, Trevor contributed $500,000 to

support the renovation of the Village Theater. In June, 2000, the

theater closed to undergo a full interior remodeling that would take

two years to complete, and to which the school and campus would

allocate substantial additional funds.

It was the second local theater to be named, in 2002, in honor of

a woman who had donated a substantial sum of money for its

realization.

Julianne Argyros displayed so impressive an example generosity

that the new theater at South Coast Repertory was christened the

Julianne Argyros Stage.

Argyros and her husband, George, the U.S. ambassador to Spain,

contributed $5 million toward SCR’s newest showplace, which opened in

October with the world premiere of Richard Greenberg’s “The Violet

Hour” and was the new venue for SCR’s ninth annual Hispanic-flavored

Christmas show, “La Posada Magica.”

Julianne Argyros’ love for the theater began at the age of 5, when

she would perform dramatic readings with her mother at luncheons in

the small community of Adrian, Mich., where she was raised. After

moving to Orange County, she devoted her time to philanthropy and

community service.

She never performed on stage again until 1997, when she starred

opposite SCR co-founder and artistic director David Emmes in a

benefit staged reading of A.R. Gurney’s “Love Letters.” That little

one-night stand raised $50,000 for SCR’s expansion project.

She is president of the Argyros Foundation and has won numerous

awards, including a 1986 city of Costa Mesa Heart Award and a 1999

Love of Children and Music Award from the Orange County Philharmonic

Society.

Local theater is richer today for the artistic acumen of Robert

Cohen and the financial contributions of Julianne Argyros. Their

“year” was 2002, but their accomplishments span the decades.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His

reviews appear Thursdays and Saturdays.