By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Dwight Martin plays Greg, who tries to intervene when his wife Kate (Susan Park, left) faces off with the dog Sylvia (Kristine Altwies)
Direct way to acting
By Burl Burlingame
Star-BulletinThose who can, do. Those who can't, teach. Everyone else goes into management. So what are we to do with Dwight Martin, producing director of Manoa Valley Theatre for the last 17 years, who starts appearing next Wednesday as an actor in MVT's production of "Sylvia"? He must be the exception to the cliche.
A.R. Gurney's comedy is about a guy in mid-life crisis, whose life is interrupted when he and his wife are adopted by a dog.
The conceit of the play is that the animal is played by a human woman, whose doggie thoughts are exclaimed aloud for the audience. Sylvia (the dog) is played by Kristine Altweis; Susan Park plays the wife; and Mark Gilbert plays a variety of useful roles.
"The mid-life crisis part hit pretty close to home," admits Martin. "And the play was being directed by a dear friend (Karen Brilliande). So I took the chance and tried out and she cast me!"
Despite being intimately involved with theater his whole professional life, and directing two works for MVT, the last time Martin was on stage was in the mid-'70s, part of the chorus in a Phoenix production of the cowboy musical "Destry Rides Again."
"And it was my second time in the role!" said Martin. "The first time was in school at Southwest Missouri State University - John Goodman played the lead - a funny little school in Springfield."
Although majoring in drama there and at Indiana University, Martin upon graduating took an opportunity to manage a "little theater in North Carolina," and from there was hired to manage MVT in 1980. "I decided, I love theater, but if I went into acting I'd be one of 100,000 out-of-work actors. This way I could stay in it.
"I love acting. It's a great deal of fun, and it's very therapeutic. You bring everything to it; psyche, energy, experience. With 'Sylvia,' everything seemed to line up.
"I loved the notion of a middle-aged guy in crisis, not that I'm one. I made an off-handed comment to Karen that this might be the one to lure me back on stage, and she urged me to try out. So I did."
After "Sylvia," Martin will "go back to producing - but nothing is absolute! I'll just have to get my ego in balance.
"It's nice being on stage, but, frankly, I already get enormous satisfaction sitting in the dark, in the back of the house, watching the audience respond to what's up there under the lights."
Sylvia: Opens Wednesday at Manoa Valley Theater. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14-Feb. 1. Tickets $23 Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday; $25 Friday and Saturday. Call 988-6131.
