A Letter of Support from Michael Emerson
Mark McFate — Fri, 09/04/2009 - 3:30am
The Theatre Guild recently received a very nice letter of support from acclaimed actor and 1972 STC graduate, Michael Emerson.
The letter reads:
August 3I,2009
Honolulu
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I am writing in support of the grant application to renovate the Wieting Theater in Toledo. I hope that money can be made available to modernize and maintain what has long been a cultural landmark and facility for the people of Toledo and the surrounding communities. There is no building in my hometown that looms larger in my memory than the Wieting. For many years, and as far back as I can remember, it was my weekly destination for movies. As I became a teenager, and began to entertain the idea of being an actor, I discovered that behind the old movie screen were the even-older and more intriguing works of a real theater. Some of my first theatrical experiences were on that stage. I have been in many shows on many stages since then but few figure as vividly in my memory as the STC Drama Club productions of L"IL ABNER in 1971 and HELLO, DOLLY! in 1972. I count myself lucky to have grown up in a town that could boast a true old-school performance hall---one that offered a portion of the history and the promise of excitement common to all old theaters from Tama County to Broadway.
I feel, too, a sense of my own heritage at the Wieting and a link with the artistic past of the town and my own ancestors. Somewhere I have a photograph of my grandmother, aged 18, playing piano in the orchestra at the Wieting. I am happy to think that for her and her grandson and for countless others there was a place in Toledo, Iowa for ambitious youngsters to get a first taste of the mystery and beauty of the performing arts. I hope the
Wieting will endure.
Sincerely,
Michael Emerson
(South Tama Class of 1972)
