Original play packs Amenia Town Hall theater

AMENIA — Colonial history came to life last weekend as local resident George Bistransin presented a play he wrote, Amenia’s Spycatcher, about some of Amenia’s early residents.

The obstacles he had to overcome to put on the production were daunting despite the fact that he was backed by a $15,000 grant.

The play took place in late August, which meant many townspeople would be on vacation or preoccupied with summer outdoor activities, rather than choosing to be inside a theater without air conditioning.

Also, the play’s subjects, George and Mary Paine, were hardly heroes of yore students in the old Amenia schoolhouse would have learned about in history class. Only a few facts were known about an encounter these Revolutionary War era patriots had with a spy, which may have merely been a legend. Yet that didn’t stop George from filling the parking lot and sparking standing ovations.

The theater was nearly filled for all three performances last weekend from Aug. 21 to Aug. 23. The crowd reacted eagerly even though the subject matter was dusty history. History buffs came from all walks of life, engaged by the expository prologues delivered by a single actor speaking directly to the audience before the curtain in the footlights. These set the moment of time for the coming action and explained the events of the War for Independence going on far from the sleepy dairy burg of Amenia.

Before the first curtain went up, Bistransin, as director, candidly admitted that “judging from last night’s dress rehearsal, we are ready.” At the last minute Bistransin had finally found a stage manager, his brother, who came to visit and had to learn fast. Cast member Wade Crow had volunteered to step up and fill a role left vacant when one of the actors had to leave the play unexpectedly. Luckily his daughter, local thespian and Webutuck student Fiona Crow, already had a big part so it became a family affair. “He’s our savior,” actress Sadie Whitlow said.

Bistransin is not someone who shows his worry. He does not seem to fear failure. “More people have showed up than I expected,” he said. “But you never know how people are going to receive your work.”

Bistransin met compliments of his work with gentle deflection, pointing to a love for theater that drives him despite the potential of failure. “I’m retired, I love theater, I wanted to mount a production but I don’t know if it is any good,” he said. “I’ve put on plays where there were more people on stage than in the audience.”

The production wasn’t without its hiccups. Opening night jitters caused a mix-up where a scene was skipped. The actors accidentally started the next scene and it was impossible to go back. But the play was well received, Bsitransin said.

“The audience never noticed,” he said. “It’s live theater, things happen.”

The actors made it work, handling it like pros. This was particularly true of the star playing Mary Paine, Sadie Witlow. She is a working actress and gave life to her lead role alongside Gary Petagine, another steady hand, who portrayed Ephraim Paine, and has played other historical figures in his career. What the rest of the cast lacked in experience, they made up for with an amusing bit or an attitude that played well in an amateur production. “I’m having fun,” Fiona Crow said. “I love theater.”

Kent native Margaret O’Brian praised Bistransin’s directing. “George was a wonderful director, very kind, personable,” she said. “I knew him from the Town’s Executive Committee. I enjoyed the experience.”

Bistransin and the others openly acknowledged the crucial role set and light designer David Palmieri played. He brought the play’s only setting, a convincing Colonial farm house, and his lighting created a natural feel.

The brighter lights of Broadway are only ninety miles south down Route 22, but this short slice of a full play demonstrated how a night of culture can come to a tiny town on a hot summer night. Bistransin’s daring and dedication to carry through his vision of history was on full display. These long dead souls, now only stones in the Amenia Burying Ground, were up this weekend, running around on stage, fighting over love and double-crossing spies lost in the mists of history’s scraps that survive.

“I had the time of my life,” Bistransin said. “And was thrilled to work on ‘Amenia’s Spycatcher’ with talented and hard-working actors and crew. I hope that we will start a theater group based in the Town Hall Theater.”