48 HOURS
Mario Di Gregorio is a member of a big, happy family -- the Glendale
Centre Theatre family.
His appearance as Mayor Shinn in the theater's current production
of Meredith Willson's "The Music Man" marks his 100th play as an actor with the company.
"He has also directed at least 30 or 40 shows since 1961," said
Tim Dietlein, executive producer of the theater.
When it comes to performing community theater, Di Gregorio said,
few can compete.
"We have nice dressing rooms, the directors are good and we have
good plays," he said. "I've worked with other companies that have
good plays but the facility is a mess. You might be dressing in an
alley or a room with 50 other people."
The actors form longtime friendships as well, Di Gregorio added.
"The people are very pleasant -- they are like a family, and new
people are welcomed in with open arms," he said.
A lot of child actors who started their careers at Centre Theatre
have gone on to work in television and on the stage, he said.
Working as a director has also been a rewarding experience. Di
Gregorio has been involved in the process for choosing the plays for
its Glendale audiences, which means looking for material with no
swearing, smoking or drinking.
"Tim (Dietlein) likes to keep a family atmosphere, so we try to
keep material as clean as possible so the audience won't be nervous
about bringing their children," he said.
The production team pretty much agrees on the shows, and if things
need to be taken out, it is done without hurting the play.
A retired film editor, Di Gregorio now works full time in the
theater's costume shop during the day and performs in plays at night.
The costume shop has some 60,000 costumes to rent.
In "The Music Man," Di Gregorio joins Charlotte Carpenter in the
lead female role and her real-life husband Bill Lewis plays her love
interest.
"I'm playing the mayor -- it's such a wonderfully pompous role,"
he said. "The mayor believes he is in control of everything and he
isn't. He's the guy you love to hate."
"The Music Man" continues through July 12. Tickets range from $14
to $17. For reservations, call 244-8481. Glendale Centre Theatre is
at 324 N. Orange St., Glendale.
SPECIAL EVENTS
BANDS PLAY FOR MONTROSE BLOCK PARTY
The Turner Trio brings its brand of clean-edged bebop jazz to the
second annual Block Party from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday in the
Montrose Shopping Park in the 2300 block of Honolulu Avenue,
Montrose.
The group, led by local bassist Russ Turner, will have its debut
