Virginia Hughes

“ Peggy laughed, loving the feel of the water underneath as they skimmed along. It had been a beautiful day. The lake was sky-blue and frosted with little points of white whipped up by the wind.
“It’s a little choppy,” Michael called.
“Fun!” Peggy cried as the spray blew over the windshield and splashed her face.
“You’re going to get wet,” Mary warned as Michael passed over the wake of another boat, the Merry Mac slapping across, the spray leaping to drench Peggy’s face.
“I love it!” Peggy cried happily. “The wetter the better! Where are we going, Michael?” ”

“ Peggy stood there alone, looking out at the silent auditorium and thinking of everything that had happened this summer. She remembered the first time Rita and Gus had brought her up to the theater—the stage had looked just like this. That night she had had her first taste of the hectic backstage activity of painting flats. She had learned so much this summer, Peggy thought gratefully. She had learned about the theater and about working with people—even about summer romance and handsome leading men! Peggy smiled wistfully, wishing that Randy could be here with her now. ”

“ Chuck grinned at her mysteriously. “So our little ingénue has discovered another secret—and all by accident! Listen, Peggy, sometimes it happens that way. Just when you feel dead inside you’ll give a performance so electrifying that everybody wonders what happened. It doesn’t always work, you can’t always be so objective. But I guess that’s what happened to you tonight. Tomorrow it’ll be different, but you’ll never have trouble with Evelyn again!” ”

“ All the magic had deserted the dressing rooms and the stage, and Peggy realized anew how much the theater was a two-way romance. Plays needed an audience. One couldn’t work to a vacuum. Still, there was a job to be done, and although the actors had long since lost their excitement, they began the play with a determination to do the best possible job, and with that inexplicable feeling of loss that always occurred on the last night of a show. It was sad, saying good-by to a part and a story. Angel Street wouldn’t live again until some other company somewhere took it and molded it into being. ”

“ Rita and Gus looked at each other gloomily. Peggy knew that they had counted on saving something this summer to take a long-dreamed-of vacation. In the four years they’d been married, they had never had a honeymoon! Still, Rita and Gus were the first to say they’d be glad to forego their salaries.
Rita even laughed about it. “It’s fate, that’s all. We might have known it! And if we did leave now, we’d only have to go back unemployed to New York. It’s too late to get other jobs this summer. Might as well stay here another week and enjoy the scenery!” ”

“ She was tense and straining and finally even Chuck lost patience. “What’s the matter with you, Peggy?” he said sharply at rehearsal one day. “You’re missing this thing by a mile. You’re acting like an insipid little daisy that’s about to wilt on the stem! Evelyn isn’t like that—she’s crazy like a fox! She has power in her own strange way—”
“Could I say something, Chuck?” Alison interrupted, coming out from the wings where she’d been watching. “It might help Peggy. When I played the part I did it as though I were perfectly sane. Peggy’s trying to act crazy and it’s never believable that way.” ”

“ She knew that a lot of people didn’t realize what honest, hard work the theater could be. But obviously this intelligent young boy had a deep feeling for the profession and knew that an actress’ life wasn’t only curtain calls and bouquets after the performance.
“Yes, we do have a lovely group of people,” Peggy agreed earnestly. She had met most of them in New York during the tryouts and been impressed, not only by their acting ability, but by their responsible and intelligent attitude. “And we have a really good director, wonderful plays, and at least half the town is behind us. ”

“ Peggy grew more and more nervous as the time approached for her to read. She hadn’t considered this before, but Alison was a very good actress with a fine technique. Would Peggy be able to do as well in this part? Her mouth was dry and she was terribly tense. She stumbled over her first lines as she felt everyone watching her—Chuck hopefully, Chris and Danny curiously, Rita with calm compassion, and Alison with a spiteful expression that said, “All right—let’s see you try and do it!”
No audience could ever be as critical as this small group of professional actors. ”

“ She was remembering Randy Brewster in New York, and all the fun they’d had together in dramatic school and in the off-Broadway production they’d been involved in. Kind, steady Randy, with the marvelous sense of humor. It would have to be somebody quite wonderful to share the special place that Randy occupied in Peggy’s thoughts. “Why, there’s no time for romance here, Rita,” she said. “We’re all too busy. And besides, I should think Alison would be more his type.” ”

“ Peggy cried, “why not let it be the last straw? Why don’t you choose a picture for once instead of your brother? He doesn’t have everything to say about your business, does he?”
Bill looked at her unhappily. “There’s a lot you don’t know, Peggy,” he said. “We are partners, yes, but partners in name only. You see, when we bought that theater, Max was the one who put up the money. He was older, and had been in a very successful public relations business in New York. His dream had always been to come back here to live, with a business of his own. ”

“ He turned to the company. “What about the rest of you? Don’t you believe in miracles?”
“You mean it’s true,” Danny said, with a perfectly blank expression. Then as it sank in he grinned, and grabbing Peggy, began to waltz about on stage.
“It’s true,” he sang, “it’s terrific, it’s fantastic, it’s the most amazing ever!”
The cast merrily congratulated one another, showering Mr. Vincent with handshakes and praise, and finally dragging him and even Ford Birmingham into an impromptu conga line about the stage. Gus turned on the music and it wasn’t long before a real party developed. ”

“ Rita mused as she started to put on her make-up. “And that dinner is the most dreadful thing of all. It’ll never be that bad again.”
“Aren’t you nervous?” Mary Hopkins asked innocently from her table. The girls all shared one large dressing room, and the men another.
“What a question!” Peggy laughed. “Aren’t you?”
“Well, a little,” Mary replied. “Not much.”
“That’s because you’re not a professional,” Alison said. “If you ever become one—just watch. You’re not nervous at first, but the more you work, the more nervous you get.” ”

“ The cast sat around the patio after blocking the first act of Angel Street, glum and disheartened. The wonderful elation of last night’s opening had left them.
“Isn’t Ford Birmingham going to review us at all?” Peggy wondered unhappily. “Isn’t it his job? Doesn’t he have to?”
“Oh, he’ll probably write a token piece—it would be too obvious if he didn’t,” Chuck answered grimly. “But I imagine he won’t do it until the middle of the week when we’re almost finished with Dear Ruth. By that time we’ll have lost an audience—people will lose interest in our theater.” ”

“ Chris said as they sat down on a large rock that jutted out over the water, “what fun it is working with you. So far I’m enjoying For Love or Money more than any other play we’ve done. It means more to me than just a play,” Chris went on seriously. “I feel that we do awfully well together—in almost anything.” He stopped, looking at her intently as Peggy caught her breath. She didn’t know what to say. Finally, a moment later, she tremulously suggested that they had better get back to dinner. ”

“ You know, we’ve been coming up here to Lake Kenabeek for years—our son goes to a camp nearby. This is the first summer that we’ve had any real entertainment! You tell your director that we wish him a lot of luck—and the whole cast. We hope you’ll be here every year from now on!”
Peggy left her thoughtfully, realizing that if the theater should have to close, it would affect more than just the company and the Chamber of Commerce. People here really wanted entertainment. Surely there was room for a summer theater and the movies to exist side by side! ”

“ But the social columns aren’t the answer, Chris, as long as people regard us as amateurs. They don’t want to spend money on anything that isn’t professional! That’s why we only get the same small audience over and over again. Even people who bought season tickets before we opened aren’t using them! They’re beginning to regard their investment as some kind of charity to help the town! No, Chris, I’m afraid we’re licked.”
And for the first time, Peggy thought so, too. Until now she always had felt a stirring of hope, an optimistic sense that the theater would pull through somehow. ”

“ Gus had stenciled a wallpaper design on the flats, and with the couch that Mr. Bladen had lent them, and the other Victorian pieces and bric-a-brac, the room had a heavy, mysterious quality. The atmosphere affected Peggy strongly. She felt as if some dire event was going to take place. She walked down to the auditorium to look at the stage.
“Now try the bracket circuit,” Chuck called. “Let me see how they dim. Where’s Mr. Miller? Get him and take that bit in Act Two, Alison, where the lights go down.” ”

“ Gus had done a beautiful job, she realized with a thrill. For their opening show an effective set was important, and Gus had transformed the flats with a miracle of paint and imagination. The room was so realistic that Peggy felt she could touch the molding on the walls.
31
“You’d think you never saw a stage before in your life,” Alison commented lazily, getting up and stretching.
“I feel like this every time,” Peggy said. “There’s something absolutely magical about a good set—like moving into a brand-new home. I love it!” ”

“ Chuck was adamant. “They want to see you, too. That’s part of stock, Alison. Your summer audiences grow fond of their actors and are interested in seeing them in varied roles. The model is a perfect part for you, Alison, and you’ll be good in it. Now let’s start the reading!”
Peggy had listened anxiously, almost without breathing. Now, as she looked at Alison, who was obviously seething as she opened her sides, Peggy wondered if this casting wouldn’t create too many difficulties. She knew that Chuck was right, though. His explanation made perfect sense. It was best for the play. ”

“ At noon, Aunt Hetty presented herself at the theater and asked for two people to do a radio interview at the station in Merion Falls about twenty miles away.
“Anybody,” she said briskly, “as long as they’re part of the resident company. John Hamilton wants people from New York—and we’ll be gone all afternoon, Chuck, so give me someone you don’t need.”
“I need everybody,” Chuck said with a laugh, “but advertising is important too, so—let’s see.” He looked around at the cast. “Peggy, you’ll go—I need the rest of the family and Albert, but there should be a man along, too—Chris! ”

“ Bill confided. “He had another investor—a silent partner whom almost nobody knows about. Not that there’s anything wrong about it, but—”
“Ford Birmingham!” Peggy guessed excitedly as the pieces began to fall into place.
“That’s right. Ford put up the rest of the money. He keeps his partnership silent because of his job on the paper. He loves the newspaper business and writing, and manages to carry both jobs very well. However, if people knew he was a partner, they might think his movie reviews were prejudiced!” Bill laughed. “They’re not, of course. Ford is a painfully honest critic!” ”

“ Richard smiled at her. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do, Peggy. I’m flying up to Albany tonight to see the commissioner of education. But,” he said earnestly, “his decision may go against us, and you’ll all have to be prepared for that. That’s really why I’m here. If we can’t play in the school, we can’t play at all this year. I want to know if you’re willing to go on rehearsing on the slight chance that we’ll be able to open. I’ll probably be gone for several days, and you may be working for nothing. It’s up to you.” ”