FINAL CURTAIN CALL

First Folio Theater at Mayslake leaves audiences wanting more

BY MAUREEN CALLAHAN

Oak Brook’s First Folio Theater has dropped the curtain for the last time. The theater, located on the grounds of Mayslake Forest preserve- first as an outdoor venue, then later within the Peabody Mansion- went dark in February. After 81 shows over 26 seasons, which won 7 Jeff Awards, (a Chicago-area theater award) and received nominations for 40 moreFirst Folio is now a memory.

The theater was the vision of founding member David Rice’s late wife, Alison C. Vesley. They met on a production of Promises, Promises at a community theater in Lisle, 1979. Both had worked in professional theater since the early 80s. Vesley directed and acted full-time for several theater companies during the following decade while Rice taught drama and theater at Morris Community High School. “One day after school, she told me she had an idea,” Rice relayed. “She had read about some locals who wanted to turn the estate at Mayslake into an arts center.”

Aware of the lack of non-musical professional theaters in the area, they decided to take a chance. That chance panned out into two and a half decades of their joint dream coming true. As Rice was still teaching fulltime, Vesley took the reins and began an aggressive fundraising campaign. “Alison had people meet her at Mayslake and showed them what she had in mind,” Rice said. “People saw her vision and were anxious to get involved.” It took hard work and dedication to get the project off the ground, but perseverance saw them through.

First Folio attracted top artistic talent. There was a core group of actors, directors, designers, and technicians who hung their proverbial hats here. As time went on, they developed a pool of talent from which to pull, depending on the production. Sometimes crew members brought ideas for shows to Vesley and Rice, which they were often able to put on wheels. “Every decision, from start to finish, was a collaboration between Alison and myself,” said Rice. “It was always a partnership.”

The theater’s eponym, First Folio, was the name of the initial collected edition of William Shakespeare’s plays. Fittingly, the playhouse started out hosting outdoor Shakespearian productions, for which it came to be known. But there were many memorable shows. As the non-profit chugged along, more plays were incrementally added.

By 2004, the Peabody Mansion had been renovated enough to be opened to the public, with several spaces suitable to host theatrical productions. In 2006, First Folio hosted the inaugural production of The Madness of Edgar Allen Poe, written by Rice himself. Artistically and financially, it was the theater’s most successful show. It had six scenes, which were performed in five different rooms of the mansion. The audience walked from room to room between scenes and thereby got a short tour of the manor house.

Rice’s decision to retire and close the theater was multi-faceted. Vesley’s passing seven years ago forced him to take a careful look at things. Slowly, he began to think about retirement. He pointed out that many “endeavors of the heart,” such as theaters or restaurants, that begin with a vision, tend to struggle when the founding artist, or chef, retires. After much discussion with the board, they concluded it would be difficult to keep the theater going without him. “So, we decided it would be best to close in a purposeful and mindful manner,” he said.

Rice hopes that another local, professional theater will open one day in the area. Other than Drury Lane for musicals, there aren’t many opportunities to attend professional theater in the western suburbs. “There are some great community theaters,” he said, “but there’s room for more of the arts in this area.”

Rice and his girlfriend plan to do some traveling in retirement. A playwright himself, he has several shows in various stages of development. He will also continue to audition at other theaters. “I’m hoping some show needs a good old character actor,” Rice said, smiling. “I’ll be around.” ■