Curtains draw on 64 years
During her more than six decades at a Nelson theatre, Barbara Lane performed many roles. Photo: Gordon Preece.
“Singing and music has been my life.”
Barbara Lane first took to the now-called Nelson Red Door Theatre stage in 1960, and she has charmed thousands in her plethora of timeless productions as well as playing a starring role on the committee.
The 93-year-old, who retired from the committee three years ago but still volunteers at the Atawhai Dr theatre, says she had returned to Nelson after a four-year stint as a nurse in Los Angeles when a friend invited her to an Oklahoma! rehearsal at the now defunct St Mary’s Hall.
She says the whole shebang of the local theatre scene at the Nelson Amateur Operatic Society, as it was known then, struck a chord with her to become involved.
“Singing and music has been my life, and I really loved the times when I was in the shows,” she says.
“I still am very fond of Gilbert and Sullivan, and I think my favourite role was when we did Yeoman of the Guard, I enjoyed that, and then my last major principal role was in Fiddler on the Roof.”
Barbara says her leading role in the musical tale from the Far East, Chu Chin Chow, was also a highlight.
She says the theatre has had several homes over 64 years.
“When I first joined, we had no home at all, the wardrobe was stored in various places, there was an old stable up behind Melrose that was used, then we got lent some rooms on Bridge St,” she says.
“Then we moved up to St Vincent St and we had a rather disastrous fire, we lost all our wardrobe and everything.
“Then we moved to down behind the Theatre Royal, we were there for two or three years, and then we were offered [the current] building.”
Barbara says she was also instrumental in the theatre’s wardrobe department, hiring costumes and outfitting certain shows.
“The makeup has changed to a little sophisticated lighting that [the theatre has] got, now they don’t use a lot of the old, heavy, lycra makeup that we used to use apart from doing character work,” she says.
“They just use ordinary heavy street makeup nowadays.”
Red Door Theatre hosted an afternoon tea for Barbara last month to thank her for her commitment to the arts over the last six decades.