THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 24, 1996 TAG: 9602240047
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CRAIG SHAPIRO, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
CUSTOMERS WILL cuddle the puppies at Pet-Go-Round, try on sports coats at S&K and thumb through ``Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot'' at Waldenbooks.
Tonight at Pembroke Mall, however, won't be business as usual.
With the opening of the comedy ``Social Security,'' the shopping mecca adds ``live theater'' to its directory. The Actors' Theatre is raising the curtain on its new digs: the old Fine's men's store, three doors down from Sears between Fashion Cents and Virginia Beach Shoes.
The regional company performed its first two seasons at the Virginia Beach Center for the Arts, until scheduling conflicts forced artistic director and producer Joe Sasso to look elsewhere.
``We were pretty much at the end of our rope,'' he said. ``There just aren't any spaces available in Virginia Beach. We had heard the mall was looking for some kind of live entertainment.
``They were interested in what we had to offer and we were looking for a place to call home. We had never considered the concept. Who would? You don't go to the mall expecting to find live theater. I think it's wild and wonderful and unique. We're the first to do it. We're terribly excited.''
Sasso and his crew of volunteers have also been terribly busy, working day and night the last month to convert the cozy storefront.
``I'm on the verge of collapse,'' Sasso said Thursday morning. ``We had to tear everything out of there - platforms, counters, shelving units. We ripped out the carpeting and tile.
``Clean-up took almost a week. Once it was gutted out, we started building and painting. We've used 30 gallons of paint so far and have another 10 or 12 to throw up.''
On a visit this week, it was obvious the long hours were paying off. The rear room had been converted into a rehearsal area and a small lobby and box office added. The lighting was in place. The movable risers were almost finished.
There was still the matter of seating - a local restaurant loaned some plastic chairs, but Sasso was seeking more suitable seats.
A scattering of ladders and power tools indicated that Theatre on the Mall is a work in progress. But passers-by could see what was taking shape.
One display window was decorated with theatrical programs and pictures of Broadway stars. A mannequin in vintage dress sat at a makeup table. In the other window, her plastic cousins were busy painting and hanging lights.
``I'd like to say everything was beg, borrow and steal, but we didn't steal anything,'' Sasso said. ``We have made more friends. This is good. The woman who does the displays at Sears, she's embraced us. Yesterday, we went to the florist in the mall and told them about the grand opening. They're going to donate an arrangement.
``We've had tremendous support from the merchants and management.''
Bob Gillespie, the mall's marketing director, said it works both ways. He's already looking at dinner-theater promotions, and it's not bad policy to have retail space occupied rather than vacant. But Pembroke Mall and The Actors' Theatre aren't the only beneficiaries, he added.
``We're exposing the public to theater, and making it very easy and accessible.''
Before running off to his day job at Sato Travel Center, Sasso, the harried impresario, took a phone call. The Portsmouth Naval Hospital was making a donation.
``We just got chairs,'' he said. ILLUSTRATION: WANT TO GO?
What: ``Social Security,'' the comedy by Andrew Bergman;
presented by the Actors' Theatre
Where: Theatre on the Mall, Pembroke Mall, Virginia Beach; three
doors down from Sears
When: Tonight and Friday at 8, Sunday at 2 p.m.; continuing
weekends through March 17
Tickets: $10; $8 seniors, military and fulltime students; $5
children under 12
Call: 557-0397
STEVE EARLEY
The Virginian-Pilot
Joe Sasso is the artistec director of the Actors' Theatre.
by CNB