Since the dawn of Greek drama, civilizations have been measured by their theatrical arts. While Canada and Canadian theatre are still relatively young by comparison, they too have their heroic titans. Marlene (Deller) Smith ‘50 has been a tireless producer and passionately involved with Canadian musical theatre since becoming the Company Manager for Godspell in 1972. Her production credits are prolific and her impact upon Canadian stages will be lasting.
Marlene Smith came to Ontario Ladies’ College from Toronto in 1945 to join her older sister. Her poor sister cried for three months, not liking her new surroundings, whereas Marlene loved the school right away. It was during her second year that Dr. Osborne took over from Rev. Carscallen as Principal of the College. Marlene remembers the Principal’s spouse, Mrs. Florence Osborne, helping “Ossie” to find his footing after “Carky” left.
At the time, the College was nearly entirely populated by boarding students. The youngest prefect in the history of OLC, Marlene was selected for that role when she was only in Grade 11. Marlene and her roommates in her final year, Jane “Nic” (Nichols) McNally, Jane (Farlinger) Reeves and Pat Hogan, all assumed leadership roles in the School.
The four friends eventually resided in the beautifully situated and opulent room that is now home to Madam Begy’s French class. These dynamic friends have remained great pals and have “hung out” together since their OLC days (though, sadly, Pat passed away after a long battle with cancer).
The three remaining girls are just as much fun and full of mischief as they were “back in the day.” The graduate photo for class of 1950 has always been oddly absent from the wall but it is a situation we hope to soon remedy. Marlene has long been a staunch supporter of the school through her active involvement with our Board of Governors and the school’s Alumnae Association.
Marlene was once featured as Homemaker of the Year in Family Circle Magazine in 1969. By 1972, she became involved with theatre as way to “get out of the house a couple of days a week.” Little did she know that this pass-time would become a rich and rewarding career.
Marlene made the jump during the production of Godspell in 1972. The production was rich in raw talent, and many of the assembled members would go on to become well-known entertainment fixtures on both the big and small screens. Paul Shaffer, seen for over 20 years on the Late Night with David Letterman Show, was the play’s Musical Director. Actors Victor Garber, Gilda Radner, Martin Short, Andrea Martin and Eugene Levy all went on to become either Second City or Saturday Night Live alumni and have appeared in many feature films.
The late Marvin Kraus, a New York producer, recognized traits Marlene possessed and mentored her to become a successful producer herself. “I’m amazed that no one is giving some kind of course so that everyone isn’t terrified of (producing). It is scary,” she concedes. Without actual hands-on learning, there are few ways for people to learn how to produce properly, and Marlene admits that too many give up after their first failed attempt, rather than “taking their lumps” and moving forward. She laments the loss of affordable, accessible theater spaces around Toronto that once offered those opportunities, such as the Ports, The Dell and Teller’s Cage. “Those kinds of spaces just can’t be found anymore.”
The all-Canadian production of Cats that Marlene produced ran for two and a half years at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre before touring for another year and a half across Canada with a final year of performances at Toronto’s Massey Hall. It was considered by critics to be one of the superior productions in the world. The cat that roared indeed.
David G. Edwards, Historian
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