1013 The Seasoned Performers
The Seasoned Performers Elise Bodenheimer, Arlene Hall, Marva Douglas, Pauline Nielson, Dorvy Jean, and Phyllis Landers, rehearse for their latest work, "Make 'Em Laugh."
From their former home, a small space atop the Dollar General in Vestavia, to its current residents in the creative enclave of Hoover’s Artists on the Bluff, The Seasoned Performers, the second longest-running senior performing group in the country, continue to share their magic with audiences all over the mountain and beyond.
A dynamic senior ensemble of members ranging from ages 55 to 95, the group performs between 55 and 60 shows per year across 16 counties throughout Alabama.
UAB geriatrician Dr. Andrew Duxbury’s work, Night Call Nurses, was among the troupe’s most recent performances, and a favorite of retired Birmingham City School teacher Phyllis Landers.
“The last few years of my career, I taught at my church, Liberty Park Baptist, where the I first saw the Performers,” Landers said.
This led to a conversation with then-director Nelle Richardson and an eventual invitation to join The Seasoned Performers sister group, The Seasoned Readers.
Six months later, Landers joined the Performers. Since then, she has been shocked at the warm responses of the audience, including one memorable performance when an audience member came on stage after the show and presented her with a rose.
“That was totally unexpected and just does not happen,” she said. “Another time, we performed for a church and discovered afterward that they had taken up a collection of $125 — we’d never before received a tip.”
For cast member Elise Bodenheimer — the youngest Performer at the tender age of 59 — the group has been a long-overdue creative outlet following a long, arduous career as a revenue officer for the Internal Revenue Service.
“I have met so many nice people doing this,” she said. “I used to get the statement, ‘It’s been nice, but I hope I never see you again.’ Now they say, ‘Come on back!’”
The group operates on a slim budget, according to director Elise Mayor, who cites the Jefferson County Office of Senior Citizen Services and the Alabama State Council of the Arts among its funding sources.
“The actors have intangible compensation,” she said, and for many, the opportunity to entertain is indeed its own reward.
After majoring in public relations and drama at Oklahoma State University, Performer Arlene Hall settled down, got married, and put her vocational dreams on hold for the next 18 years.
“Most of my theater then was at home, usually of the Little Miss Muffett and Big Bad Wolf variety,” she said.
It wasn’t until her nest was empty that Hall decided to revisit her professional passion. Even all those years later, Hall still has an impact on children.
“At this one particular performance, we went to an assisted living facility where a young girl, clearly not well, was in the audience,” said Hall. “Throughout the entire show, there was a huge smile on her face. Still, she never said a word. At the end, when we went to pack up our stuff, she got up to follow me. I wasn’t sure what to make of it, until the nurse told me that was the first time she’d left her chair in two weeks.”
For 19-year Performer veteran Dorvy Jean, the group is an ideal outlet to just let loose.
“You have to be completely open to making a total idiot of yourself,” she said. “But on a more serious note, we reach people who have never seen any type of theater before.”
Longtime thespian and fellow Performer Marva Douglas gravitated to the group for the same reason. Douglas is an alumna of the Birmingham Festival Theatre, Summerfest, Town and Gown, Terrific New Theatre, Vulcan Park and the Theatre Downtown. Douglas also opened up her own company, the Aldridge Repertory Theatre, still in operation today.
“When The Seasoned Performers approached me, it was the right time in my life and I was very happy to join,” she said. This chapter was a welcome change for Douglas, who, as a professional actor, was used to traveling up and down the East Coast for decent paying jobs. “Now I am stationary, retired, and wiling to perform whenever. I will always be thankful that I started and kept up a 30-year acting career after ending a professional career of 30 years.”
For a complete list of upcoming shows featuring The Seasoned Performers, visit seasonedperformers.org.
