Just five weeks ago, Duane Black was performing in “Twelfth Night” and “Man of La Mancha” for the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. After an unexpected diagnosis of a rare and aggressive form of pancreatic cancer, he has come home to spend his final days in a Centennial hospice. And this theater community, of which Black has been an integral member for more than two decades, is overcome with sadness.
For all who are wrestling with this impending loss, he offers a suggestion. “Adopt a greyhound,” Black said. “They make the most docile and wonderful pets. Adopt a greyhound and have a friend for life.”
Black, 50, joined the Denver Center Theatre Company in its third season and performed in 14 plays there from 1981-84, including the title role in “Romeo and Juliet” and as Ariel in “The Tempest.” He has since performed all over Colorado, most often at the Arvada Center, Country Dinner Playhouse, the Avenue, Town Hall Arts Center and Creede Repertory Theatre. He is most proud of his work in “Nixon’s Nixon” at the Aurora Fox, where he also made his final area appearance, in last year’s “The Miracle Worker.”
“Nobody saw it, and nobody cared, but Duane was absolutely brilliant as Nixon,” said Bev Newcomb Madden, who has directed Black in 14 productions.
But Black’s definitive roles were in “Greater Tuna,” an irreverent Texas quick-change comedy he performed with Bryan Foster for more than 1,000 performances over 14 years. That show launched Stage West, now the Denver Center’s Garner Galleria Theatre, in 1987. It became the first show in Denver history to run eight times a week for more than a year. The duo’s final run broke box-office records at the Town Hall Arts Center in 2001.
“I don’t feel like we made history,” the ever-humble Black said then, “but we certainly appreciate that audiences have supported it and enjoyed it.”
Black is known as a quiet, studious and intelligent actor, but longtime director and pal Jane Page is more impressed with his spirit. “He is very much a man of Native American sensibility who loves birds and wildlife,” said Page. “Nature is his religion.”
Newcomb Madden just can’t imagine a world without him. “We’re losing someone who has made an enormous contribution to our theater community,” she said. Country Dinner Playhouse producer Paul Dwyer added that Black “brings the most positive and creative energy into any production, and he is dealing with this tragedy in the same way. I don’t know many people who could be handling all of this with the class and strength that Duane is showing right now.”
Black is channeling all that passion into greyhound awareness. His e-mail address even references his pet greyhound, Phillip. Black’s final director was Page’s husband, Gavin Cameron-Webb (also director of the Colorado Shakespeare Festival’s current “As You Like It.”). His Alabama troupe already has raised $1,600 for greyhound rescue in less than a month.
“Greyhounds do not ask to be born into a life of kenneling, racing and inevitable euthanasia,” said Black. “They spend their short-lived lives racing their hearts out for their well-
loved masters, and are rewarded with early retirement and early death.
“If you wish to honor my memory, stop that sport. Short of that, adopt a greyhound.”
For more info, call Colorado Greyhound Adoption at 303-470-0377.
Briefly…
The Aurora Fox has become the metro area’s sixth Equity (union) theater company,joining the Denver Center, Arvada Center, Country Dinner Playhouse, Curious and Civic. That means in addition to being paid, at least two actors per show will receive medical insurance and pension benefits …
Scott Ahearn may play a himbo stripper in the Arvada Center’s return engagement of “The Full Monty,” but he’s no dumb piece of meat. Ahearn competed on Monday’s “Jeopardy,” losing by just $102 after compiling a bank of $31,699. Back to the boards for him …
“Monty,” by the way, is running about $87,000 behind last year in ticket sales, about half of which can be attributed to refunds granted to subscribers who opted out of seeing the hit musical for two straight seasons. Still, at $379,100 entering last week, this production is far outpacing other recent summer shows there – “Das Barbecu” and “Smokey Joe’s Cafe” topped out at $255,000 and $327,000, respectively …
Last week at the Colorado Festival of World Theatre (running through July 30 in Colorado Springs), Lynn Redgrave presented Sir Peter Shaffer (“Equus”) with the 2006 Donald Seawell Award for outstanding achievement in theater …
And finally, the handicapped troupe PHAMALy has confirmed its expansion into dramatic theater with a planned staging of “Our Town” in January at the Aurora Fox. More big news: Its next musical extravaganza will be “Urinetown” at the Denver Center next July. The show’s clever catchphrase: “Next year it really is PHAMALy with a Pee.”
Theater critic John Moore can be reached at 303-820-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com.
This week’s theater openings
THU-SEPT. 3|Metro Playhouse’s “Run for Your Wife”|GRAND JUNCTION
THU-JULY 30|Little Theatre of the Rockies’ “Always … Patsy Cline”|GREELEY
FRI-AUG. 19|Colorado Shakespeare Festival’s “Unexpected Shaxpere! – Shax Strikes Back”|BOULDER
FRI-SEPT. 2|Creede Repertory Theatre’s “Sweeney Todd”|CREEDE
SAT-AUG. 6|Steel City’s “Beulah Summer Melodrama” (at Beulah Community Center|PUEBLO
his week’s theater closings
TODAY|Denver Center Attractions’ “Bombay Dreams” (at the Buell)
TODAY|Front Range Music Theatre’s “Anything Goes”|FORT COLLINS
TODAY|Festival Playhouse’s “The Female Odd Couple”|ARVADA
TODAY|Little Theatre of the Rockies’ “Over the Tavern”|GREELEY
JULY 30|Physically Handicapped Amateur Musical Actors League’s “The Wiz” (at Denver Center’s Space Theatre)
JULY 30|New Denver Civic’s “The Yiddish Are Coming!”
JULY 30|Aurora Fox’s “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”|AURORA
JULY 30|Westcliffe Players’ “The
Foreigner”|WESTCLIFFE
