Win Brion

Bio

When I began to think about writing this article, so many names from the past came to mind. There are far too many to mention here, but I have selected a few which I am sure will be familiar to other people: Iris Castles, Audrey Coates, Stan Cook, Janet Ford, Pat Harper, Peter Henson, Bob Hopson, Jean Jungreuthmayer, Ann Morgans, Ann and Leigh Smith. These, along with others we all remember, acted with St. Lawrence Players, but there are several people who supported us in various ways. For example, Joan Swanson, who was our prompt for many years. I remember an occasion when I was on stage with just one other person (who shall remain nameless) when we found ourselves performing in the wrong act. Eventually, poor Joan gave up in despair and we had to work our own way out of the mess, hoping the members of the audience were not lost in the process. Then there were David Brown and Ted Edwards who used to accompany us on the piano – or sometimes on two pianos – in the days when we put on pantomimes and musical productions. Some of these called for very large casts and could lead to a somewhat overcrowded dressing room. We all needed to keep a clear passageway between the stage and the dressing room so that anyone needing a quick costume change could make a frantic dash in each direction. Marjorie Howard was a marvel, with a keen eye for colour and style when it came to providing costumes. Particularly spectacular were the fantastic hats which she fashioned for the ladies appearing in musicals or costume dramas. Players have always been responsible for designing and creating their own sets. I have a fond memory of Wally Durston patiently showing me how to paint a brick wall on a backcloth which was laid out on the hall floor, with both of us kneeling surrounded by various paints and brushes. We have had a multitude of happy occasions within Players, but there have been some sad times too. One of these was when Derek Allcock died suddenly, just as we were about to present 'Carousel'. His wife, Joy, and his family bravely insisted that we should carry on with the performances. As Derek would have said, 'The show must go on,' – and it did! I have left until last one of the stalwarts of the Players, Hylda Darby, who made me very welcome when I joined the group. For many years she directed every production and made a great success of doing so. She was quite thorough in observing details within a play. When we were rehearsing 'A Letter from the General”, she asked all the ladies to wear headscarves. This was because we were playing the part of nuns and needed to practice because we would be wearing wimples, which could impede our hearing during the performance. I joined Players in 1969, since when I have appeared in more than 50 productions and directed 3 plays, one musical and an old time music hall. I particularly enjoyed writing two pantomimes for Players – Aladdin, produced in 1996 and Cinderella, our millennium production in 2000. It was great to have everybody's support for these and Aladdin's cave and Cinderella’s coach were masterpieces of invention by our stage crew. These days I am more likely to be seen selling programmers than appearing on stage, which is much less stressful than learning all those words. Rehearsals can be hard work for both actors and directors, but performances can bring great satisfaction to everybody involved. This trip down Memory Lane has helped to remind me what a rewarding time I have spent among friends in St. Lawrence Players.

Appearances as cast

Win has appeared in these productions.

Behind the scenes

Win has worked behind the scenes of these productions.