Carolyn Rossi Copeland, who lives in Garrison, is the founder and executive producer of CRC Productions, which is staging Annie at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.
When did you realize that theater would be your life’s work?
I was in the sixth grade. My family lived in Rome and I saw a friend play Laurey in Oklahoma! I was captivated. I always wanted to be in theater, but my parents were Italian immigrants and didn’t think a girl could make a living that way. I majored in political science in college but did shows on the side. After graduating, I went to Washington, D.C., and worked for Rep. Peter Rodino, who chaired the Judiciary Committee during the Watergate hearings. I volunteered in theater every chance I could. A show I choreographed was written up in a magazine and included my picture. When the congressman saw it, he asked me if theater was what I really wanted to do. He said: “Carolyn, I’m a frustrated opera singer. You’re 23 years old; you should do it.”
What was your first gig?
I left my job on Capitol Hill and joined a touring company as an actor and choreographer, doing shows like The Pajama Game and Guys and Dolls. It was such a fleabag organization that the producer ran out with all the deposits he’d collected for bookings. I thought the tour was over. But I got the cast together and said, “If we work for 80 percent of what we were going to make, we could at least keep going.” I became the de facto producer.
Annie has been done often. Why do it again?
It remains relevant because there’s always a new crop of girls and a new audience. The last production on Broadway was eight years ago, and we felt it didn’t represent the original creatives’ vision. Jenn Thompson, the woman I hired to direct it, played one of the orphans in the original production and understands the vision. It is a beautiful production. It got rave reviews in Chicago and will be at The Theater at MSG until Jan. 5. Whoopi Goldberg will join the cast as Miss Hannigan on Dec. 11. After we close in New York, we’ll tour the country.
You founded Lamb’s Theatre in Manhattan in 1978. Why did it close?
We did three or four productions a year, but when our long-term lease ran out, the building was sold [the last production was in 2006]. The exterior was landmarked, but because the interior wasn’t, it became a hotel. We were doing local shows at St. Philip’s Church in Garrison then and I called Claudio Marzollo [at the Philipstown Recreation Department] to tell him everything in the theater was available. He and Chris Nowak loaded two trucks with everything they could for the Depot Theatre.
What do you recall about plays you’ve directed locally?
I miss the shows at the Garrison School and O’Neill High School so much. There’s nothing like working with kids; they gave me so much energy. Theater gives kids and teenagers who aren’t into sports an opportunity to be part of a community. And it’s not just about the show: It’s about building their confidence in the world. I did Les Misérables at O’Neill because I wanted them to understand the meaning of that show. The first show I did at Garrison was Free to Be … You and Me. Jean Marzollo and I did Godspell at St. Philip’s. Jean does not get enough credit for starting theater in this community. She wanted to bring kids from the village and hamlet together, so while we did shows in Garrison, we rehearsed in Cold Spring.
