It was Tuesday, June 28, the day before the opening of "Lettice and Lovage" at the Peterborough Players. Mary Beth Hurt, one of two leading ladies, asked to talk with artistic director Gus Kaikkonen. When she told him what was going on, Kaikkonen agreed that she had to go home to her family in New York.

Then he panicked – but only for a few seconds. "I was in a state of shock," Kaikkonen said. "Then I got calm and tried to figure out what to do."

"We agreed we would panic later," said Keith Stevens, managing director, "but we had to fix it first."

Kaikkonen and Stevens have been working together at Peterborough Players summer theatre for ten years. This was the first time, however, they'd lost a leading lady two days before the show was to open. It was a test of their ingenuity and resourcefulness.

The first thing they did was cancel the first two nights of the show and call all those who bought tickets for those performances, telling them what the situation was and that they could come to a later showing. Then Kaikkonen got on the phone to try and track down an actress who could step in at the last minute.

"I was looking for an actress who had recently played the role," he explained. "I found six or so actresses but none were available. Then I contacted the actress who had understudied for Maggie Smith when she played Lettice on Broadway. She said she could be ready in two weeks. But we only had two days."

Finally, Kaikkonen decided to look within the company and called Lisa Bostnar, who was already playing a minor role in the play.

"I basically begged," he said. "I told her I would be grateful to her for the rest of my life."

"Gus called on Tuesday," Bostnar said, "and the play was supposed to be opening Wednesday. He said he didn't know what else to do. I thought, 'do anything but ask me,'" she said with a laugh. "Then I told him to give me a little while to think about it."

Bostnar, who has played numerous roles for the Players in her four seasons as a member of the company, was already in three plays this season. And this was a hefty role to take on two days before opening. Usually, actors spend four to six weeks memorizing their lines even before rehearsals start, she explained. But Bostnar did agree to take on the role. "I figured, what the heck," she said, "just get up there and do your best."

The play opened two days late, on Friday, July 1, with Bostnar performing with script in hand.

"Given another week, I would have been off book," she said. "But it was fun. The audiences were very supportive. And you do expect the unusual in theatre -- after all, it is live theatre."

Nevertheless, Bostnar said, "Hopefully, it was a once-in-a lifetime experience!"

Dealing with the unexpected and working under intense pressure is not unusual for summer theatre, she added.

"There's a lot of pressure to get up a play in ten days," explained Bostnar, the typical rehearsal time for the company, which does six main plus two Second Company plays in a three-month period. "The minute you open one show, you start rehearsing for another one. We have to know each other pretty well and like each other pretty well and respect each others' talents."

Kaikkonen explained that the Players, including the young actors in the Second Company, are always rehearsing two plays and running two plays at the same time.

Luckily, many in the company, in addition to Stevens and Kaikkonen, have worked together for many years. Not only do actors return each summer but the people behind the scenes – the technical people, stage managers and designers. One of the most famous returnees is actor James Whitmore, who got his start at the Peterborough Players in 1947 and has performed in various roles for the last three seasons.

"Gus just keeps attracting so many talented and wonderful people." Bostnar said. "It's like a little family."

Go Back