SCR Gala Honors 34 Seasons of Artistic Growth

Even as they celebrated the last 34 seasons of South Coast Repertory with exploding fireworks and a chic black-tie benefit Saturday night, leaders of the Costa Mesa theater looked to its future:

“The basic plan we’ve outlined is to continue on as we have . . . and soon we’ll have a playwright write us a Pulitzer Prize-winning play,” said an ebullient Martin Benson, founder with David Emmes of the theater that last week launched its 35th season with Eugene O’Neill’s “Ah, Wilderness!”

Emmes also looked ahead as he spoke to more than 600 guests attending the gala at the Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Center in Costa Mesa: “I can claim tonight that SCR is entering a golden age,” he said. “The next 10 years, Martin and I will be working to bring SCR to new heights of artistic achievement--to make a lasting impact on American theater.”

Gigantic walking puppets and costumed characters from South Coast Repertory productions greeted guests as they swept into the Mondavi for cocktails in the Rose Garden and a sit-down repast on the tree-rimmed lawn.

Stanley Kowalski from “A Street Car Named Desire” was there in scarlet silk pajamas. So was a flirty Kate from “The Taming of the Shrew.” Also spotted: a modern-day Jesus--resplendent in a Superman T-shirt--from “Godspell.”

As guests sipped fine wines and sampled gourmet appetizers cooked up by Mondavi chefs, they ogled a display of colorful posters depicting scenes from past theater productions. “See that goofy-looking guy up there?” asked Benson, gazing at a scene from “Room Service.” “That’s me--believe it or not--in the late ‘60s. ‘Room Service’ was an old comedy where I played the eccentric director.”

Benson, an artistic director, was an actor in the early days of SCR. “I was a great actor,” he deadpanned. “But when it was recognized that I was a better director, I had to hang up my acting shoes.”

Determined to stage a gala-under-the-stars tribute to Benson and Emmes with all the professionalism of a first-rate theater production, gala chairwoman Barbara Glabman of Newport Beach kept her eye on the details as the “35 Years . . . Take a Bow!” gala progressed.

Her chief concern: “The dew point,” she said.

Glabman confided that the night before the gala,

she visited the Mondavi for a lighting check and noticed that a heavy dew had blanketed the lawn. “See those heat lamps set up around the tables?” she asked during the gala reception. “I added them . . . to hopefully keep the temperature up so the air doesn’t condense.”

As it turned out, members of the Mondavi staff had to swab off the dinner chair seats and the dance floor before they were used by guests.

The mist only added to the evening’s magical ambience. “This event is vintage Barbara Glabman,” said Dee Higby, SCR board president. “Every detail is attended to--and the end result is absolutely enchanting.” And profitable: Gross proceeds were estimated at $500,000.

Guests dined at round tables draped in shades of hot pink, amethyst, lime green and turquoise--with chairs and centerpieces to match.

The tables glittered with crystal stemware, votive lights and gold charger plates topped with fine china. Up for tasting: salmon with tropical fruit, filet of beef topped with Roquefort cheese, a small edible purse filled with portabello mushrooms and lemon flan with raspberry coulis.

After the main course, past presidents of the SCR board gathered onstage to sing “One” (from “A Chorus Line”)--a fitting tribute to an organization that has gone from staging plays in a converted marine hardware store to the forefront of American theater.

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Another season kickoff: Supporters of the Laguna Playhouse met on the theater patio for the pre-show kickoff of its new season Thursday. Guests dined on lemon-flavored couscous, lamb salad and peanut chicken and sipped fine wines before viewing “The Last Session,” a play by Jim Brochu with music and lyrics by Steve Schalchlin.

The theater was founded in 1920 as an “amateur theater,” said Richard Stein, executive director. “But in the past few years, we’ve professionalized the company . . . and now have a $3.2-million annual operating budget. We’re one of the largest arts organizations in Orange County.”