Interview: Director Willow Geer of Noël Coward’s WAITING IN THE WINGS

Earnestine Phillips, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Ellen Geer
All production photos by Ian Flanders

Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum presents Waiting in the Wings, a vibrant, funny, deeply humane comedy by Noël Coward that reminds us that a life well-lived is measured not by applause, but by connection. Set in “The Wings,” a charity home for retired actresses, Coward’s 50th play is a witty and poignant portrait of nine opinionated, funny, difficult and full of life women, each of whom once basked in public admiration — but who must now learn to face old age together, long after the curtain has fallen. And as Bette Davis famously noted, “Growing old ain’t for sissies.”

Coward’s tribute to the theater evokes the lives of aging stars, their lingering jealousies and the enduring power of friendship, offering a meditation on community and forgiveness. Old grievances linger like half-remembered roles, but Coward suggests that bitterness is heavy to carry, and that reconciliation, no matter when, can be liberating.

I spoke with Theatricum’s co-producing artistic director Willow Geer (pictured, courtesy of the artist) about her decision to direct Waiting in the Wings and her vision for the production outdoors in the middle of an oak forest.

Thanks for speaking with me today, Willow. I understand you were the person who discovered Waiting in the Wings and championed it for Theatricum. What was your first encounter with the play, and what made you feel it belonged in this season?

I kept hearing from the ladies in our repertory company that once you hit the age of 70, the only parts you get to audition for are women who die, or you’re the punch line of some sexual joke. I started thinking about this glorious demographic of artists who have spent their lives honing their craft, and how, just when they have become the most concentrated, wise, and accomplished versions of themselves, there are so few roles that allow them to exercise those gifts.

My mother, Ellen Geer, has dedicated her entire life to the theater. She was one of the founding members of the Tyrone Guthrie Theater and American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. She toured and has worked in prominent theaters all over the country as well as serving as the Producing Artistic Director of Theatricum Botanicum for 53 years. She’s worked with some of the greats, and here she is auditioning for small, one-dimensional parts that often make fun of her age.  She and her peers deserve better than that.

Ellen Geer

So, I went on an active search for plays that celebrate the later years of life. While none of us love to think about mortality and aging, we all do. I read so many plays, and then I finally started looking up actresses I admire who continued working later in life. Ladies like Maggie Smith, Sibyl Thorndike, Jessica Tandy, Ethel Waters, Vanessa Redgrave, Edith Evans. I looked at the plays they performed in and the roles they chose, and I stumbled upon this glorious Noël Coward play.

The truth is, Waiting in the Wings never really did very well. But when I read it, it was the first play of them all that made me cry while sitting there and also laugh out loud. Every character and relationship is hilarious, beautiful, and flawed. Thinking about the glorious women we have in our repertory company, I thought, what a wonderful gift it would be to our audiences to bring them all together in one play where they are the protagonists, where their stories and their lives are the heart of the narrative, and where they are not simply supporting characters.

Because people in their 70s and 80s are living vibrant lives, and they deserve to see themselves reflected in the stories we tell.

Ellen Geer, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Earnestine Phillips

Noël Coward is often associated with sophisticated comedy and wit, but this play also contains a profound meditation on aging, forgiveness and community. What aspects of the play feel most relevant to contemporary audiences?

Oh, my goodness, I think all of it! These women deal with old grudges and feeling irrelevant. They’re frightened of their minds forgetting things, of dementia, of their bodies giving out. They’re scared of feeling vulnerable and alone. They wrestle with forgiveness, and whether they can forgive at all. They grapple with legacy and reputation, with losing their youthful looks, and with being unable to do the things they’ve spent their whole lives doing because of aging. They face estrangement from family members that may never be healed.

And yet, the play also reminds us how laughter, song, support, connection and community are the very things that help us weather the huge waves of sadness, depression and difficulties that life throws at us. The human condition will always be there, and this play explores every aspect of it and the many different ways people find their way through it. In that way, it gives one hope, starts a conversation about these difficult topics, and offers different examples of how we can choose another path, one that may be more beneficial for our spirit.

Ellen Geer, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Earnestine Phillips

As co-producing artistic director, how do you balance honoring Theatricum’s traditions while also introducing works that audiences may not know as well, such as Waiting in the Wings?

As part of our mission statement, Theatricum “engages, educates, and entertains audiences of all ages by presenting thought-provoking classics, socially relevant plays, and education programs in a beautiful, natural outdoor sanctuary for the arts.” We believe classic works place an emphasis on poetry and thoughtful writing that introduce contemporary audiences to new words and ideas. There is so much wonderful work that has been written in the past that just needs a little dusting off and a reintroduction, with a few bits retrofitted for modern audiences. The messages are the same. Their use of character, relationships, rhetorical devices, and beautiful writing is exciting to our minds in a time when our creativity is so often diminished by endless scrolling and algorithms. Sometimes plays simply weren’t ready for the time in which they were written and may be ready to have their stories told now.

The Noël Coward Trust was generous enough to let us change one of the characters from Irish to an American Black woman, which brings an extra level of depth to the play and makes it more relatable to an American audience.

It is Theatricum’s tradition to reintroduce great plays, novels, and literature that simply need a little reawakening so a new generation can discover and enjoy them as well.

The play centers on a group of older women whose voices and experiences are often overlooked in our culture. What conversations do you hope audiences will have after spending an evening with these characters?

First and foremost, I hope they laugh! 

Ellen Geer, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Earnestine Phillips

I hope that the play opens up conversations and creates a space for people to talk about their fears, the regrets they have, and how there is still time left to remedy them. To remind us all to be grateful for every day we have. To call up that person you’ve been meaning to call and thank them. To buy that ticket for your desired adventure. To give that one person a hug you’ve been meaning to give. Life is so precious. It goes by so quickly.

I hope it reminds us to truly cherish one another, to forgive each other, or maybe to let go of the idea of forgiveness altogether and finally release that person. To remember to give one another the most gracious interpretation of our words and actions. We are all doing our best and coping. To lend a little grace here and there.

For me, it really strikes that deep chord in our souls and gets down to what is truly important. In a time when we all get so caught up in the minor stresses of our lives, the silly arguments, and the flashes of emotion that can take over our thoughts, the truth is we could all care a little more, listen a little more, and recognize just how incredibly alike we are when it comes to grappling with mortality, our one truly universal human experience.

Earnestine Phillips, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Ellen Geer

The cast is led by a remarkable collection of veteran actresses, many of whom have long histories with Theatricum and the Los Angeles theater community including Jan Wikstrom, Susan Angelo, Katherine Griffin, Jane Macfie, Michele Schultz, Gini Autumn Benson, Cynthia Kania, Earnestine Phillips, and Ellen Geer. How did their real-life experiences inform the rehearsal process?

Well, I’ve known my mom and Susan since birth. Earnestine, since elementary school. Katherine and Cindy, since right after I graduated college, Jan, for at least a decade. These ladies are my aunties! They are my mentors! Watching them, working with them, and learning from them has been my own personal master class. I feel so lucky to have all these artists in one place.

Some of our newer company members bring enormous experience of their own, and having spent a lifetime in the theater gives these women everything they need for the characters they are portraying. They understand the personal sacrifices, the wacky schedules, the ebbs and flows, the constant rejection, the successes and painful failures, and the dedication, confidence, and care it takes to build a life in the theater.

I think what this brings to the rehearsal process is complete and utter trust among all of us. We share a history, an artistic shorthand, and the ability to reference people, productions, and moments from the past that we all immediately understand. It allows us to communicate with incredible nuance, and because of that, the performances become that much more specific and honed.

We definitely laugh a lot, and we’re having a great time!

Ellen Geer, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Earnestine Phillips

Your mother, Ellen Geer, plays Sarita Myrtle, an actress who continues to relive her past roles. What has it been like directing your mother in this production, and did that family dynamic add any special dimension to the work?

My mom has directed and acted with me throughout my whole life! The last few years, working as Artistic Director partners, have been the most meaningful of my artistic life. We are very close. She’s a wealth of knowledge, kindness, humility, intelligence, talent, and strength. A glorious and wise woman!

I never truly understood how much work all of this is, or how much care, love, and professionalism it takes. You need a supple, sweet interior with a hard exterior for the flak that smacks you in the face when you least expect it.

My mom and I have a very deep artistic trust and respect for one another. She is such an incredible actress and is amazing in this role. Other than occasionally telling her what part of the stage is best for a particular moment, she simply does her thing, and we all stand in awe.

Sarita is beautifully written. Noël Coward is an incredible writer, and anyone who has an elder in their life living with dementia or Alzheimer’s will relate to this beautiful, humorous, complex character’s arc.

The special dimension that our family dynamic adds is my complete awe at her intuition, talent, creativity, and strength. She’s 85 years old and running up and down those stairs, proving to us all that anything is possible at any age! She’s a very humble and private woman, but I can say, as a proud daughter, that Ellen Geer is one of American theater’s treasures, and getting to see her shine in this play is a rare gift!

Earnestine Phillips, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Ellen Geer

As the granddaughter of Theatricum founder Will Geer, you’ve grown up surrounded by generations of theater artists. Did Waiting in the Wings resonate with you personally because of the way it celebrates lifelong dedication to the stage?

Absolutely! To have a successful career in the theater, you give up so much. Friends’ weddings, dinner parties, birthdays, graduations, because your work is how the rest of the public relaxes, unwinds, and celebrates. I think that’s why so many actors find solace in one another. There is a deep understanding of the commitment the profession demands and the sacrifices it requires. To build a career, it sometimes has to take precedence over bedtimes with your kids or your best friend’s wedding. I remember many nights where my bedtime as a child was falling asleep in a sleeping bag next to my mom directing. People in other professions can have a hard time understanding all that.

To be an actor, particularly a theater actor, takes tremendous courage. There isn’t a lot of money, there is a great deal of rejection, and you have to be willing to put yourself in uncomfortable situations and work through your own ego. You memorize your lines, do your homework, and research your role. You have to reach into the deepest parts of your empathy and compassion to truly love the person you’re portraying, no matter how awful they may seem. Your job is to connect with the humanity in your fellow actors and your audience, to truly feel, communicate, and move people. And there are no second takes! It’s all happening in real time and, like a ritual, it will never happen the same way twice with the same energy and conditions.  It’s not for the faint of heart.

This play is a love song to these women who pursued careers at a time when society expected them to stay home, stand by their husbands, have dinner on the table, tuck their children into bed, run the household, and say, “Yes, of course. What can I do for you?” Instead, they forged their own paths. They endured hardships, navigated uncomfortable circumstances, and built remarkable careers. But at the end of it all, many didn’t have the personal relationships that can be strained or even lost in pursuit of a life in the theater to fall back on during the most vulnerable years of their lives. Instead, they have each other.

The characters in this play understand one another completely. They made similar sacrifices in service of their careers, and now they find themselves in the same community, working through the repercussions of those choices. Each grapple with them in her own way, but they do so with compassion, by propping each other up, and by taking the piss... just like family does.

Susan Angelo and Jan Wikstrom

Coward wrote that old age needn’t be dreary if it’s met with humor and courage. How have you approached that balance?

Honestly, the writing does it for me. Noël Coward found a way to create a play that explores these ideas through character evolution and dialogue. The words ping-pong back and forth from dread to fear, to humor, to courage, to defeat, to resilience, and all of that can happen within a single page of dialogue. As long as the actors acknowledge it, highlight it in their speech and emotions, and trust the writing, Coward’s thoughts on the matter shine through.

Theatricum’s outdoor amphitheater is a unique setting. How does presenting Waiting in the Wings in Topanga’s natural environment shape the audience’s experience of a play about community, reflection and the passage of time?

Seeing a play at Theatricum Botanicum is a holistic experience, especially if you come early and have a picnic on the grounds beforehand. You sit among other people, and once you cross the bridge onto the property, you leave the city behind. You breathe in the fresh air, see the birds, butterflies, lizards, and the magnificent trees that grew there naturally, not ones planted by human hands. It creates a feeling of openness, much like when you’re traveling. Although it’s only about a 25-minute drive away, it becomes a destination, taking you outside your everyday routine. Suddenly you’re striking up a conversation with the people at the table next to you.

I think that setting, before you even enter the theater, creates a wonderful space for community, for like-minded theatergoers to come together for a shared experience, away from their phones and the frenetic energy of the city. Inside the theater, we use furniture, rugs and lighting to bring us into The Wings charity home. But I think being outdoors first relaxes us. There’s something about being in the open air, with space all around, that makes us feel both peaceful and expansive. Even though the play itself takes place indoors, that atmosphere invites us to let our guard down and become fully immersed in the emotional lives of these characters.

The oak tree in the middle of our stage has been there for hundreds of years. While we humans come and go, nature remains. Theatricum has been part of the Los Angeles theater community for more than 50 years, and yet, to those old oak trees, that is only the blink of an eye. Our time here is so fleeting by comparison, and I think being surrounded by that living history deepens the play’s reflection on aging, mortality, and what truly endures.

Earnestine Phillips, Cynthia Kania, Susan Angelo and Ellen Geer

Looking at the play’s themes of legacy, reconciliation and the enduring bonds among artists, what do you think Waiting in the Wings says about what remains after the applause fades — and does that message have special meaning for a company with Theatricum’s history?

When my grandfather was blacklisted during the McCarthy era and could no longer work, he was ostracized by his community. Well, really by the whole country. That’s when my grandmother, Herta Ware, found the piece of land that has now become Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga Canyon. They grew vegetables, sold plants, put a sign on the road, and performed theater and music in the dirt. Soon, other blacklisted artists and people who had been ostracized by their communities found a haven there to heal, make art, and feel part of something again.

There is definitely a parallel to this play. These women have been left behind by their fans, put out to pasture by the public, and forgotten in favor of the newer, fresher thing. They find solace, support, and healing in one another. Their shared life experiences become a shorthand, and their unique skills and understanding create a family they can trust, be annoyed by, laugh with, and care for.

A repertory company is a very special thing, and there aren’t many true repertory theaters left because it doesn’t bring in the big bucks. The plays run for a long time and in repertory, rather than opening and closing one at a time after just a few weeks. It can feel insane when you’re simultaneously rehearsing one show, performing in two others, and preparing the next. But the beautiful thing about it is that, as an actor, it’s exhilarating, and you get to exercise the full range of your instrument.

It also creates an extraordinary camaraderie, and I think that’s why people stay year after year. You become a family. We are there for one another through divorces, births, deaths, illnesses, and all of life’s joys and hardships. Those relationships deepen offstage, and that connection becomes even richer onstage. We know one another’s strengths, foibles, and rhythms. We can get annoyed with each other, laugh together, be frustrated, be in awe, and care deeply for one another.

The Theatricum community is so similar to the one in Waiting in the Wings, which is why directing this play feels like a love song to the actresses in our company. Well, in any theater company, really. They are at the top of their game, with a lifetime of experience behind them. Their craft is so honed, and we get to simply sit back and watch them. It has been such a pleasure.

Is there anything else you would like to add about yourself or the production?

I guess I would just add that, beyond the themes we’ve talked about here, there are many others. Noël Coward is a brilliant, hilarious writer, and there are so many other facets of life that are touched on in this play with subtlety and nuance. Just like real life, none of the themes are bashed over your head. They’re simply tickled enough to spark a conversation on your drive home.

I urge anyone reading this to come and see this play. It is so funny and so heartfelt.  It is rarely produced, and these actresses rarely get the opportunity to shine this brightly together. I would also like to give a particular shout-out to my mom, Ellen Geer, who has devoted her entire life to the theater: teaching it, passing it on, continuing to learn herself, being a mentor, an incredible director, businesswoman, philanthropist, and a tireless voice for civil rights, arts education, human connection, empathy, compassion, and grace.

As I said before, she is a theatrical treasure. Do yourself a favor and come see these remarkable women shine in all the gloriousness of their talent, wisdom, and strength.

Thanks so much! I look forward to seeing the play!

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