Interview: Hannah Wolf on Directing Last Summer at Bluefish Cove on the Fountain Theatre Outdoor Stage

Forty years ago, The Fountain Theatre presented the groundbreaking comedy/drama, Last Summer at Bluefish Cove by Jane Chambers, one of the first playwrights to depict love between women as happy, healthy, and well-adjusted. The play returns to the Fountain this summer, this time performed on the theatre’s outdoor stage which will be transformed into the play’s oceanfront setting on Long Island where a group of queer women spend their summers together.

I decided to speak with the play’s director Hannah Wolf about the history and importance of the play, the challenges of presenting it outdoors, how she was selected to direct it, about the characters who make up the story, and why its message of acceptance speaks to the new generation of theater goers just as it did for those who saw Jean Smart in the original 1983-85 Fountain Theatre production.

Hello Hannah. Thanks for speaking with me today. Before I ask about the play, tell me about yourself and how you were selected to direct the play at the Fountain.

Hello! Thanks for having me. I’m a director, dramaturg and educator originally from Juneau, Alaska. I’ve been in Los Angeles for the past five years after finishing grad school at UT Austin. I got to know Stephen Sachs and Simon Levy at the Fountain through the National New Play Network (NNPN) when I was a member of the 2018 National Directors Fellowship program. The Fountain reached out earlier this year, and I’m a sucker for love stories, comedies, big casts, the challenges of directing outside and, of course, for plays that center queer women!

Hannah Wolf, director of Last Summer at Bluefish Cove at The Fountain Theatre

Had you seen (or read) the play before you were selected to direct it?

I knew about Jane Chambers because of the incredibly talented playwrights who have won the Jane Chambers prize, including LA icon Gina Young. But I had never experienced her work until now. This probably means that my lesbian theatre maker card should be revoked.

Why do you think Chambers’ play is such an important one in the theatre world?

Queer history is often only archived orally. There’s not much on the official record because queer spaces were underground, in backrooms and easily pushed aside. Last Summer tells a story of one of these spaces. Yes, it’s a fictional place, but it carries the legacy of safe space that has been lost to time.

Jane Chambers, playwright of Last Summer at Bluefish Cove

This play also is an important part of the queer theatre canon because of Jane Chambers’ mission to write characters and stories not rooted in queer trauma. She was a leader in the movement to tell stories about queer people living their lives, not defined or harmed because of their queerness.

What do you see as the main message of the play? And how is it shown?

“Dykes are people too” is a line that hits me every night in a new way. The characters demand that they not be defined by their sexuality, that they are seen as people living full lives. It’s a play about a chosen family and the importance of safe spaces. It’s also about the universal risk in being vulnerable and opening oneself up to someone else. Lil risks being truly seen, and, in that, she lets herself fall in love for the first time. Eva lets herself be open to new possibilities and discovers a new side of herself.

Lindsay LaVanchy and Ann Sonneville
Photo by Frank Ishman

What are the challenges of directing the play outdoors this summer?

The weather this “summer!” We’re either slowly baking in the parking lot or freezing in this very cold spring. I thought it was going to be a challenge to work with the noise of the neighborhood, but it’s actually been really fun to embrace the neighborhood and its liveliness. We’re not hiding away in a dark room, we’re interacting with the neighbors, we’re putting the process on display and learning the rhythms of the people and businesses around us.

Tell me about the production’s cast and crew.

I’m obsessed with our team! We’re a crew of all women and non-binary theatre makers and many people working on the production are queer. It’s so exciting and fulfilling to collaborate with these theatre artists and to work together.

The Fountain Theatre cast of Last Summer at Bluefish Cove:
Sarah Scott Davis, Ellen D. Williams, Stephanie Pardi, Lindsay LaVanchy, Tamika Katon-Donegal, Ann Sonneville, Noelle Messier, Stasha Surdyke
Photo by Frank Ishman

How did you go about casting and finding your creative team? Had you worked with any of them before?

The entire cast is new to me, but the entire team now feels like old friends. I’m so proud of the mix of artists involved, from Fountain regulars like Stasha Sturdyke, Lindsey LaVanchy and Sarah Scott Davis, to LA theatre stalwarts like Ellen D. Williams and Tamika Katon Donegal, to actors who are returning to theatre after a long break like Stephanie Pardi and Noelle Messier, to newer-to-the-LA community members like Ann Sonneville. This team of actors is made complete by our amazing swing, who is covering multiple roles, Allison Husko.

Ann Sonneville and Lindsay LaVanchy
Photo by Frank Ishman

I’d been trying to work with designers RS Buck, Halei Parker and Rebecca Carr for a long time, and I’m so glad they were available for this production. I’ve had the good fortune of working with Andrea Allmond, the sound designer, before, and we’re always looking for more ways to collaborate. Desma Murphy is a long-time Fountain scenic designer who took a break from stage work for film and TV. We were able to convince her to come back for this production and she’s been working tirelessly to turn the parking lot into a Long Island cove! We also have the good fortune of working with intimacy director Savanah Knechel. It’s a fantastic team working to bring the show, characters and world to life.

Sarah Scott Davis and Tamika Katon-Donegal
Photo by Frank Ishman

Tell me about the characters in the play, including the interloper who joins them.

Eva, a recent divorcee, finds herself in Bluefish Cove. She’s had her eyes opened by feminist icon Dr. Kitty Cochrane and Eva’s ready to find her own voice. She’s not ready for Lil, a charming alley cat, and gets swept away by Lil and finds herself smack dab in the middle of a chosen family. This family includes closeted Dr. Kitty Cochrane, as well as some of Lil’s oldest and dearest friends. Lil has a secret and this chosen family is committed to giving Lil the best summer ever.

With the play opening during Pride Month, how are you reaching out to the LGBTQ community about it?

Beyond opening during Pride Month, you can find us at Pride events like the parades and Dyke Day. We’re partnering with the Los Angeles LGBT Center; Equality LA; and the LA County Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women’s Health Collaborative. We’ll also be having queer affinity nights.

Ellen D. Williams and Noelle Messier
Photo by Frank Ishman

What universal message do you hope audiences will talk about after seeing it?

Love the people around you as hard as you can. Be open to the adventures that might be right in front of you. Find the people who see you exactly as you are and hold onto them as tightly as you can.

Anything else you would like to add?

Stasha Surdyke and Stephanie Pardi. Photo by Frank Ishman

We’re in a moment when LGBTQIA+ people are being pushed back to the edges of society through violence and legislation. While this show is not polemic, being openly queer and taking up space as a queer person is a political act. Now’s the time to embrace queer stories and to teach queer history.

Last Summer at Bluefish Cove runs June 17 through August 27, with performances on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays at 7 p.m. (dark Monday, June 20). Three preview performances will take place on Wednesday, June 14; Thursday, June 15 and Friday, June 16, also at 7 p.m.

Tickets range from $25–$45 with Pay-What-You-Want seating available every Monday night in addition to regular seating (subject to availability); all previews are Pay-What-You-Want. Tickets at https://www.fountaintheatre.com/events/bluefish-cove

The Fountain Theatre is located at 5060 Fountain Avenue (at Normandie) in Los Angeles. Patrons are invited to relax before and after the show at the Fountain’s indoor/outdoor café. Secured parking is available for $5 in a lot across the street. Street parking is available; please read all parking signs carefully.

Fountain Theatre Interview with Hannah Wolf on You Tube: https://youtu.be/NLAFYbNhvd8