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Cleland gives drama queen whole new meaning
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Cleland played the part of Dotty in the performance of "Noises Off."
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Kandace Cleland plays Mona, a wise-cracking waitress from Atlanta, in "Jingle My Bell," a play she wrote for the Stage Left Players at Trinity Playhouse in Lisbon, where she is the resident artistic director.
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Kandace Cleland not only writes and directs shows, she also acts in them. Shown here on the left, she played Muzzy VanHosmere in "Thoroughly Modern Millie."
By ABBY SLANKER
To say Kandace Cleland loves the theater is an understatement.
Not only is she in her 15th year as the Canfield Village Middle School seventh- and eighth-grade drama teacher and the Drama Club adviser, she is also in her 19th year as the resident artistic director for the Trinity Playhouse in Lisbon, home to the Stage Left Players.
Cleland spends most of her waking moments writing, directing and acting in theatre at the school and in the community.
According to Cleland, although she loves teaching the students at the middle school, her middle school years were not a good experience for her and that is how she really got into theater.
“I was a shy person in middle school and I considered myself an outsider. But I pushed through that and it made me who I am now. I embrace the students and know what some of them are going through. My experience also gave me the sense as a performer about how to get inside the mind of a character and what makes that character tick,” Cleland said.
Cleland grew up liking the visual arts such as painting. She studied visual arts in college for two years and soon found a home at the Salem Community Theatre, helping backstage and creating props for the productions. She eventually found herself on stage.
She finished college with a bachelor’s degree in theater, with a concentration in directing. She then earned her master’s degree in teaching and landed at Canfield Village Middle School.
Cleland enjoys childrens’ theater and has written numerous shows. Recently, 69 children auditioned for “Eureka!” at Trinity Playhouse. Not wanting to cut any children who auditioned, she split the children into two shows. Thirty-five girls performed in “Eureka!” and 34 boys and girls performed in “Prince’s Diaries.”
“I did not want to dash any of the childrens’ dreams of being in a show. I didn’t want to discourage them from continuing with the theater just because we didn’t have enough parts for each of them to play,” she said.
Cleland also directed the Canfield High School play, “Bruce and Tina’s Wedding,” with more than 50 students.
Not to mention all of these shows were in production and rehearsals at approximately the same time, including “Jingle My Bell,” a holiday bee bop musical, with actors from the Stage Left Players.
She wrote the production and is also playing the role of Mona, a wise-cracking waitress from Atlanta. The show is back at Trinity Playhouse this year by popular demand.
“I consider ‘Jingle My Bell’ my ‘holiday therapy.’ After a long day at school, I look forward to going to rehearsal because I know it will be a lot of fun and we will have a good time. We have an exceptional cast. Sometimes I am so tired and this reminds me of my love of making people laugh. I consider this play a happy holiday high for people, and that is what they need this time of year,” Cleland said.
According to Cleland, the playhouse is something she has wanted since she was a child.
“My mother always told me to find something I love to do even if I don’t get paid for it. I have been fortunate enough to find theater and combine it with my love of teaching. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.
“Soon after I acquired the Trinity Playhouse, I was locking up one night and a voice inside me said, ‘You got your wish.’” Cleland said.