NEW HAVEN – Long Wharf Theatre
Artistic Director Gordon Edelstein recalled the words of political operative
James Carville when reflecting upon on the two decades of service rendered to
the city of New Haven by former Yale University
president Richard C. Levin and outgoing Mayor John DeStefano.
“Carville said ‘outside of a
person's love, the most sacred thing a person can give is their labor. And if
you can combine labor with love, you have made the most important
merger,’” Edelstein said.
Levin and DeStefano were honored with the
theatre’s Founders Awards on Wednesday, October 9 during a luncheon at
the Union League Café. The awards are given to those whose commitment and
dedication to Long Wharf Theatre reflect those of the institution’s
founders 50 years ago.
“Everyone in this room, everyone in
greater New Haven,
and everyone in the Yale community which reaches around the globe, knows that
Rick and John have given us their most sacred of gifts, the gift of their work
and of their love,” said Artistic Director Gordon Edelstein. “Their
historic partnership has made New
Haven a safer, happier, and more prosperous place to
live and in the particular matter of this luncheon, a better, more commodious,
more welcoming place to make theatre.”
Both DeStefano and Levin used the occasion
to reflect on their time serving in New
Haven. New
Haven in early 1990s, when both men ascended to their
jobs, was a very different place. Wracked with problems, the impetus to work
together to create positive outcomes for both the city and the university was
paramount in their minds.
“It was a different time for the
university and it was a different time for the city and there were lots of
questions about the direction of the university and the direction of the
city,” DeStefano said to the group of about 60 Long Wharf Theatre
supporters. “In addressing the questions of our particular
responsibilities, we worked together to do that,” he said.
Long Wharf Theatre’s history inspired
a couple of different thoughts from DeStefano – the importance of team
work and long term, prolonged excellence. “The fact is if we are not
totally obscured by our ego and have some kind of self awareness, we recognize
our limitations and the talents of other people. We take that persistence and
that teamwork and we employ it to some greater good … by our efforts our
labor and our love, we heal some part of the world.”
DeStefano linked his collaboration with
Levin to the community collaboration that has been a hallmark of Long Wharf
Theatre over the years. We aren’t just connected to each now, in the
present, DeStefano believes, but we also connected over time.
“Frankly a lot of our hard work and
successes are built on the vision, effort of those who came before us, in this
case the founders of Long Wharf Theatre. If you think about it, there is no
reason why Long Wharf should still be alive. And what
holds it together, the stickiness to me of Long Wharf, is that people
understand that they are part of something bigger than themselves and people
struggled and fought really hard to keep going,” DeStefano said.
Levin recalled the importance of the arts in
his own life, growing up with a grandmother who designed costumes for the San
Francisco Opera, patronizing theatre and the visual arts during his time
studying abroad, and embracing the arts scene as a professor in New Haven. “Arts
have always been a big part of my life,” he said.
He believes that the efforts on the part of
both Yale and the city to the arts have gone a long way towards improving the quality
of life in New Haven.
“There has been a considerable commitment to making New Haven and Yale centers for the arts. Yale
has invested considerably in updating its facilities and programs in the arts
… the Mayor had the vision to see what the arts could bring to the city
in terms of attracting visibility and improvement in New Haven’s national image,”
Levin said.
The luncheon provided both men perhaps the
final opportunity to address their own working relationship over the past two
decades. DeStefano described his relationship with Levin as one of the defining
ones of his professional life, a sentiment Levin echoed.
“What a wonderful coincidence it’s
been that the two of us came in at the same time. We had in many many ways a
common vision for what this city could be. We had our differences, but deep
down we shared the same passion and commitment in making this a better place.
It was a troubled place in 1993 and it is a much better place today,”
Levin said.
For more information about Long Wharf Theatre,
visit www.longwharf.org or call
203-787-4282. This story can be found here: http://www.longwharf.org/blog/?p=414.
Photos are available upon request.
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