2008 Woodie Awards
The Story Behind 2nd Story Theatre
Ashlee Irons
Issue date: 2/16/06 Section: Entertainment
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The Newport Art Museum was bustling Saturday afternoon for the sixth installment of its eight part winter lecture series. Speaking on the power of intimate theater was Ed Shea, the artistic director of the 2nd Story Theatre, in Warren.
"If you were ever at Trinity and saw Ed Shea enter a scene, you understand the kind of energy he brings to the stage. These days, he's bringing the same kind of energy that made him a Trinity favorite to his very popular 2nd Story Theatre in Warren," said Richard Hunt a member of the Winter Lecture Series Committee, who set the stage for Shea.
Relying on the power of his voice rather than a microphone, Shea opted not to lecture behind a podium, allowing for a more personal connection with his audience. Shea remarked, "When you come to my theater and spend two hours of your valuable time and I have you captive in that space I want to give you something valuable." Shea too succeeded in giving his audience a valuable and insightful lecture on his experience with theatre.
Shea lectured in a casual grey shirt and jeans with a coffee cup in hand, looking the part of a very young 47-year-old. For an hour Shea shared what he called his "spiritual and professional journey," with acting, directing and opening his own intimate theatre. A graduate of Portsmouth High School, Shea decided not to attend college and instead saved up money to go to New York to study acting. "I had no idea what I was doing. What I learned I learned by doing. I had an old fashioned apprenticeship, I sat hour upon hour upon hour watching people act."
At age 38, Shea decided to apply for a spot on Brown University's Resumed Undergraduate program which is geared toward those who never went to college or never finished. He entered that year as a freshman, which was an experience he described with two words, frightening and terrifying. "These kids are smart, they're been doing it for 18 years straight." The classes at Brown allowed him to see the connection between literature, history and art and his fascination with acting grew. "When I got it my instinct was to teach it," said Shea.