John Harvey
John Harvey is a man who wears many hats for Pegasus Theatre; he’s our Resident Props Designer, Stage Manager, Craft Services Manager, Inventory Manager, and Producer of our RadioVizion play reading series. Learn more about the man under those hats in this brief Q&A.
Q: How long have you been involved in theatre?
I played a toy soldier in the third grade Christmas Pageant; by fifth grade, I had been promoted to Santa Claus. (Thanks, Miss Shockley!) I was in a couple of plays in high school, and took courses in college, thinking that this was the path that my life would take. But in the words of the Sage of Liverpool, John Lennon, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”
Q: How long have you been involved with Pegasus Theatre?
Nearly 30 years after college, I found myself at a midlife crossroads, and decided that I would get back into the theatre. I knew the director of Pegasus Theatre’s 2006 production, Mind Over Murder!, and shamelessly exploited that relationship to get on board as the Assistant Stage Manager (ASM). About the same time, the show’s prop designer had backed out at the last minute. As I recall, I didn’t duck quickly enough when Kurt and Barb were looking to replace him. So I ended up wearing two hats for my very first Pegasus show. I was making it all up as I went along, and having a marvelous time doing it!
Honestly, though, I expected that I’d work on two or three plays, purge the Theatre Bug from my system, and move on to something else. But the Theatre Bug is a tricky and persistent critter, and the more you get, the more you want. I’ve now worked for numerous companies in the area, but Pegasus is the one I come back to year after year.
Q: What is it about Pegasus Theatre that keeps you coming back?
The fact that we’re a family. A severely dysfunctional family sometimes, but a family nonetheless.
Q: Any favorite moments that stand out for you?
Having my right arm on stage during Rehearsal for Murder!
It was towards the end of the first act. Harry is alone on stage, retracing his steps in an effort to find a misplaced script. Every time he sits in a certain armchair, an arm with a knife comes out of a secret compartment and attempts to stab Harry. Of course, with Harry’s dumb luck, on every single attempt, Harry moves just in the nick of time, completely oblivious to his brush with death.
Got a laugh every dang time.
(Editor’s note: John is being modest about his ability to convey emotion with just one arm. Each time, the arm got more and more frustrated. I almost felt sorry for the poor arm by the end of the bit!)
Q: You have the interesting situation of wearing multiple hats in your work with Pegasus. Is that fun, challenging, annoying, etc, and what makes it so?
Yes, it’s fun, challenging, and annoying, often all at the same time.
The fun part is being the ringmaster of the one-ring circus that invariably takes place backstage, knowing that no matter how close it comes to being overwhelming, at least I’m not covered in make-up and sweating off the pounds under the stage lights.
The challenge arises from the fact that I have no real formal training, only experience. I often find myself reinventing at least one wheel each year, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
The annoying part is that there are only 24 hours in the day, especially in December and January. But no matter how busy I get, I’m surrounded by people who make it all worthwhile.
Q: What do you do when you aren’t working with Pegasus?
I work in the garden, I sing in the choir, and my team has its eye on the coveted first-place trophy at the Alamo Drafthouse’s chapter of Geeks Who Drink.
Q: Looking back at all your experiences, who would you say has influenced you the most in your theatrical career?
Hands down, Robin Armstrong, director par excellence. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have gotten back into theatre; the alternative at the time was mortuary school, but I don’t think I could have handled the irregular hours and all that heavy lifting.
Hey, wait a minute…
Q: What comes next for you?
What did you have in mind?