Erie Playhouse to conduct national search for new leaders

There's hope that the Erie Playhouse can regain the solid financial and artistic footing that made it one of the nation’s top community theaters.

A national search is underway to find new management for the Playhouse, and Richard Davis, the theater’s longtime production manager, is back on the job after being away for six months.

More:Erie Playhouse executive director, Youtheatre director resign; producing director returns

If Charlie Corritore, the heart and soul of the Playhouse House for nearly half a century, could be coaxed out of retirement, that all-star team would be complete.

Until fairly recently, area high school theater programs could count on support from the Playhouse for costumes, sets and other stage equipment. The cost used to be minimal, but things changed. Now there’s an opportunity to help restore that community spirit.

More: Erie Playhouse revises 2023 season lineup in wake of leadership resignations

● This month's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day reminded me of all the great music provided for the annual MLK celebrations by Mother McClaudia Nolley. She was a gifted artist at the keyboards and a terrific singer for more than 70 years until her death at 86 in December. Nolley made every King Day very special.

Mother McClaudia Nolley: 1936-2022

● The Erie Donut Factory, which opened last year in Millcreek Township’s Summit Plaza, has already outgrown its space. The popular doughnut shop will move a few doors north in the plaza, taking up residence in the former Gordon’s Meat Market. It’s a larger space that will help the store keep up with demand.

Glazed, filled or iced: Here are places in the Erie area to find your favorite doughnuts

● Sorry to see that Joe Lombardi, grandson of the late Vince Lombardi and a former assistant football coach at Mercyhurst University, was fired last week by the Los Angeles Chargers. Lombardi had served as the Chargers’ offensive coordinator.

He made his mark in the NFL as a highly respected offensive coach with the New Orleans Saints, Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons. Lombardi won’t be out of a job for long.

More: Chargers fire offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi

● People are still talking about the moving eulogy Sister Joan Chittister gave for Sister Mary Lou Kownacki, who died Jan. 6. Chittister and Kownacki were the Benedictine Sisters’ equivalent of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehring.

Kownacki did it all during her rich life as she started programs, built schools, campaigned for all the right causes and became a leader wherever she went. I got to know her 50 years ago when she was a young news reporter for the Erie Daily Times. She excelled at that job, as she did in every other assignment.

More: Erie Benedictine Mary Lou Kownacki, peace activist, former reporter and poet, dies at 81

● Retired Erie School District principal Ed Grode is touring several African nations as we speak and likely won’t return home until spring at the earliest. Grode has established many close friendships with people from across the globe.

More: Handmade bags sold in Erie carry hope for refugees in Kenya

● Congratulations to Jule Gardner Banville, former Erie Morning News reporter, whose podcast "An Absurd Result" was recently named one of the nation’s five best by Slate. Jule and her husband and family have settled in the beautiful mountains of Montana where she teaches at the University of Montana’s School of Journalism.

● A new steakhouse, Bricks, is scheduled to open in February at Erie’s historic Cashier’s House on State Street. The owners already manage the Straw Hat Ice Cream Shop and North Row Philly in the Flagship City Food Hall.

The Cashier’s House includes a courtyard where the restaurant hopes to grow many of its own vegetables.

More: Cashier's House restaurant to open

● A recent article for The DO by Erie osteopath Pat Leary is receiving national attention, primarily for its timeliness. Leary commented on the responsibility of news organizations when covering injuries to National Football League players.

Coverage of the cardiac arrest suffered by Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin drew the attention of media critics, who referenced Leary’s excellent article.

More:Damar Hamlin visits Bills facility

● The recent death of former Pittsburgh Pirates slugger Frank Thomas reminded me of his speaking tour in Erie during the spring of 1973. Thomas, who died at 93, visited local high schools to encourage kids to stay away from drugs.

When he appeared at Cathedral Prep, where I was a student, I called Times Sports editor Dick Stone to alert him of the former all-star’s visit. Dick told me to go ahead and interview Thomas, which I did, although the former outfielder seemed put off by questions from a punk kid.

When I asked him about the nasty fight he’d had with Philadelphia's Richie Allen, Thomas shut down the interview. It was an abiding lesson for me: save the hard questions for last.

● Erie native Bob Derda, who spent 18 seasons in the Pittsburgh Pirates front office, comes home often to visit his mother, Kathleen, now 88. For the past six years, Bob has chaired the Sports, Arts, and Entertainment Management program at Point Park University, where he is an associate professor.

Bob and his late father, Bob Derda Sr., used to bring representatives of the Pirates to Erie every January for a winter caravan stop. The Derdas always remembered when they introduced a young Pirates manager named Jim Leyland to Erie Mayor Lou Tullio. Leyland received a welcome he would recall for many years.

Kevin Cuneo can be reached at kevin.cuneo1844@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie Playhouse to conduct national search for new leaders