Shining Stars

Gord Conroy and Al Croxall

“It’s always been about the people,” says Gord Conroy as we sit in the Tim Horton’s across the street from the beautiful Ancaster Memorial Arts Centre. “Everything we’ve ever done, it’s been about supporting the needs of people in the community, and it’s been brought about by the work of people who care.”

Theatre Ancaster cruises into its twenty-eighth year this season, and as we continue to find ways to grow, we want to highlight the men who started this ball rolling and show you what they’re doing today.

Theatre Ancaster was founded in 1997 under the leadership of Gord Conroy, Al Croxall, and Ralf Hackenberg, but that doesn’t really hit on the true beginnings of the work they’ve done together. As Gord and Al tell it, the true beginning was back in 1982. The three men were teachers at Ancaster High, and one day, Ralf Hackenberg stepped into the staff room and said, “Hey, let’s do a musical.”

Al and Ralf kicked things off by directing Grease that year, and a tradition of musical theatre in the auditorium of Ancaster High School was born.

In 1992, Bob Wade, the Mayor of Ancaster approached Ralf about pulling together people who had been involved in their musicals to put on a show celebrating Ancaster’s 200th anniversary. This request spawned the beginning of bringing together the greater community to create theatre. The shows created following this request led to a conversation on Al’s back porch that launched Theatre Ancaster.

Al was Theatre Ancaster’s first President. Gord says, “Al was a real renaissance man. He wasn’t scared of anything. He was always willing to learn and try new things, and he did it all. Every time there was a roadblock, Al was ready to try something new and find the solution. He was and is a creative, outside-the-box thinker.”

After teaching there for so long, Ancaster High School and the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board were very generous with the auditorium facilities that were the home to Theatre Ancaster productions for many years. As Gord recounts, all of Theatre Ancaster’s growth and new achievements came out of a desire to meet community needs and partnering with others in the community who wanted to help.

“When people pointed out that the teens in the community didn’t have a place to get onstage anymore, we were able to create our Young Company, the children of our former students prompted us to create the Youth Programs, and the growing number of seniors in our ranks who wanted to get back on stage, or up on that stage for the first time, led us to start our Classics Company. It’s always been about saying yes to a need.”

Saying yes and partnering with people who cared deeply for the Ancaster community, such as Bob Wilkins, Lloyd Ferguson, and a host of very generous donors led us into the Firehall and now, our wonderful home in the Ancaster Memorial Arts Centre.

As we sit, Gord is able to talk about individual people and their contributions from years and years ago. Al confides that this is Gord’s great strength and one of the reasons that Theatre Ancaster has stood the test of time. “Gord really, truly cares about people. He’s totally in sync with them. He remembers and keeps in touch with everyone. There’s no question that everyone who comes into contact with Gord knows that they are appreciated.”

Over the years, there have been many new faces, and what Theatre Ancaster has been able to accomplish has grown tremendously from the early days. The founders have brought along other leaders to take over projects they started and nurture them in new ways. Ralf has retired from Theatre Ancaster to spend time on other hobbies.

These days, Gord and Al still direct shows. Gord leads our Classics Company in putting on original plays. Al works with his wife, Krys, to direct our Classics Company Musical and lead our Christmas Benefit show that gives towards the work of Ancaster Community Services. They also constantly look to find ways to help others in leading the company. Gord tells me, “We’re still involved, but we think it’s important for us to cheerlead other leaders in their efforts. The key is to sincerely believe it when you say ‘Good job, thank you, this is amazing.’ There is a depth of gratitude and sincerity behind the cheerleading. A commitment to the people is what’s important.”

After sitting with Gord and Al for a couple of hours, I have too much material to reasonably share. Both men have so many kind words to share, praising each other, Ralf, and others who have given large portions of their lives to Theatre Ancaster. Perhaps the greatest testament to their work is how deeply those that have joined them at Theatre Ancaster have cared about their vision for the company.

As Theatre Ancaster prepares for another season, Gord and Al are hopeful about keeping people at the forefront. “Gord’s right about the people, of course,” says Al. “The people who care about each other and Theatre Ancaster have been the strongest reason for our success.” Al and Gord both look forward to celebrating our ongoing commitment to identify and meet the needs of others in our community for a long time to come.