Friends of Hexagon-dc examiner

Friends of Hexagon

DC Examiner
March 6, 2005

Theater with‚ "levity and jesting for all" - Hexagon group puts political satire on center stage

By MICHAEL S. GERBER
Examiner Staff Writer

Malcolm Edwards was frustrated. With opening night just days away, several numbers still needed significant work. So he decided to sit the cast down and get serious.

"I thought it was time to give them a short, sharp jerk of the reins," Edwards, 63, said Tuesday, the day after dressing down the amateur actors. "It's just a matter of getting them to get the best out of themselves."

At times like these, Edwards relies on his 25 years in the British Army to help him as a director. The Rockville resident, who by day works on defense issues at the Australian Embassy, is directing "With Levity and Jesting for All," this year's production by Hexagon, a group that puts on an annual musical revue that raises money for charity.

This year's show, which opens Friday at the Duke Ellington Theatre of the Arts in Georgetown, marks the group's 50th anniversary. Members of the group like to brag that the show's traditional kickline is the second-oldest in the world after the Rockettes.

Since its first show in 1956, which raised $2,600 for the American Cancer Society, Hexagon members say the group has given more than $3.5 million to a wide range of local charities, including Hospice, Habitat for Humanity, and Food & Friends.

This year is different - they're giving the money to themselves. A few years ago, some Hexagon veterans established Friends of Hexagon, a separate entity to raise money for the theater group, which was struggling with the costs of equipment, storage space and theater rental.

"Friends of Hexagon is needed in order to ensure that Hexagon doesn't go out of business," said Bill Wisniewski of Alexandria, the show's technical director and a 26-year veteran of the all-volunteer production.

But Hexagon is more than a fund-raiser; for many of its members, it has also become a central part of their lives. The group includes teachers, engineers, lawyers and political operatives, among others, who dedicate three months of each year to writing, promoting and staging the production.

"We have such a wide range of backgrounds," said Mark McCaffrey, 40, an Arlington resident who is performing with Hexagon for the second time. Before moving from England to Washington a few years ago, McCaffrey had almost no theater experience. For his day job, McCaffrey is an engineer with R. Bratti Associates, an Alexandria stonemasonry firm.

"The inner me has come out," he joked of his newfound love for theater.

Like McCaffrey, many members of Hexagon were recruited by friends and have since become integral parts of the group. Neil McElroy, a 64-year-old resident of Silver Spring, saw the show in the, 60s when his cousin was a performer. In 1972, he auditioned for the first time. Thirty-three years later, he's still in the show; his roles include Richard Nixon in a "Laugh-in"-inspired sketch featuring a wall of presidents.

McElroy, who has also done local community theater, gets to express himself in ways that his job as a technical specialist for PanAmSat doesn't afford. "I seldom sing and dance at work," McElroy said.

He also met his wife through the show; she stays offstage, accompanying the singers on the piano. They are not the only Hexagon couple. Wisniewski's wife, Jennifer Strand, is the show's producer. Director Edwards' wife is in the kickline. Two couples in this year's cast are engaged.

"The social side of this is a huge part of it," said McCaffrey, whose girlfriend is a cast member. "It's a big family."

The production process begins in the fall, when writers and composers start coming up with ideas for songs. Some of the writers simply contribute a song or two. Others, like Doug Maurer, are institutions within the group.

"I got involved a long time ago," Maurer said before admitting that the first song he wrote for Hexagon was "My Pet Rock is in Love," for the 1976 production. Maurer, a professor of computer science at George Washington University, wrote much of the music and lyrics to this year's show, including a bit called "Lockstep" that parodies lawmakers who don't break with their party's leadership.

Other victims of this year's satire include the entire Bush family, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and the hit TV series "Desperate Housewives."

The show runs through March 26, with a special birthday party on March 5 and the group's annual "Congress Night" on March 16. That peformance will feature cameos from several lawmakers, including local Reps. Tom Davis, R-Va., and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., whose chief of staff is a Hexagon veteran and one of this year's choreographers.

Tickets are available by calling 202-333-SHOW or visiting the Hexagon Web site at www.hexagon.org.