Theater History

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| Hypnotizing Chickens | Ghosts in the Theater

Have you ever wondered what makes our shows so entrancing? Alice Punwar, a UW-Madison student in the early 1950s and a Professor Emerita of Occupational Therapy now, reminisces about one explanation. She remembers coming to the Wisconsin Union Theater to hear Frank Lloyd Wright. It was the legendary architect's heyday and the house was full of excited folks eager to hear the man. Dressed in his famous cape, he delivered his lecture and then invited questions from the audience. As Prof. Punwar describes it, "someone had the temerity to ask him to comment on the theater's design. He made a sour face. 'Do you know how to hypnotize a chicken?' he asked, directing the audience's attention to the ceiling lines that point to the stage, 'this is how to do it.'" She adds, "I believe he was talking about the way the line draws attention to the stage. He seemed very disdainful." Despite the putdown, Punwar continued coming to the theater, spending many a day and night here. "I still attend," she says, "and I still look at that line."

Do you have an interesting theater-related story? Send it to Esty Dinur at the theater or email edinur@wisc.edu. Please enclose a phone number.