Who’s Selena Gomez?

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
She handed me one of Selena’s jumpsuits and I complied. For the record: I didn’t tingle with excitement. It was just another costume to me.

Over Ibsen

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
My roommate retired from theatre in 2001 to work for a gay porn magazine.

Langston Hughes Meets The Red Shoes

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
The Virgin Mary had a miscarried a baby boy on Christmas Day. It was spooky and sad. It was the darkest performance of Black Nativity imaginable.

Warrior

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
I can say with complete honestly that I took a beating during the run of this play.

C*NTerine the Great

Angels in America

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
Twenty summers later: I’m still alive and healthy. I found myself sitting in a Thai restaurant having dinner with a few of my Angels alumni.

The Ninja Knot

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
The magazine Variety came to town to review Secondhand Lions and called it “… entertaining but not endearing.”

Vreeland and Taffeta

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
Louise can drape the world in changeable taffeta if she wants. Thelma can sweater shop herself into a frenzy.

Harriet

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
I thought Harriet’s big break would come with Langston Hughes’ Black Nativity. I was a cocky stage mother and thought Harriet would be a shoe-in to play Baby Jesus.

Death of a Theatre

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
When the light bulb in my sewing machine burnt out, I didn’t even ask for money to replace it. For weeks, I just repaired costumes in the dark.

John Travolta’s Brother

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
As the dresser, it’s best to just play along or be silent about odd situations like this.

George, Martha, Pete & Steve

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
Sometimes, when working on a live theatre production, the problems don’t originate from what’s going on onstage. They start with the audience.

No Nipples!

Dressing Spoon and Rug

Mary Plaid Lincoln

Rosie O’Donnell … in Grease?

The Old Settler

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
“I’m going to play Hamlet someday,” he would tell me in awe everyday. Good luck, Husband.

Recipe: Anne Frank Surprise

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
Mix script with director until it’s conceptual. Add set designer. Continue stirring until a set appears that has no walls or closets.

Peter Plan

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Misc
We did this cartoony The L Word version of Peter Pan until the Wendy #1’s ankle and the Peter # 1’s lungs were healed.

Love’s Labour’s Stain

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
Who could forget the ninety-minute modern dress Julius Caesar? --which turned out to be ninety minutes of screaming.

Nan Martin

Lillian Hellman & Jenny Craig

Ito

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
“Awww. You did the best you could do. Well, at least your theatre didn’t make Ito white,” he said.

IATSE

Earnest With Debra Messing

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
“Oh my god, that girl sucks all the air out of the room,” Lady Bracknell commented during dress rehearsal.

Lynn Redgrave and Betty

/ Dennis Milam Bensie / Letters & Essays
I remembered watching Lynn Redgrave with my mother on the television show, House Calls. I was in awe.

The King And I

Into the Woods