Jerry Zaks '67 on Warner Bentley

"I Was Frightened Of Him."

HE FIRST TIME I, SAW Warner Bentley was when I went to, audition for the revival of "Wonderful "Town." Up until then, he was just the legendary Warner Bentley, the man who, as much as any single individual, was responsible for the Hopkins Center being here. Anyway, I sang for him. And I sang and I sang, and then I finished. And he took a long pause. I was terrified I was terrified because I wanted the part so badly and because he was Warner Bentley. And he said, in that gruff, unsentimental voice of his, "Where were you the first time, kid?" and he walked out. I turned to the assistant, and he said, "That means you got it."

That was the first time I saw Warner Bentley, and I was frightened of him. He was the director and I was the sophomore. Over the years, that fear was replaced by respect and an understanding that all he wanted was that you do good work and be happy doing it. That's what he wanted. There was no other agenda; it was never more complicated than that.

What set Warner Bentley apart was that when he spoke about the theater, he was speaking out of experience. He didn't just talk about it or theorize about it, he did it. And I can remember vividly how excited he would get. For an 18-year-old, that level of excitement seemed kind of strange, but in retrospect it was passionate and heartfelt. He wanted us to get it. You couldn't help responding to that. The fact is, I came here without any theater experience; I came here saying, "I'm going to be a doctor." And I left here determined to work in the theater.

There's a misconception that having a mentor automatically means spending a lot of time in that person's company. To me, Warner represented something. It was clear in his manner, and it went beyond the amount of time we spent together. He was as much a mentor to me as he walked through the halls of the Hopkins Center as he was when he worked with me.

I'll tell you, the look on his face when he would see the things I later directed after graduation the look on his face when he would see the way I was working with the actors told me that he knew that I had gotten it. Whatever it was that he had to pass on, I had gotten it.

Jerry Zaks

JERRY ZAKS IS A BROADWAY DIRECTOR currently affiliated with Jujamcyn Theaters. Hehas won the 1986, 1989, and 1990 TonyAwards for best director.