Contributions to the tribute of Wade Sammis MacConnell

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Dottie Lydon posted a condolence

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

MacConnell, MacConnell, MacConnell, it’s hard to think of a world without you. You certainly made some impressive improvements while you were here, and your ripple effect is still spreading. I wish I had taken time to tell you all that you meant to me. You would have had my thanks in-person had I only applied your advice to “Do it now, while you can!” Still, that advice has helped dictate my life’s path. Thanks, MacConnell! Here’s SOME of what you did for me: We first met before I entered Montclair State, when my sister, Agnes, took me to meet you after a show. I had been accepted as an English major but thought I’d pick up some theater courses since I had loved performing in high school. You welcomed me and told me to stop by whenever I liked, that your door would always be open. You took time to stop and check on me in the first week of classes. I asked about the overwhelming list of hundreds of plays a professor had told us we should already know. I figured you tell me not to worry. You just nodded and said, “Yup. Let me know if you have trouble finding the scripts, but see the shows if you can. Words on a page won’t be enough.” I was working on a set with Gene, John and Joe one day, complaining that my thirty-hours-a-week job could cover commuting expenses but little else. You strolled over and said you were looking for some work-study help for events. I learned and saw more shows in those events than I ever could have imagined. Maureen and I were sitting in your office studying for a test when you asked if we had declared our double majors yet. “If you’re putting in the time,” you advised, “you might as well get credit for it.” Employment at Jersey schools was tight when we graduated. She and I were the only two English teachers in Montclair’s Class of ’76 who were offered fulltime jobs in public schools. I taught combinations of English, speech and theater for decades and was never without a job when I moved. Thanks, Boss! You opened another magical world when we toured The Mandrake to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. We stayed at a Howard Johnson right across from the Watergate, in the midst of that political controversy. Working in the Opera House before they finished the Eisenhower Theater, Carolyn and I had climbed two ladders to hang the portal. We looked down and saw four men holding our ladders, two on each. Turns out there were union rules we hadn’t learned yet. You were just standing to the side smiling, although you did intercede when I picked up a broom and was told by a KC crew member that I couldn’t use it. You strolled over and took the broom, “The floor belongs to props,” you explained to me, then turned to him and promised it wouldn’t happen again. The two of you went off smiling, and my transgression has fueled many of my stories. Other competent advisers had been assigned to me, but after my first semester, you checked my schedules before they approved them. You pointed out that it didn’t cost any more to take twenty-one credits than to take twelve. I enjoyed an array of classes I would otherwise have missed. When I was accepted as a cast member for Summerfun Summer Theater and also won a scholarship to study outside London for the next year, I went to you with my dilemma: I couldn’t afford to do both. You had offered such hearty congratulations that I’d be at Summerfun! You really understood how important it was for me to participate. I thought you’d have a strong opinion one way or the other. Instead, you asked me to consider future benefits and life choices. Did I want to act professionally? To which experiences would a principal making a hiring decision give more weight? Which opportunities might be available at another time? Which were one-time chances? You volunteered that while either group might be inconvenienced if I chose the other, neither would be angry. When I opted to go to England, you wished me well. Years later, you gave me another chance. After my first year teaching, I was disappointed at the prospect of selling furniture all summer to cover my rent. You offered a job with Summerfun doing props. At the end of seven weeks, I was exhausted but had wonderful memories and no unpaid bills. I had never met anyone else who was as excited as I at finding someone who was getting rid of a house full of Venetian blinds or a box of old drawer handles. Your sheer joy was contagious. When an effect worked or one of us announced a success, your approval made us all glow. While teaching high school, I was offered a gig doing lighting for a dance company. I had never used dry ice before and called you for advice, explaining that the budget wouldn’t cover any practice. The effect went off as planned. I confessed to the choreographer that you had talked me through it. She said she’d seen some of your shows and liked the idea that I could just call you for advice. I lit shows for her for several years. I couldn’t take full credit for my employment there but enjoyed the extra coin. It's impossible to count how many of my home, volunteer and work projects relied on skills you taught me in designing and building, carpentry, painting, electrical wiring, recording, rigging, restoring, special effects, and adapting materials. I passed many of these skills along to well over a thousand students and my own daughters. Again and again, I have been grateful that you shared your knowledge and your life with me. Thanks, MacConnell, a little late but from the heart.

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Midge Guerrera posted a condolence

Thursday, May 25, 2023

Scott Mac Connell made sure I could bury a nail in a 2X4 in three swings. Now, that may not seem like a big deal until you try it and try it and try it. Until you can smash that nail into the wood and not bloody your finger. The hammer and nail exercise for me was a metaphor for the character necessary for a career in the arts. Scott taught us that persistence, practice and strength of will were absolutely necessary for success. I thank him for not letting me get away performing less than my best. I thank him for opening up the world to me - that London Trip my senior year. I thank him for his gruff no nonsense exterior and love for every student that was lucky enough to pass his way. He is missed.

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Debbie McCulloch posted a condolence

Thursday, May 25, 2023

I am writing in your book because I too just lost my husband to Progressive Supra Nuclear Palsy in March. Although this disease is supposed to be rare, there was three in Pictou County inflicted with this horrific disease. My condolences to you, I know what you experienced, and although we never met, there is that connection.

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Evie (Evelyn) Plummer lit a candle

Monday, May 22, 2023

As an educator, a mentor, an artist, and a cheerleader, W. Scott MacConnell (as I knew him) greatly influenced the trajectory of one of my careers and helped me develop an understanding of myself in ways that were deeper than I even realized. I came to Montclair State as an English major with virtually no understanding of tech theater. Through his support, encouragement, and opening of doors, I began on a path that eventually led to my second career as a professional stage manager. More than anyone else at Montclair, MacConnell was responsible for my pursuit of a theater career by strengthening my skills and boosting personal confidence. And there was another side. His caring and compassion got me through some difficult times. I particularly remember when a family crisis changed my work availability and I thought I would have to withdraw from my place on the stage crew for that first, innovative season of Summerfun. Although he had always treated me with respect and consideration, I was still touched by his empathy and his efforts to find a way for me to stay with the company - which I did. I will always be grateful that life's randomness put me at Montclair during his time. I am sure there are countless others whose lives he touched in similar ways, and I am proud to be joined with so many in that legacy.

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agnes azzolino posted a condolence

Sunday, May 21, 2023

I am who I am because of Scott MacConnell. I entered his backstage and box office world as a female and very much product of my time. Girls were sent to home ec in high school, not shop. At first I could only make wheat paste. By the time I graduated college, I was ready to teach math, not theatre, but also able to know when and how to use a 3/4 inch #8 wood screw, a 2"x4" and 1/2" ply, a ratchet, a hammer, a sabre saw and circular saw. Scott MacConnell gave me all of this. He gave me more. He gave me a job as a work study with a job description which included help build a set, work with others as a team member to construct and strike and package and transport a set, be a crew chief, act as leader for the incoming freshmen. He gave me the opportunity to teach those freshmen. He gave me more. He gave me, a commuting student, a home on campus. In his kingdom, his set and stage and box office office, I had an advisor, roll models, and a family and home. While the male math students spent their free time playing cards, I spent my time back stage and in his world. He gave me more. He treated me as a student but in many ways as an equal. He trusted me with his students and permitted me the opportunity to know and learn from his friends -- Ginny, Herbie, Renee. Scott MacConnell empowered me. He gave me life lessons -- lessons I have passed on to my son and students. Scott empowered me. I am who I am because of Scott MacConnell. a^2, George, Agnes Azzolino, MSC Class of 1971, Players Key Holder

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The family of Wade Sammis MacConnell uploaded a photo

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

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Joseph Krenetsky posted a condolence

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Mr. MacConnell, as I first knew him and Scott as I later called him was a big influence on my own theatre career. Through the theatre days at Montclair State College, I gained valuable technical theatre experience under Scott's guidance. I was fortunate to have helped with an Off-Broadway show that Scott designed and built for a show that his good friends Storey and Charles did. He got me an introduction to Stowe Playhouse where I designed lights and stage managed for several summers and got my Equity card. My fondest memories are of the Puns we exchanged while we worked on sets. I also remember a time we were taking a show on tour and we stopped for a meal. Scott was our teacher and we were students, but the only one to be carded was Scott! Good times, good memories, good guy. He will be missed.

Wade Sammis "Scott" MacConnell

1938 - 2023