Obituary of Wade Sammis MacConnell

MacCONELL, Wade ‘Scott’ Waterside Wade Sammis ‘Scott’ MacConnell of Waterside passed away on Sunday, April 30, 2023 after living with progressive supranuclear palsy for over seventeen years. Born in Hempstead, Long Island, New York, Scott was a direct descendent of Pieter Van Quackenbush who settled in Albany, NY in 1660 and whose sister was the great-great-grandmother of Martin Van Buren, eighth President of the United States. Through his maternal grandmother he was also a descendent of John Sammis and Captain Edward Higbie, founders of the town of Huntington, NY in 1653. Scott graduated from Amherst College in Massachusetts, studied at the Yale School of Drama in Connecticut for two years and obtained his master’s degree from Columbia University in New York City. Before full retirement in 2019, Scott was a seasoned survivor in professional theatre whose 68- year career included work as a theatrical designer, technical director, company manager, producer, stage manager, director, and performer. He had more than 350 designs to his credit, including productions at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, off-Broadway in New York City, and in Prince Edward Island at the Confederation Centre in Charlottetown, and fifteen seasons at the Victoria Playhouse in Victoria by the Sea. In addition to his design work, Scott also taught theatrical design and technology for over 36 years at Montclair State University, NJ. In 1972 he founded Summerfun Theatre in Montclair, NJ and served as producer for the 28 seasons of its operation. He was also a 30-year member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. After moving to Waterside, Nova Scotia in 2001, Scott served as a board member of the Ship Hector Foundation, was a docent at the Ship Hector Quay, and designed the below decks display on the ship. In his spare time, he began building ship models accumulating a collection of primarily working vessels in addition to a model of the Ship Hector. He is survived by his wife, Stephanie Mykietyn. Cremation has taken place and there will be no services. A gathering to celebrate his life is planned for a later date.