After a bit of arm-twisting by Gina Neuerer, the interim chair of the Theatre department, Professor Emeritus Robert MacClennan, also known around campus as “Mac,” is returning to Sinclair Community College to produce the winter production of “Antigone.”
“Mac was sort of taken aback,” said Neuerer when she asked MacClennan to return. “He said ‘The greatest job I ever had was retirement, and you’re asking me to come out of it?’”
Mac, 69, spent 26 years at Sinclair as the chair of the Theatre department before retiring in 1999. Neuerer said Mac was excited to come back to the college for another shot at directing “Antigone.”
Mac created the Theatre department in his first year at Sinclair in 1973. Though he has been out of the program for a decade, Mac said he has missed only a few shows since 1973.
“Since I left, there’s been a pretty consistent level of talent,” said Mac of the students and faculty in the Theatre department. “At this point, their talent pool is extremely high.”
Mac viewed the “Little Shop of Horrors” production on Oct. 22 and said he was blown away by the amount of talent in the play.
“I’m really looking forward to working with these kids during ‘Antigone’ because of the talent level I saw there,” he said. “I’m pumped up.”
Nearly 20 years later, Mac is sitting back in the director’s chair for “Antigone.” In 1991, Mac received Sinclair’s “Innovator of the Year” award for his efforts in the 1990 production of “Antigone.”
Full circle
Neuerer said she is designing the lights and producing the winter production of “Antigone.” Neuerer also served as the lighting designer and stage manager for the 1990 production when she was a student at Sinclair.
“Working with Mac was really spectacular,” she said. “The energy, excitement and passion that he had inspired me. I’d always wanted to be a college teacher and while I was here, I learned a lot from Mac.
“At that time, Mac was a one-person department,” she said. “He didn’t have any full-time faculty under him.”
Neuerer said Mac brought in professionals and specialists from around the area to teach students about theatre. She said MacClennan would work 80-100 hours a week during his early years at Sinclair.
Neuerer said Mac impacted her future in a variety of ways.
“I wanted to teach the way he taught, with the passion that he had and the excitement that he had,” she said. “I wanted to follow in those footsteps.”
‘Quite an honor’
After his retirement, the chair of the Communication department, Lori Zakel, nominated Mac for emeritus status. Mac summarized the honor as the right to return to Sinclair and participate in any activity free of charge.
“It means that the work you’ve done during your tenure was exemplary and the institution recognizes that,” he said. “It was quite an honor.”
A great experience
With Mac returning to Sinclair as a guest director, Neuerer said the production is a special chance for students in the program to work with Mac.
“The students and Mac are going to really benefit,” she said. “The program has changed a lot since Mac left. I think that it will be neat for him to see the growth that we have gone through and I think it’s going to be wonderful for these students to work with Mac.”