9:19am | Luke Yankee is directing the International City Theatre‘s new production of the Noel Coward classic, Private Lives, which opens tonight at the Center Theater, located in the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. Yankee is no stranger to the play, having directed it twice before. It focuses on a divorced couple, each who has remarried and have the bad fortune to be honeymooning with their new spouces in neighboring rooms at the same hotel.

Yankee is no stranger to Long Beach, either. In addition to being a resident, he also served as Producing Artistic Director of the Long Beach Civic Light Opera for many years, overseeing productions of The King & I, Man of La Mancha, and Night Club Confidential.

Yankee is steeped in theater. When he’s not directing, he’s acting. When he’s not acting, he’s teaching. When he’s not teaching, he’s writing. When he’s not writing, he’s hosting a popular live interview series called Conversations on Craft. His one man multimedia theatrical show, Diva Dish!, is based on his life as a child with his Oscar winning mother, Eileen Heckart. The show evolved into a book, Just Outside the Spotlight: Growing Up With Eileen Heckart.

Yankee said that he thought Private Lives was Coward’s best play, and I asked him why.

Luke: It is so reflective of the world of Noel Coward, that privileged world of class and distinction and rich people behaving however they want to and living for the moment. Not unlike today in many respects.

Sander: How is it similar to today?

Luke: We say that everyone is equal, but there is a greater divide all the time between the “haves” and “have nots” and how the “haves” get all the tax breaks, get all the perks and make their own rules. Elyot and Amanda live by their own rules – not because they are entirely selfish, but because they can.

Sander: When the play first appeared, it was just after the huge crash of 1929. Does the economic situation play a role in the story?

Luke: That is another element that makes the play so resonant today. Eloyt and Amanda say, “God knows how long we may have. Let’s make every moment count.” It is also a wonderful comedy of manners, bordering on farce. Just like during the great depression, people need to laugh today. This is a very funny play, yet with a strong message buried under Coward’s “bon mots.”

Sander: Private Lives has been produced many times, for TV, film, and radio. Some of these productions have been rather well documented. How do you put all that aside?

Luke: Like any great work of art, you let the play speak for itself and try to support the playwright as much as possible. We are creating art by serving Mr. Coward’s glorious words. There is a musicality to this play. Coward was also a brilliant musician and a hugely popular songwriter. Some of the monologues in this play are almost like arias, and all the language has a distinct rhythm. If the audience hears the music, we are doing our job.

Sander: You’ve have an astoundingly diverse career. Is there anything you haven’t done yet that you still want to do?

Luke: Oh…lots! I have recently had one of my screenplays, The Last Lifeboat, optioned. It is the untold story of J. Bruce Ismay, the owner of the White Star Line at the time of the sinking of the Titanic. It’s a “biopic” in the vein of The King’s Speech. I’ve got a producer who is very hot on it and is shopping it around now. I’d love to make the transition into film and TV as a writer and, knock wood, it looks like I am getting close. I’d love to write and direct for television.

I also have a play that was produced in LA last year starring Harry Hamlin. It is a comedy called The Jesus Hickey about a young Irish girl who gets a love bite in the shape of Jesus and becomes an instant celebrity. I am leaving for Dublin in ten days to chat with some producers about a possible production over there, and I have lots of interest in a film of that as well.

Sander: You worked for many years in Long Beach as Producing Artistic Director of the Long Beach Civic Light Opera. Is there something unique to Long Beach, either with its audiences or producing entities, that you can identify?

Luke: I love that I am back directing at the Long beach Performing Arts Center, 16 years after I left the Long Beach Civic Light Opera. There was nothing quite like it and people still miss it, as do I. I love Long Beach audiences. They range from the very sophisticated to the people who simply love to be entertained.

ICT is a gem in the Long Beach community. They do really adventurous work and caryn desai is doing a wonderful job as the new Artistic Director. I hope the community will continue to support them and their great work.

Sander: Does ICT provide you with any interesting challenges or opportunities?

Luke: The gorgeous Center Theater is a 3/4 thrust stage and this play was written and conceived for a proscenium, so we have had to pay lots of attention to that in the staging. Luckily, we have been on stage for a good portion of the rehearsal process.

Sander: How has that changed the blocking, or action?

Luke: A famous director (I think it was Harold Clurman)once said, “when working in the round, no stage picture is a bad stage picture as long as you don’t hold it for too long.” Even though this is not in the round, I have had to adhere to that in the staging and have tried to keep the actors moving whenever possible.

Sander: Shifting topics, I was curious to know your thoughts about teaching. What does your work with emerging artists mean to you?

Luke: A great deal. Having grown up in a theatrical household, I was given many gifts at an early age. I feel an incredible sense of responsibility to give that back and pass it on. As soon I return from Dublin, I start rehearsals for You Can’t Take It With You at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan beach. Many of these students have never done a play before. It is a great thrill for me to be able to give them that first taste of the theatre. In the Winter, I am directing a really interesting play about Cuban refugees called Sonia Flew at Cal State Long Beach. I love being able to give back to this community that has given me so much.

Sander: Another really wonderful thing you’ve spearheaded is “Conversations on Craft.” Can you speak a bit about how that got started?

Luke: That is a true passion of mine! I started attending all of these wonderful seminars at the Writers Guild in LA with Emmy and Oscar winning writers. I learned so much from those and was so inspired, I wanted to create something that spoke to the larger artistic community. “Conversations on Craft” is not unlike “Inside the Actor’s Studio”, except I interview two people from two different aspects of the entertainment world in each 75 minute episode.

Guests include Edward Asner, Mark Rydell, who directed On Golden Pond and The Rose, Marc Cherry, creator of Desperate Housewives, and actress Michael Learned. It has been extraordinary, and I have learned so much. A portion of the proceeds from the live event goes to the charity of the celebrity’s choice and to Stella Adler Acting Studios in LA, the host organization. The first four episodes are now available on Amazon and I am looking for funding sources to continue the series.

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Private Lives opens officially this evening. The show runs through September 18th, with evening performances Thursdays through Saturdays, and afternoon matinee performances on Sundays. Evening performances begin at 8 PM, and afternoon performances at 2 PM. Tickets for Private Lives can be purchased at ICTLongBeach.org.

To learn more about Luke’s career, visit LukeYankee.com.

To learn about Conversations on Craft visit ConversationsOnCraft.com.