Stage Left takes a bow — Farewell to Helen and Dan

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 29, 2026

No one was sure how islanders would respond to Shakespeare under the stars. Decades later, it’s safe to say they had been hungry for quality theater performances, from Shakespeare to the more modern plays Island Stage Left performed. The theater’s founders, Helen Machin-Smith and Daniel Mayes, decided to move to England, back to Machin-Smith’s roots. With no one able to step in, Stage Left takes a bow.

“The gods have been with us all the way through,” Machin-Smith told the Journal, “It was obviously something we were meant to do.”

Machin-Smith and her husband, Mayes, met in the theater, and later performed in the Ashland Shakespeare Festival. They found their way to the San Juans after a friend brought a bereft Machin-Smith to Lopez after Mayes was hospitalized from a heart attack. “It was so peaceful,” Machin-Smith said, and she had read about Rober Moran, a shipbuilder in poor health who doctors only gave him limited time. Moran moved to Orcas and ended up living another 30-plus years on Orcas. With that kind of healing power, Machin-Smith thought, the San Juans would be the perfect location for Mayes. The couple settled on San Juan rather than Orcas, buying an empty lot on Wold Road. Machin-Smith worked for a short time in the galley on the ferries. Because she was new, they didn’t need her during the summer months, which was perfect, because she was planning to do Shakespeare.

Island Stage Left’s first show was “The Tempest” in 1999. Unable to find a suitable venue, the couple decided to have it in their backyard.

Each audience member was given a blind fold, which they were to don for the first couple of minutes, getting them in the mind space of a shipwrecked ferry.

Islanders were hooked from the start. The first night garnered an audience of 160, when they had only prepared for 140. People would bike from town to Wold Road to see the plays. It would be dark when it was time the show was over, so the bikers slept in the area where rehearsals were being held. For years, it was a tradition to bring snacks, a whole picnic and a bottle of wine, and relax outside their fence until the “doors” opened.

For many of those years, Stage Left did performances on Lopez, Orcas and Waldron as well.

“It was great, a real bonding experience,” Machin-Smith said. “We did the tour first, and then came back to San Juan, and the performances were always better because they had bonded.”

With an amazing place to stay and constant unpredictability due to the island’s rustic nature, Waldron became one of the theater troupe’s favorites. Lopez Winery was also well-loved, with its relaxed atmosphere. During one Lopez show, northern lights made an appearance.

Aurora Borealis made a few appearances at the shows. An actor from off-island came bolting into the room once, thinking World War III had begun. A quick look outside, seeing the vibrating curtain of greens, pinks and purples, those who had seen Northern Lights knew at once what it was. Natural phenomena frequently provided background for the performances in a way that thrilled the audience and gave them goose bumps — light rain occurring at just the right time in the play, then stopping, shooting stars over Romeo and Juliet, the list goes on.

There are too many memories after all those decades to be able to pull one or two out, and all the performances were special to them in their own way.

Mayes, however, does have a few favorite roles: “Twelth Night“‘s Malvolio, “Othello”’s Iago, and “The Merchant of Venice”’s Shylock. “People were upset at that play,” Mayes said. “And that’s good, that is what theater should do.”

He noted “Someone to Watch over Me” as one of his favorite modern plays, written by Irish dramatist Frank McGuinness, first performed in 1992. The story centers around an Irishman, an Englishman and an American, chained to a wall in Beirut. “Which sounds like a joke,” Mayes said. The play focuses on all the things the men do just to keep their sanity. As the play was cast, three men, Mayes and two others, auditioned together, and the three had such chemistry and talent together that Machin-Smith immediately cast them for the parts they read for.

“It isn’t just a play, it’s the people you are working with,” Mayes said, naming off islanders, such as Alan Geddes, Christa Strutz, Joan Benny, Kevin Loumis, Garth McCardle, Susan Campbell Webster, Fred Yonkers and Boo Boo James as just a few who have been involved and been instrumental to Stage Left. Jillian Urbach jumped in when one actor came down with COVID, “She was brilliant,” Machin-Smith said, arranging her line-book in just the right spot that it looked like part of the set. Several young up-and-coming actors got their first taste of the stage at Wold Road and have gone on to perform on Broadway. “We are still in contact with many of them,” Machin-Smith said of all the individuals with whom they have worked.

Machin-Smith also gave a shoutout to her board, saying, “I commend them for putting up with me.”

Elise Jensen assisted with finding housing and providing housing for off-island actors, “even the really awful ones.” Machin-Smith says, adding, “She was a godsend. She’s such a quiet presence, totally efficient and never flustered. Cathryn Campbell is an attorney and really into the creative end of things. Karen Vedder was one of the longest-serving board members. “She has been on my side from practically the very beginning,” Machin-Smith said, and as a former attorney, “kept me on the straight and narrow. Maria Michaelson, Machin-Smith said, “was a perfect match” with her youthful energy, wild ideas and inventiveness.

Mayes and Machin-Smith did not want to get too into thank yous because the list was too long, and they did not want to forget anyone. A Thank You party will be held on May 8 from 5:30-9:30 p.m. at Brickworks. Bring finger food, dessert or non-alcoholic beverages if possible. Alcohol will not be served due to extra permitting. Do not bring presents, as they have too much to pack as it is.

“So many people have helped us over the years, whether it was helping with housing, set design, costumes, donating or being in the audience,” Machin-Smith said.

When asked if they would start something similar in Cornwall, Mayes responded: “Never say never.” Machin-Smith agreed, never say never, but added that she was tired, and their focus was on the actors who were then framed by nature, “and we won’t find that anywhere else.”