Twinkle

BY DOWNING CLESS, DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA AND DANCE, TUFTS UNIVERSITY
I got to know Tony when he became our Artist-in-Residence a little over ten years ago, but before that I had heard wonderful legends of his days at Tufts in London and a memorable production of A Midsummer Night's Dream that he directed here in the late '60s or early '70s. During the six years that I was Chair (1995-2001), Tony gave 110 percent of his seemingly boundless energy and bright mind to teaching, directing, and service for this Department.

As the Head of Acting, he taught and mentored the largest number of our students, and launched an accelerated entry course aimed at freshmen who had sufficient background in high school. As a director of a major production each year, he coached often-remarkable performances from actors, many of whom were also in his classes. Then, on his own time, he spent long hours coaching audition pieces for so many of these actors when they were seniors, most of them by that point considering him to be their mentor. And, an impressively large number of them are now in the profession!

Most of all, I recall great times with Tony at our alumni gatherings in New York, Los Angeles, and Boston. He lit up the room at these occasions with genuine charm and grace. Through him I was introduced to a host of alumni from before my time at Tufts--all of them devoted friends of Tony now. Indeed, this website is a great tribute to how many alumni have become Tony's devoted friends. At our gatherings and through the newsletters he had helped to plan, alumni from many different generations got to know each other through their mutual contact with Tony - something that always delighted him.

I loved and miss the always-present twinkle in Tony's eye, which signalled his love for creativity, sociability, and even a bit of mischief.