At more than 6 feet tall, Nicholas Hughes towers over the rest.
You can spot this blue-eyed, lean and lanky gentleman easily in a crowd of constant admirers drawn to his eclectic tastes in food, wine, the arts and, yes, his humor. Ah, that humor. Sprinkled with irony, sarcastic wit and smoothed over with that oh, so British accent.
“I am between two worlds,” Hughes muses. “To an English ear, the way I speak in America would sound slightly American. When I visit England, within a short time of arriving, I revert to a 100-percent English accent.”
Is it any wonder that Hughes, along with his interest and curiosity in so many things, is also a local actor who has for years been a mainstay in and around the ‘Burg? This includes roles for Gamut Theatre, Theatre Harrisburg and Open Stage of Harrisburg, where he’s appeared in “The Fantasticks,” “Gross Indecency” and “The Hobbit,” as well as the inimitable Scrooge for 11 years running in “A Christmas Carol.”
Hughes will reprise that role in an upcoming Open Stage, one-night-only staged reading of that classic holiday show on Dec. 13.
“For 11 consecutive years, ‘Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol’ was brought to Harrisburg audiences during the month of December, up until a few years ago,” Hughes says. “Last year, it was revived for a staged reading using veteran cast members. This year, for the first time, we are also to be broadcast live on radio. We are trying to create the same production values even if it is conveyed only through sound and speech.”
As if Hughes isn’t busy enough, Open Stage also snagged him for the formidable role of Captain Hook in “Peter, Hook & The Darlings” which plays through Dec. 13. The theater brings the well-known Peter Pan tale to life in a chaotic, cheeky and charming way, complete with sword fights, comedy and lots of action.
Hughes calls the play a “very creative interpretation” of J.M. Barrie’s classic work with something new, something old, something for every member of the family. He views his Hook character as cruel and kind, gallant and evil, intelligent and stupid.
“Captain Hook lives on a fantastical island created in the imagination of every child, Neverland,” Hughes explains. “He is everything that a child might imagine about a pirate. He is fascinating. He is larger than life.”
Scrooge and Captain Hook. An actor’s delight. Memorable, marvelous and well-drawn characters that Hughes is honored to play.
“Each production has felt like an acting class,” he says. “Working with talented cast members and directors has pushed me in directions in which I did not know I was capable.”
With a rehearsal process comes moments of discovery, and Hughes is finding those moments in droves. He says that even though he’s very different from the roles he portrays, he takes enjoyment in finding connections he shares with these diverse characters.
“The contrast of the feelings of Scrooge throughout the play is of great interest to me as an actor,” he says.
Hughes’ early years in England were spent dabbling in theater, but mostly as an audience member. He recalls a fabulous production of “War and Peace” at the Theatre Royal in Bath in 1959 while attending boarding school, then the musical “Cabaret” in London with Judi Dench in the role of Sally Bowles in 1967. Hughes also loved a Peter Brook production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” After graduation from Cambridge, he was not on stage for 33 years.
But all that changed in Harrisburg. Hughes and his late wife, Ellen, a WITF radio host/ writer/actress, became involved with Open Stage when the professional theater rented former office space from Hughes to create its first home, dubbed “The Alley Theatre.” Helater joined the board and was firstcast in the theater’s production of “Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde.”
Later that year, he started the run of Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol.” And while those iconic stage characters are close to his heart, he acknowledges that the journey is really about the people he’s met along the way.
“Over 11 years, I was fortunate to be on stage with most of the regulars of Harrisburg theater,” Hughes says, “and made a lot of friends.”
Open Stage is located at 223 Walnut St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.openstagehbg.com or call 717-232-OPEN.
DECEMBER
THEATRE EVENTS
At Harrisburg’s Professional
Downtown Theatres
Now to Dec. 13
PETER, HOOK & THE DARLINGS
at Open Stage of Harrisburg
Thursdays to Sundays
with these special events:
Dec. 3 & Dec. 10
Thrifty Thursdays
with a limited number of $15 tickets
Sunday, Dec. 6
2 p.m. matinee includes post-show discussion
7 p.m. special evening performance
Dec. 2 & 4 (6 p.m. to 9 p.m.)
Auditions for RED VELVET
at new Gamut Theatre.
All auditions must be scheduled in advance.
Call 717-238-4111 to schedule.
Dec. 2 to 19
A POPCORN HAT CHRISTMAS CAROL
at new Gamut Theatre
Wednesdays & Thursdays, 10 a.m.
Saturdays, 1 p.m.
Dec. 11 & 12
Stage Door Series Presents
HEAR THE VOICE, BE THE VERSE
at new Gamut Theatre
an eclectic selection of classical verse poetry
adapted by Franklin L. Henley Jr.
Friday & Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 13, 7 p.m.
Charles Dickens’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL
a staged reading
at Open Stage of Harrisburg
featuring Nick Hughes as Scrooge
Reception follows reading
Dec. 17 to 23
THE SANTALAND DIARIES
a comedy by David Sedaris,
at Open Stage of Harrisburg
featuring Stuart Landon as Crumpet the Elf
with Late Night with Crumpet! Party
on Saturday Dec. 19 at 8:30pm
10 p.m. show, cash bar
