Three decades directing music and comedy for Midland audiences

The name Rufina Recks has been synonymous in the midlands with community theatre of music and comedy for 35 years. She has directed and choreographed hundreds of singers, dancers and actors throughout Westmeath and Offaly over all those years. Rufina is particularly a household name in youth musical theatre in the midlands, and is the director of the Dean Crowe Theatre's upcoming winter pantomime, 'Olde King Cole'. She has previously worked for ten years with the Dunamaise Theatre in Portlaoise, and has also worked on many musicals at Clara GAA centre. She is director of the Spotlight Youth Theatre Group which is comprised of youngsters from Athlone, Moate, Tullamore and Clara, and they regularly put on popular local shows. Rufina, who is a native of Tullamore, was married to Richie Recks, from Clara, and the couple were a great partnership in local musical theatre, until sadly, two years ago, when Richie died. Rufina and Richie had four sons, Declan, Alan, Brian and Derek. "I went to boarding school to the Brigidine nuns, and the opera there was a highlight of the year, and if that wasn't there, I don't know if I would have stayed," said Rufina laughing. "I don't really know where the love of theatre and music came from in my life, because neither of my parents were involved in it." Rufina did drama courses and joined musical societies in her teens, and took part in productions, and her love for the stage grew from there. She met Richie during the Tullamore Musical Society production of 'The Desert Song', and after they married, they set up the Clara Musical Society, which is thirty-five years running this year. "We first of all worked out of the parochial hall in Clara, which is now the resource centre, and then moved to the Convent school, and after that we worked in the Boys School, and now we're in the GAA Centre in Clara," said Rufina. Rufina is currently working with the new manager of the Dean Crowe Theatre in Athlone, Richard Foy, in setting up the winter pantomime, 'Olde King Cole'. Richard was for many years, the manager of the Athlone Shopping Centre, and is also a long-time friend of Rufina. Richard met his wife, several years ago, on a musical production in Clara, which Rufina directed. "I played character parts in Rufina's productions over the years, but later on time constraints took me away from the shows, but my kids have been involved with Rufina at various levels," said the new Dean Crowe manager. "We're very proud to have Rufina with the Dean Crowe Theatre's production of 'Olde King Cole' this Christmas. There will be four shows. On 31st December, the show will be at 2.30 pm, and on 1st January it will be at 7.30 pm, and on January 2nd, there will be two shows, at 2.30 pm and 7.30 pm. Tickets are on sale for €12.50 and €10.00. There will be discounts available for families and groups." Because she was a sought after director/choreographer, Rufina was also heavily involved with Tops of the Town for the best part of two decades. "I really loved the Tops Shows, and I started out with the P+T group in Athlone, and was there with them for four years, and I did about ten years with the Clara Community Group," said Rufina. "We reached the final in 1996, but were beaten by a Dublin group. Tops ended the following year, when John Players pulled out." Rufina's Clara group was also featured on 'Tip Tops' for a number of years. This was a televised show which featured the best of the groups in the John Players Tops. Separate to her work with the Clara Community Group and Musical Society, Rufina also worked with her own drama school business. She has operated her drama classes out of schools in Tullamore and Moate, and also in the Dean Crowe Theatre, over the past twelve years. Four years ago, Rufina was asked to revive pantomimes in Athlone, after a gap of twenty years. Until Rufina's pantomime, 'Aladdin', which was staged in 2006, the last time pantomimes had been held in Athlone was in the late 1980's, and was directed by the late Eddie O'Shea. Eddie was also very involved with Athlone Little Theatre, until his untimely death in 1990. "Eddie was very talented, and since we started reviving the pantomimes the audience have been increasing every year," said Rufina. She also directed 'Cinderella' in 2007 and 'Mother Goose' in 2008. Before preparing for this Christmas's Dean Crowe show, 'Olde King Cole', Rufina directed the very difficult, but brilliant musical, 'The Hot Mikado' in Clara, and worked with four youth groups between the ages of 7 years to 17 years on the famous musical 'Mary Poppins'. Her next project will be 'Beauty and the Beast' with her Clara group and she has begun casting on that. She is also separately working on 'Honk' - a musical for four youth theatres, and it will be staged in March in the Dean Crowe Theatre. "We are one of the first musical societies to be doing Beauty and the Beast', because it is the first time the rights have become available," she said. "It will be on in March, and my son Alan is directing and I'm doing the script. I love the theatre very much. I did a course with an English director once, and he told me, that you have to be a psychologist to be a director, because you are dealing with so many different kinds of people, and that's why I enjoy it." Another son of Rufina's, Declan, is a film director, who directed on the top-rated RTE programmes, 'Pure Mule', 'The Clinic', and 'Eden'. Rufina has appeared as an extra on the programme. Her other sons are Derek who is a sound engineer, and Brian, who works in computers in America. Every summer, for the past four years Rufina chooses her winter pantomimes, by reading four or five different scripts. She is especially proud of 'Olde King Cole', and encourages everybody to come along and enjoy the Athlone pantomime. "It's geared for children and adults, and a lot of work went into it, and it's great family entertainment, and ideal for families looking for somewhere to go after Christmas," she said. "The highlight of the show is the songs, the costumes, the scenery and the great comedy." Alan Recks is the musical director of his mother's Athlone show, and Jonathan O'Brien is the stage manager. Grainne Moore, who is daughter of Athlone writer and artist, Joe Moore, is the scenic artist on 'Olde King Cole'. "Grainne's uncle is Martin Moore, from Athlone, and he was our first scenic artist in Clara years ago, and he also did the scenery for our first two pantomimes," said Rufina. Rufina did 'Olde King Cole' in Portlaoise some years ago, and said that the music and comedy is much different, and more up date in the Athlone show. "I'm very proud of 'Olde King Cole' and I'd really like to encourage Athlone people to support the home grown show, and it's important to remember that more than 90% of the cast and crew are local people," said Rufina. "It'll be very enjoyable for people of all ages."