New view

After years of being "on boards," Dick Dossett is finally sitting down.

No, the Valley Performing Arts veteran isn't retiring -- many theatergoers wouldn't allow that to happen. He is simply switching perspectives and moving into the director's chair for the first time.

Along with co-director Anna von Reitz, Dossett is leading VPA's production of Catsplay which opens tonight at Machetanz Theatre in Wasilla.

Dossett is no stranger to the theater. He's been at it for years -- so many, in fact, that he has lost count.

"I've been in 6,492 shows," Dossett said. "No, I'm lying. But I am an old fart. I have no idea how many times I've been up on stage, so that means I've been in a lot."

But he knows how many times he has been in the director's chair -- none. And he never thought he would do it, either.

"The only thing I ever wanted was to be on boards. I couldn't understand why people wanted to be behind the stage doing any of the technical stuff," Dossett admits. "It just wasn't interesting to me."

Taking on the role of director wasn't a grand and well thought-out move for Dossett. It wasn't like he wanted to become a director, but others wanted him.

It came down to a simple necessity -- VPA needed a director for Catsplay and Dossett was available.

Because VPA is such a well-run group, Dossett said, he took on the challenge.

"The neat thing is that VPA has a built-in producer who takes care of a lot of the things I don't particularly care to do, like make all the phone calls and line everything up," Dossett said. "There are very knowledgeable people at VPA who take care of every aspect. I've been surrounded by good people, and it makes it easier."

Perhaps the most important person to help Dossett has been von Reitz.

She will be making her VPA debut, but she is well familiar with Catsplay, having served as an assistant director for the play when she worked at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis years ago.

Some health problems wouldn't allow von Reitz to direct VPA's rendition of Catsplay herself, so that's when Dossett moved in and helped. He said von Reitz has been instrumental in making his directorial debut a successful one.

"She was the assistant director at the Guthrie Theatre for 10 years, and that's one of the premier theaters in the country," Dossett said. "She had a heart attack recently, and she has to slow down a little, so that's why we're doing it together."

Dossett said had he been able to make the decision as to which play he wanted to direct, chances are he wouldn't have chosen Catsplay.

"I'm not an adept play reader, and when I first read Catsplay, I thought, 'This is dumb. I don't don't want to do this," Dossett said. "And I even told that to everyone the first time we got together. But oddly enough, when we really got into it, I started to see how it was written and how it was meant to be presented."

When the curtain does go up tonight, it marks the beginning of the end of a long, hectic schedule for Dossett.

When Catsplay concludes on Feb. 2, Dossett will get a chance to relax away from the stage for the first time in almost a year.

He played Lord Brockhurst in The Boy Friend, and recently played the lead role in Scrooge!. During the last few weeks of Scrooge!, Dossett was juggling both the lead role in that production, and the directorial duties for Catsplay.

"It's just been hell for a while," Dossett admits. "It's been full-out craziness. I've been in rehearsals since last summer. I'll be glad to see the end of this.

"It's been a new experience, but it has been crazy," Dossett added.