Bruce Martin, center, makes his HCT debut in the theater’s production of Driving Miss Daisy. Co-stars Alta Moseley and Justin Dudkiewicz join Martin on stage for a curtain call.
Love drove him from the north to the south and for the last two weeks Bruce Martin has been Driving Miss Daisy on stage. Martin is the break-out star in the Habersham Community Theater (HCT) production of the famed Alfred Uhry play. Driving Miss Daisy was adapted for the screen in 1989 and became an international hit behind the emotionally charged performances of actors Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tanday. The film won Best Picture at the 62nd Annual Academy Awards in 1990. The play has been showcased around the world including on and off Broadway where Freeman first originated the role of Hoke Colburn, the character Martin portrayed.
Anyone familiar with the work, and voice, of Morgan Freeman knows he’s a tough act to follow but Bruce Martin proved he was up to the task. Patient and profound in his performance – just like the character calls for – Martin wowed audiences in Clarkesville for five nights and two days during his performances on HCT’s John Kollock Stage.
If you’re one of the lucky ones who got a ticket to see Martin in action (most of the play’s seven performances were sold out in spite of the weather) you know what I’m talking about. If not, you missed something special.
Of course, Martin didn’t carry the play alone. His chemistry with HCT stalwart performer Alta Moseley was undeniable. Moseley played the shyly wealthy, Jewish widow Daisy Werthan. After Daisy wrecks her car her son son Boolie (engagingly played by Justin Dudkiewicz) forces her to use a chauffered-driven car. Miss Daisy reluctantly relents. Enter Martin as chauffeur Hoke Colburn. That sets the stage and the tone for the rest of the play: A black chauffer for a white Jewish woman in Atlanta, Georgia, in the late 1940s. Their 25-year relationship begins as an uneasy union forged by necessity and slowly, ever so enthrallingly, evolves into a warm, deep and abiding friendship. Together they navigate their way through social and racial prejudice, aging, illness, loss and impending death.
It took a leap of faith and a whole lot of dialect training for this former northerner to take on the role of a southern chauffeur. Martin isn’t an actor by trade and he sure ‘ain’t’ a southerner. He was born and raised in Michigan and most recently lived in Pennsylvania where he says he worked off and on for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. He was a public sector employee whose private life drove him to the peach state. Martin was dating a woman from Georgia and retired here three years ago to be near her. “The love life part didn’t work out,” Martin says, “but the rest of it did. I discovered a real, wonderful community here. I bought a house in Sautee and really enjoy living here. I enjoy all the people and the culture and that kind of thing.”
Until recently Martin’s days were filled with kayaking, fishing and hikes with his dog, Rocky, but that changed when a friend came calling. “A friend of mine asked me if I would play the role,” explains Martin. “To be honoest, they coulnd’t find a black man to play the role. They thought they had one and somehow he dropped out and so they asked me to audition for it. I guess I somehow scraped by enough so that they took me on as a project.” If that’s the case it worked, much to audiences’ delight.
“The hardest part in preparing for this role was saying Ponce de Leon and Detroit. I was born and raised in Detroit and I used to call it ‘Dee-troit’ when I was living there but I trained myself out of it to say ‘Duh-troit’ all these years. I’ve had to go back and learn how to say ‘Dee-troit’ again,” Martin laughs. He says nailing the dialect was the toughest part of the role. “I never tried a southern accent before, especially from an uneducated black man of the 1940’s and 50’s. I never dreamed that I would ever try to talk like that. All those years of education. I go back with my character to someone who is completely uneducated and cannot even read.”
While audiences saw a cool, calm, collected Martin on stage he says performing in Driving Miss Daisy was really nerve-racking. He’s both bemused and overwhelmed by the positive audience response. “I’m shocked. When the whole show was over and people wanted to come up and shake hands and that kind of thing I’m thinking, ‘Are they talking about me? Little ‘ole nervous me back there biting my nails?'”
If he suffered from stage fright it’s understandable. It’s been decades since Martin was last on a stage in front of the curtain. His last acting gig was in college when he had a featured role in one play. His only other theater experience prior to HCT’s Driving Miss Daisy was working backstage for some theater troupes in Pennsylvania. Martin describes his HCT debut as “fun” and gently disagrees with those who call him the star of the show. “I just see myself as being part of that small but dedicated team that put the play on,” he humbly explains.
It was a long, winding journey that led Bruce Martin to the Kollock stage and his new found fans hope it won’t be long before he’s back on it again. Martin says he’d like to do some work behind the scenes but also looks forward to more acting. “I hope they find a part for me. This theater is a jewel for this community and I cannot believe it has taken me three years to discover it. I am so glad I was asked to play this role,” he says broadly smiling as another audience member jumps into line to shake his hand.
