The show must go on at Warren Civic Theatre

CATCHING UP WITH ALUMNI 
“Catching Up With Alumni” highlights the accomplishments of past high school graduates. In this issue, we look at 1983 Warren High School graduate Greg Trzaskoma.

 

WARREN — On a recent Saturday morning in the Owen Jax Community Center basement, a group of student thespians practiced their dance steps preparing for Warren Civic Theatre’s upcoming production of “Cinderella.”

In another room off to the side — known as the costume shop — parent volunteers created dresses, coats and other garments to the hum of sewing machines and intricate work of needle and thread.

In the center of it all is Warren Civic Theatre’s Director Greg Trzaskoma, who for more than 30 years has brought the bright lights of Broadway to his hometown of Warren.

Warren Civic Theatre has become a staple in the city with talented casts of all ages bringing an array of shows center stage. For three decades, players have acted, sung and danced their way across the Warren Community Center stage, performing everything from “The Little Mermaid” to “Hairspray” to “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

Its history dates back to the summer of 1990 when Trzaskoma’s dad, a Warren police officer, saw an ad that a director was needed for a summer drama camp at the former Ridgewood Elementary School. Trzaskoma got the part.

“At that point I was getting ready to start my studies at the University of Detroit Mercy in the theater program,” said the Warren resident, who earned a bachelor in fine arts degree in theater from the college. Trzaskoma also holds a master’s degree in theater with a specialization in acting from Wayne State University.   

The summer workshops grew in popularity, and by 1994 it was showtime. Instead of just having a production at the end of camp, Warren Civic Theatre took it a step further by performing its first official show, “The King and I,” on the Warren Community Center stage, followed by “Oliver!” the next year at the Warren Woods Middle School auditorium.

Warren Civic Theatre has continued to “break a leg” ever since. The troupe’s next production is the youth edition of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” at the Warren Community Center auditorium, 5460 Arden Ave. Curtain time is 7 p.m. March 22; 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. March 23; and 3 p.m. March 24. All are welcome. For tickets, visit warrencivic.org.

 

‘Looking back, I liked the attention and the applause’
Theater was a large part of Trzaskoma’s childhood.

“Both my mom and dad enjoyed theater. They took me and my sister to see plays downtown,” the 1983 Warren High School graduate said. “One of my earliest memories of seeing a play is the Warren Woods High School production of ‘Oklahoma!’ directed by Mr. (James) Higginbottom, probably about 1972. I can remember seeing that and the costumes and the storytelling and the violence.”

The family’s record player was usually stacked with vinyl records of musicals, including “My Fair Lady,” “The Sound of Music” and “Fiddler on the Roof.” Another influence was Trzaskoma’s second grade teacher at Green Acres Elementary School, Elaine Buss, who “used theater to teach and reinforce.” The youngster found his stage presence during a Christmas play, playing Santa Claus on strike.

“I think I was Santa because I was the only kid who didn’t need a microphone,” the budding actor recalled.

Trzaskoma attended the former Fuhrmann Junior High School where he played trumpet and French horn. He honed his acting chops while at Warren High School (now the Warren Community Center) with theater teacher Richard M. Wirth.

“He was a very good mentor. We did four shows a year, one or two musicals, a comedy, a drama and (William) Shakespeare,” Trzaskoma said. “Looking back, I liked the attention and the applause. It was acceptance, validation. I liked being part of the theater group.”

After high school, Trzaskoma took a few courses at Macomb Community College but “eventually dropped out for a while.” He found success working in retail sales for several years.

“It was paying the bills but wasn’t satisfying,” he said.

That’s when he reenrolled at Macomb.

“I took an English composition class, and I enjoyed the hell out of it,” he said. “Something in me had changed. I enjoyed being part of a learning community.”

Trzaskoma eventually found his niche performing in two local theaters: Warren Civic Theatre and also the Jewish Ensemble Theatre, located in downtown Walled Lake. His talent was needed for many lead roles like “Julius Caesar” and “Man of La Mancha.” With talent and his ability to connect with an audience, he was cast in other parts including Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks in “Annie” and Tevye, the patriarch in “Fiddler on the Roof.” He even learned some Yiddish for the Jewish Ensemble Theatre’s production of “The Immigrant.”

The seasoned performer is building a legacy with the local community and the behind-the-scenes players that make Warren Civic Theatre a success. One such person is the group’s artist-in-residence, Andy Zulkiewski, who first met Trzaskoma in the summer of 1998.

“He has very much been a mentor and friend over the years from selecting a university theater program to working professionally to celebrating a job well done. He has always approached theater as an inclusive and community experience, while taking the time to make each production an artistic success,” Zulkiewski said in a statement. “The Warren Civic Theater team truly feels like a family. Each production is unique and collaborating with the staff and cast is fulfilling artistically and it’s just a lot of fun. My role within the theater gives me the ability to be creative both on stage and off. I’m super excited as we plan our 2024-25 season.”

 

‘They hired me, and I’m loving it’
To maintain his standings as a professional actor, Trzaskoma belongs to two unions: Actors’ Equity Association and Screen Actors Guild. Movie fans may have caught him in brief appearances in different acting roles that were filmed during Michigan’s film incentive years, including the 2010 film “Stone” with Robert De Niro, Edward Norton and Milla Jovovich.

“The parts I shot were mostly in the old prison in Jackson,” Trzaskoma said.

Although not a smoker, the dedicated performer learned how to smoke cigarettes for a scene shot at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, in Romulus, with Sean Penn for the movie “This Must Be the Place,” released in 2011.

“He doesn’t say anything in the scene, but I do,” Trzaskoma said.

Clint Eastwood also made his day when he was cast as the bartender in the 2008 film “Gran Torino,” in which Eastwood starred and directed. Trzaskoma shot his scene at the Cpl. Richard W. Menge Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 6756, in Center Line. Although his lines “ended up on the cutting room floor,” Trzaskoma is still in the scene with Eastwood, who left an impression.

“He’s extremely well established and has been doing this a long time,” Trzaskoma said. “He was very kind, personable, generous and accessible.”

Trzaskoma has not only found his calling on stage and in film, but in the classroom. Currently, he is a theater instructor at the Frederick V. Pankow Center in L’Anse Creuse Public Schools.

“They hired me, and I’m loving it,” he said.

For more information on Warren Civic Theatre, visit warrencivic.org.