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By Kate Jonuska

For the first time in a long time, there won’t be a sign outside the Lon Chaney Theatre advertising the Star Bar Players’ next performance. But Lon Chaney or no, for the first time in a long time, there will be a show by the Star Bar Players, the recently revived theater troupe that went dark for a year after cash-flow and venue problems. The season opener is “The Weir,” a small-cast, Irish play rife with ghost stories running Oct. 8-24 at Five Star Decor.

“Being able to bring something like this back to the surface, I’m really excited about that,” says “The Weir” director Tammy Smith, who felt the absence of Star Bar keenly. “Everyone involved in it is really excited. We’ve had some difficulties. Finding a rehearsal place was rough, and some of the first rehearsals took place in my living room.”

But Alysabeth Clements Mosley, who sits on the Star Bar board and will play the character Valerie, prefers to reframe their lack of permanent theater space as a gypsy-like adventure. “Star Bar started out in weird venues,” before they landed the Lon Chaney, she says. “They did things in lofts above stores, they were in a church for a while, so I think part of the theatrical experience is the conversion of whatever space you’re in.”

Their space at Five Star Decor, a special events planning and decorating company with a large warehouse, is a black box theater with room enough for the one set of “The Weir,” the bar where the play’s characters spend much of their free time. Rather than dwell on size or shape, most of the players embrace the bright side of the unconventional venue.

CLICK HERE to read the full text of this article, which published on Oct. 2, 2009 in the GO! section.