Freehold Landmark Tony's Diner and Center Players Partner to Create Nostalgic 50's Opening Night Gala

I’m beginning to see why I like Center Players so much! Not only are the actors talented, the behind-the-scenes crew hardworking and creative, but now, the geniuses who also have to keep tabs on finances and ensure that the play will go on have combined three of my favorite pastimes: enjoying great theater, eating, and being a bit nostalgic about the 1950s!

Bus Stop, directed by the very talented Jeff Caplan, is coming to the Center Playhouse stage for weekend performances October 10 - November 9. The theater folks and a hardworking, Freehold-loving business owner are joining forces to guarantee opening night will be something sensational, different, and certainly nostalgic!

Anyone who has ever driven down Freehold Borough’s Main Street is familiar with Tony’s Diner, that wonderful ’50s-looking eatery with its own uniqueness in that it’s attached to the owners’ home. Those who have eaten breakfast or lunch at Tony’s Diner know it’s the place to go for terrific food, great friendship, and gossip. Thanks to Tony’s son and current owner, Tom Iliadis, the diner will be open for dinner one time only on October 10 for opening night guests of the theater.

Bus Stop is set in a 1950s roadside diner after a bus is stranded during a Montana blizzard. The play focuses on the problems, joys, desires, and interactions of the diner staff and the visitors, from bus driver to doctor with a drinking problem. What better way to set the stage (literally) and put theater-goers in the mood than to feature dinner at Tony’s Diner on opening night! All ticket holders are also invited to wear their favorite ’50s outfits.

When approached, the affable Tom Iliadis readily agreed to become part of the opening night festivities. Although the diner normally closes at 2:30 PM, Tom will reopen his establishment at 5:45 on opening night so ticket holders can gather to chat, laugh, compare outfits, and enjoy a sumptuous dinner, all part of the special opening night ticket price. Tom has promised an authentic 1950s diner dinner menu that’s sure to please and bring back memories of the fun of that time period.

Tom has also graciously agreed to tell stories of Tony’s Diner from back in the ’50s when his dad, the eatery’s namesake, worked there as chief cook and dishwasher. Tony had previously worked at the old Matawan Diner before coming to Freehold. After years of putting sweat equity into the Freehold Diner, Tony became a part owner, then the full owner in the 1960s. Tom and his brother Pete entered the scene after that, and just ten years ago, Tom bought out his brother. “I was a chemical engineer, got my degree from Stevens Institute, but finally decided I wanted to say goodbye to the corporate world,” he said, explaining how he got into the diner business full-time. Why would he leave a 9 to 5 job for a business that keeps him hard at work close to 24 hours a day? He laughed heartily. “Call it Compound Stupidity; I’m too stupid to know I’m stupid.”

Tom remembers the old days when there was not one, but at least four diners in Freehold. The fact that Tony’s remains as the last of the era can most likely be attributed not only to the friendliness of the staff, but to the high quality of the food. Ask him which are the favorites for breakfast or lunch, and Tom can’t narrow it down. “They like our omelets, our pancakes, our hamburger platters, our wraps…”

His is different from a ’50s diner in one way though. “You have to keep up with the times.” So ‘wrapless wraps’ for the gluten-free customer and Chicago omelets made with egg whites only are also on the menu, items that wouldn’t have been seen in the mid-20th century.

This unique opening night collaboration, a marriage between the borough’s only diner and the borough’s only live theater, is just one proof of the close-knit community Freehold is, according to Center Players’ president and Bus Stop producer, Colleen DeFelice. “There’s something special about Freehold, and it’s sometimes hard to put your finger on what makes it stand out. But when you see a popular business and landmark like Tony’s Diner eager to join the fun and festivities with the actors, actresses, and backstage crew who put on the shows for the sheer love of live theater, then you know…there really is something special about Freehold and its people.”

Tickets for opening night are going quickly, even without the menu being announced, according to Artistic Director Bernice Garfield-Szita. Tickets are also available now for the remaining shows through November 9. Ms. Garfield-Szita cautions, “I would advise people to make their reservations early. Because of the popularity of this particular show and the number of experienced cast members making their first appearance on our stage, every night is bound to be a sellout.”

Bus Stop, written by William Inge and directed by Jeff Caplan, opens at Center Playhouse, 35 South Street in Downtown Freehold, on October 10 with a pre-show dinner at the historic Tony’s Diner. The show runs for five weekends through November 9, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM. There will be no performance on Halloween, October 31. There will be an additional matinee performance on Saturday, November 1 at 2:00 PM. Tickets are $25 for Adults and $23 for Seniors/Students, and include gourmet desserts and refreshments at intermission. Group rates for parties of 10 or more are available. The opening night gala, “Diner and a Show” is $65. Seating is limited, so call the box office at (732) 462-9093 or visit us online at www.CenterPlayers.org to purchase your tickets. Reservation for the opening night event at Tony’s Diner can only be made by phone.

By Muriel Smith. Edited by Jan Thompson

******************

Muriel Smith is a guest blogger for Center Players. She grew up in Union, NJ and lived in Highlands for more than 40 years, working as a newspaper writer/editor before leaving home with her husband 15 years ago to live in an RV and visit every state in the Union before determining that Monmouth County is still the best place to live. She’s now settled comfortably in Freehold.