By Kerry Clawson
Beacon Journal staff writer
Actress Mary Faktor has lived with her one-woman show Six Ages of Woman for 30 years, born of her desire to return to her childhood passion of putting on plays.
Faktor wrote the show in 1980 when she lived in Chicago. She had recently gotten involved with community theater and decided she wanted to act whenever she felt like it — not wait to receive a part in someone else’s production.
”I found that I did have a love for it and a talent for it and natural comedic timing,” said Faktor, now a professional actress, inspirational speaker and life coach.
That creative birthing became a big step toward Faktor’s destiny: She moved to Boston Township in 1990 and has continued to hone her
comedy show, which will return to the Akron Civic Theatre Wednesday and Thursday after selling out there last year. Last year, she performed Six Ages of Woman in the Civic’s new cabaret-style seating format in the lobby, which accommodated 100. This year, she’ll do the show on the Civic stage, which can fit 200 guests.
In her comedic presentation, Faktor’s character, Vicki Zawicki, talks on the phone with her best friend, Madge, through various stages of her life, including as a teen, a newlywed, a newly pregnant woman, a desperate housewife, a menopausal woman re-entering the work force and a grandmother in retirement.
”My inspiration was Bob Newhart, who made his career with telephone routines,” Faktor said. ”I wanted to do it so it was written in such a way that I could do it myself.”
Faktor turned to theater after suffering from depression when she was in her 30s. A psychologist asked her to remember back to what she loved doing as a kid.
”When you’re a kid, you’re pretty true to who you are,” Faktor explained. ”I had just lost myself into being a wife and a mother.”
Faktor divorced two years after moving to Northeast Ohio, and decided to support herself by marketing her show on a larger scale. She also became a talent agent, creating Faktor’s Talent Network.
Faktor said it’s never too late to follow your passion: ”It doesn’t matter what your gender is, what your age is. You have a gift, and it’s never too late.”
She works to incorporate that message into Six Ages of Woman by telling her own personal story in a 10-minute introduction.
Faktor said her comedy isn’t set in a specific time period, but the teen segment is reminiscent of the 1950s. Her character romanticizes marriage and childbearing, but four children later, she’s bribing her kids with Twinkies and Ho Hos to try to keep them quiet while she’s on the phone.
The actress, remarried four years ago to Mike Wickiser, has two grown children and five grandchildren. She made a conscious decision to keep her character Vicki married through all of her life phases.
”I wanted her to come through the problems on the other side and make her marriage stronger,” Faktor said.
The actress said she’s learned everything the hard way. But now she offers workshops and counseling on self-esteem, life balance and stress reduction, and was named one of the Top 20 Women Business Owners in Northeast Ohio in 1995.
Arts writer Kerry Clawson may be reached at 330-996-3527 or kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com.
