Dena Hammerstein founded Only Make Believe in October 1999 in memory of her late husband James Hammerstein (son of Oscar Hammerstein II) and his passion for theater. Since then, the nonprofit organization has encouraged countless terminally ill children to take a bow.
Celeb Life: How did Only Make Believe get started?
Dena Hammerstein:
I originally created a lot of programs to take kids with chronic illnesses and disabilities to the theater as a treat for them. Some of these visits were incredibly overwhelming for these kids, because when you’re in a wheelchair or terminally ill, it can be a bit overwhelming to land in Times Square.
So, I thought about turning it the other way around and bringing the theater to the kids in the hospital. I thought it would be wonderful to create a program in memory of my husband and our family name. We started off at the Rusk Institute in Manhattan with just a couple of actors and an idea.
CL: When did you know you were on to something good?
DH: The minute I heard the kids laughing.
CL: How do the children participate?
DH: The actors that we choose have the ability to interact with kids and create an atmosphere of trust and fun, where the kids desire to participate. The scripts are written so that each child gets a part, small little bits. We invite them up on stage to take a bow and be appreciated. We try to get as many kids to participate as we can.
CL: How do you find suitable actors to get involved?
DH: We pay the actors, who are mainly equity members, and some of them have had experience in educational theater. We audition them in the same process as regular auditions. Then, we invite them to come and see the program before we throw them in there.
It is very easy to tell just by watching the actors see a show if they are up for the job or not. It’s very emotional and very rewarding. These actors give 100 percent of themselves, and they get back so much from these kids.
CL: Can you talk about some of the more famous actors involved with the program?
DH: Rachel Weisz is an old friend and very supportive of what we do, as are Mike Meyers and Julia Stiles. Both Julia Stiles and Mike Meyers have been to the hospitals, watched the programs, and met the kids.
CL: Can you tell me about a particular child in the program who really moved you?
DH: I was watching a program at a hospital, and we called up one little boy to participate in the scene. At the time, I didn’t think there was anything particularly exceptional to be said. Then, the doctor told me that this kid was selectively mute and had never spoken before. It was a huge breakthrough.
CL: How can people become involved?
DH: Just go to our website and sign up. The office will be more than happy to have you help in any way.
ENTHUSIASM Children love getting involved in the Only Make Believe shows
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