Audiences ready to follow acting troupe

POCKET SANDWICH THEATRE

By Shari Goldstein Stern

From “Prologue” through “Encore Means More,” “Play it Again Sam(wich)” and “Punch Line,” patrons will miss Pocket Sandwich Theatre’s (PST) creative menu. As a prologue, some regular patrons, like this one, can’t wait for the “One Seasonal Sensation,” a dramatic big ol’ salad costumed with grilled chicken, golden calimyrna fig, apple, red grapes and cranberries, and accessorized with a mélange of chopped nuts, feta cheese and raspberry vinaigrette. 

The “Elixir of the Ages,” craft root beer floats, are also a favorite of PST groupies. Then, following dozens of soups, salads, sandwiches, cheesecake and chocolate brownie sundaes, the audience is ready to digest dinner while enjoying a riveting show. An East Dallas institution, PST has brought joy and laughs with performances of comic plays, musicals, spoofs and melodramas since 1980, when the theatre opened on Greenville Avenue. For the past 31 years, it has been quite comfortable in its historic spot on Mockingbird Lane.

The home to many — the city’s third-oldest theatre company — plans to move to a new location, where it will continue presenting fresh, quality original productions with the most talented of Dallas’ many local actors, performers and theatre professionals. Current owners of the strip center Pocket has called home are making changes to the property and the theatre doesn’t fit with their vision.

In 40 years, the theater has produced more than 300 shows, and five of its original plays have been nominated for Leon Rabin Awards for Best Play. PST won three of those. In 2000, Dickinson received the Leon Rabin Best Actor Award and, in 2004, Dobbs and Dickinson were given the Dallas Theatre League Standing Ovation Award for “Contribution to the advancement of theatre in the Dallas Area, which has been extraordinary and deserving of special recognition.”

The theatre has provided more than 3000 roles for area actors and more than 1800 technical theatre jobs. PST has seen and fed about 800,000 patrons and more than 25 critics. 

Current partners are Joe Dickinson, who passed away in April 2010 but will forever be a “partner,” Rodney Dobbs, Jeff Vance, Brad Dickinson, Shanon Dickinson and two phantom partners, Tom Alleman and Jim Baudhuin.

Scores of local, talented actors, musicians, management and other skilled professionals have appeared under PST’s spotlights, and some had a lot to say about the closing of its current, beloved location. 

“I loved my time at Pocket,” Katie Buck said. She played Young Belle in “Scrooge” in 2017 and choreographed “Scrooge” in 2019. “And I am so sad it is moving but I look forward to the new space wherever it may be.”

Mark A. Keeton said: “I worked there when I was 17 and again several times in my 20s. It was my theatrical home in many ways, and Joe Dickinson was my ‘theatre dad.’ I was in ‘Fools,’ the first show reviewed by The Dallas Morning News there (or at least that’s what they said). I had a great history there.”

Shanon Dickinson started working at PST on the first day her father, Joe Dickinson, and his partner, Rodney Dobbs, opened the doors in 1980. “I was 25 years old,” she said. “We used to get off work and wander next door to Ships Lounge or walk a block to Tango. I still work at PST; I’m 66 and a partner in the business. In those 41 plus years, I have made life-long friends.” 

Dickinson reported on former PST actor Brian J. Smith, who played in TV series including, “Vikings,” along with Joe Dickinson and Brad Dickinson. Smith is a successful Broadway and West End actor who has appeared in a number of films and television series. 

Ashley Colum acknowledged the privilege and opportunity to perform at The Pocket during the reprisal of “Brandi, the Vampire Stalker.” “I truly hope they find a new home soon and I can continue performing with this awesome company.” 

Angela Wilson said she loved the comradery of the Pocket experience. “Pocket is a treasure like no other in Dallas,” Wilson added. 

One of PST’s wait staff, Dylan Mobley, has also performed in some shows, including “Sleigh Hard with a Vengeance” and “Indiana Solo and the Hunt for the Jeweled MacGuffin.” Mobley said: “Pocket isn’t just a theatre. It makes you feel like family. We specialize in leaving people with a smile. I love gushing about this place.”

  Featured