Rep Talk with Nadine Rayner: Problem solved

The van before Don Paynter and the team transformed it. Photo / Supplied

"The big problem will be getting a van on stage at Rep," Ross Gilbertson told me some years ago when he was talking about his dream to stage The Lady in the Van.

Unfortunately for Ross the rights to produce the play weren't available in his lifetime but at last we have The Lady in the Van on stage, complete with van.

Repertory Theatre owes a huge debt of gratitude to Don Paynter and his team who put in hours of work to make our van happen.

I asked Don where they'd got the original van from.

"We hunted high and low," he said. "We heard of one, the right size near Ruapehu and considered that but Patrick said he knew a chap just out of Masterton who had nine vans on his farm. That farmer kindly gave us a van.

"Three of us went over and we had to cut it up to get it on to the trailer to bring it back to Whanganui. Engineers at WW Construction worked with me in their workshop. I cut parts up and put them in place and Chris, Eddie and Jim welded and pot riveted the parts together. It took us a week."

Once the team had reconstructed the van it had to be brought into the theatre and hoisted up on to the stage.

Don got in touch with the Probation Service who brought in a team of helpers to lift the van into the theatre and up on to the stage.

"We couldn't get it through the auditorium doors so I had to take them off and remove the seats down the aisle as the aisle wasn't wide enough to accommodate it," Don said.

What a big job! Mission accomplished, I'm sure Ross in heaven will be smiling as indeed we all are. Thanks to Don and his team.

Come along and see our lady in her van at Repertory Theatre onstage on Thursday, September 1, Friday, September 2 and Saturday, September 3 at 7.30pm.