By John Istel

Roundabout’s theatre angels are rare and beautiful beings. Some, however, seem more heaven-sent than others. Few are as beatific as Norma Langworthy.

Norma Langworthy’s love affair with the performing arts began long before the Roundabout became a bright idea. Growing up in 1920s Pittsburgh, she began dancing at a local studio where one of the boys, Gene Kelly, made quite a name for himself. "I knew Gene and Frank Kelly since I was five," she says.

At six, Norma was performing professionally. "I was the queen of the Charleston," she recalls. "When I was seven someone tapped me on the shoulder and made me Miss Junior Pittsburgh. I got to go to Atlantic City and ride down the street in a float."

Norma’s life just seems charmed. She danced her way through school ("I even earned money during the Depression"), and enrolled in the drama program at Carnegie-Mellon University. The dean, she remembers, encouraged her to work professionally, and she moonlit in musicals and acted in Moličre comedies at the Pittsburgh Playhouse. She and childhood friend Gene Kelly were even cast in the chorus of a new musical headed for Broadway that starred Mary Martin . But Norma’s family drew the line. "They put their foot down and insisted I stay in school," she says.

It was at the Playhouse that Norma met David Langworthy, who had studied playwriting at Harvard. Eventually, he switched to scenic design and attended Yale Drama School. They settled in New York City to pursue their theatrical dreams when World War II broke out. David decided to join the family business. He proposed to Norma in his 11th Street apartment and they moved to Philadelphia and raised a family of four.

Norma Langworthy with The Boys From Syracuse stars Tom Hewitt (left) and Jonathan Dokuchitz (right)

"But we always vowed that we’d move back to New York," says Langworthy. So about 20 years ago, they returned to the block where David had proposed and found a recently cleared lot. The infamous Weathermen terrorist group had blown up a brownstone. The Langworthys bought the land and built a new home. Although David died of Parkinson’s Disease in 1993, the two angels had already started to produce theatre and had begun subscribing to Roundabout.

The attachment has grown over the last decade. At 83, Langworthy is now a member of Roundabout’s Chairman Circle and has been an ardent supporter of the company over the last dozen years. "I’m interested in all of the things Roundabout does," she says one autumn morning by phone. "I’m going to their big fundraiser for the education program — Alan Cumming’s going to sing! But I have no great preference, I love all the events. I especially love to see good new plays."

Langworthy played an important role in Roundabout’s capital campaign for the renovation of the Selwyn, hosting a dinner party for potential donors. And her personal gift to the new building? "I always get teased—they call me the Party Girl. That’s because I gave money for an elevator. Why that? Because it takes me," Langworthy laughs, "right to the bar in the Nabisco Lounge!

"And my elevator has given me more pleasure. Friends come in from out of town and see my name on the inside — Donated by Norma Langworthy—and they call up and say, ‘We didn’t know you were in New York! And connected with Roundabout Theatre Company!’ I just love that."

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