Theater on his terms

For Malverne native David Coonan, theater has never been about fame, money, or success.

Coonan, a 1999 Malverne High School graduate with deep roots in the area, believes theater is about expression, creativity, and exploration.

Coonan is the director of the Malverne Community Theatre since 2012 when he resurrected the defunct troupe. Since then, the non-profit theater group performed over 100 shows of all types, helping bring people together through entertainment, while adding a rich depth of character to an already vibrant community.

For his work with the Malverne Community Theatre, the Herald is proud to name Coonan its 2022 Person of the Year.

“I’m going to say this and you’re not going to type it, but he has that brilliant mind,” said Coonan’s sister, Amy, 30, of Malverne upon learning of his award. “I’m going to have to listen to it all year!”

Coonan said he decided in 2010 to do “theater on my own terms” so he began the process of creating his own theater company. After much research and consultation, he realized that reforming the Malverne Community Theatre was a more efficient and less costly option than starting anew.

“I had no intention of restarting the Malverne Community Theatre. I wanted to do my own thing,” Coonan said.

The word ‘community’ was disconcerting to Coonan. He didn’t want to perform traditional shows. He wanted the freedom to explore and create. “The word ‘community’ packs a certain stipulation, and I didn’t want that,” he said.

Later, Coonan learned that despite the name, he could use the group to be as creative as his mind would permit. “I was biased against the name ‘community theatre’. I didn’t have to be,” he said.

Since 2012, Coonan guided a renaissance of the theater, including through the troubled times of coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. In his effort to push the boundaries of theater, he started livestreaming performances on Facebook Live in 2018 — before the pandemic — so the Malverne Community Theatre company was already adjusted to performances in front of a camera.

“As freaking sad as it sounds, I would look forward to that all week after being locked inside all day,” said company member Mike Pagano. “It was really great to lift our spirits up and still be productive.”

Pagano, a comedian, is one of Coonan’s former students. Now 30, Pagano said he still seeks advice from his teacher.

Coonan embraced the word ‘community’, especially because of his connections to the community. He grew up in Malverne and now teaches English at Howard T. Herber Middle School in the district. He also produces many shows at the high school and middle school. His parents graduated from Malverne, as did his grandmother.

And even though he now lives in Lynbrook with his wife, Jackie, and their 7-year-old son Lennon, he said he is just “four steps” from Malverne and a two-minute drive to his grandparent’s house.

“Malverne has a really rich show business past,” Coonan said. “It has always been a rich arts community.”

Coonan sees his work with theater students in the schools and for the community theater company as “standing on the shoulders of giants.” He credits his former drama teacher and mentor at Malverne High School, Salvatorre Zaccaro, for inspiring him.

Coincidently, Zaccaro was the director of the Malverne Community Theatre in 1967 before it went defunct. Zaccaro and other theater board members at the time gave Coonan their full blessing to restart the company in 2012.

“I’ve really embraced that word ‘community’,” he said. “That’s why I haven’t tried to make it too big. I work here, I live here and I do theater here. I love this place. I have a deep appreciation for the history and a deep appreciation for the community.”

Coonan said running a community theater company is no small feat, and despite the hours of toil, he doesn’t do it for money. He enjoys performing and creating, and helping others achieve theatrical success on whatever stage they happen to be performing.

“It’s never been about the money or being the biggest theater on Long Island,” said Coonan’s sister, who performs with the group. “It’s always been about the art. Even if there are two people in the audience, he pushes us to go out there and put on the best damn show they’ve ever seen.”

Coonan said despite the paucity of funding, the company members are dedicated and talented, and perform truly great shows for all ages. That creative energy and collaboration — not base monetary desire — is what fuels Coonan and the Malverne Community Theatre.

“We haven’t been too ambitious with the business,” Coonan said. “We haven’t tried to grow too big too quickly. It’s about creativity. I’d rather have 10 people in the audience who want to be there than 1,000 people who don’t.”