Shel Edelman Hall of Fame Inductees
Shel Edelman
Shel or Dr. Sheldon Edelman had long been interested in theater but got the acting bug for good when he starred as Tevye in a Junction City production of Fiddler on the Roof. He went on to act in over 40 plays at the Manhattan Arts Center and Wamego’s Columbian Theater. He also directed seven (7). Notable roles besides Tevye include Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Sir Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons, Grandpa in Broadway Bound, Kris Kringle in Here’s Love, Clarence the Angel in It’s a Wonderful Life, and John Brown in A Kansas Character. Shel was famous for never properly learning his lines, but he was an adept improviser who could rescue a scene from any number of disasters.
A playwright, Shel’s work has been produced at the Manhattan Arts Center and in a prize-winning turn at a talent show at Meadowlark, where he resided during the latter part of his life. Writing came naturally to him since it was always more important that things be funny than true. He served on the MAC board from 2012 until his death in 2016.
Shel was a confirmed romantic and his greatest love was always Charlotte. They met when both were students at Roosevelt University in Chicago and they married in 1954. Char was initially a primary school teacher and never got over the desire to decorate for every holiday. She became a gerontologist and worked as a counselor with Shel in their private practice.
Steve and Jan Galitzer
Steve and Jan’s legacy at the Manhattan Arts Center is truly woven into the very fabric of the MAC. Over the years, they have each served on the MAC board, always stepping up when called upon and guiding the organization with care. They were hands-on in every possible way, they gave time, talent, and resources to the MAC. Before the MAC had a building to call home, Steve and Jan were already part of the theater family, navigating performances in borrowed spaces, and they believed wholeheartedly in the dream that our community deserved a vibrant, permanent home for the arts.
Steve helped build the MAC—literally—putting in countless nights and weekends alongside contractors, building walls, digging trenches, and painting everything from the walls to the floor. To Jan and Steve, the Center was much more than a building. It was a second home where friendships formed, their children grew up, creativity thrived, and everyone felt welcome. Their dedication has kept the MAC at the heart of our community, making it a second home for many others.
Jim and Connie Hamilton
When Jim first stepped into directing in the 1970s, he brought with him not only a love of performance but a philosopher’s mind and deep belief that theater is its own art form. Not merely literature staged, but a living, breathing act of collective imagination. He believed young artists deserved to encounter the full range of theatrical possibilities, not just traditional productions. Work that challenged form, fractured narrative, and asked bold questions.
In 1989, that belief became the Manhattan Experimental Theater Workshop and lasted for over 25 years. The Workshop was never simply a summer program for high school students; it was a laboratory of ideas.
Students began their workshop not with blocking and memorization, but with reading and discussion — exploring non-traditional playwrights like Pinter, Brecht, and Dario Fo, examining structure, time, movement, and meaning. They learned that theater could be abstract, physical, intellectual, and daring. In just three short weeks, they performed fully realized, original works — off-book (no script), fully embodied, and astonishingly mature.
Jim insisted that theater is a collective — one must always think - and think with others. Respect was foundational, and non-negotiable. An ensemble was essential. In this safe space, the young people learned not only how to perform, but how to belong.
Margalith Clarenburg
Margalith was born in Den Haag, the Netherlands and had been a longtime Manhattan resident. When she was 17, the Nazi war machine rolled over her Dutch homeland and suddenly she was no longer a budding medical doctor but a Jew, considered less than human. Until the Allied liberation in late 1944, she not only evaded capture by the German occupations and their collaborators but took an active role in the Dutch resistance.
Margalith married Dr. Rudolf Clarenburg in 1959 and emigrated to the United States and came to Kansas in 1966, where Clarenburg was a professor on the faculty of Kansas State University School of Veterinary Medicine. A social activist with a keen appreciation of the beauties of living which drove her to share that appreciation with others throughout her life. She was one of the founders of the Manhattan Arts Center and helped to establish programs that would bring art to area school children.
Frank and Laurel Lewis Cronin
Frank and Laurel Cronin helped rejuvenate interest in civic theatre in Manhattan. Frank had been professionally associated with community theater in Chicago and in summer stock in Illinois.
In May 1965, Frank directed the comedy Blithe Spirit by Noel Coward. The review stated Frank “expertly directed and staged the production which was in the round at the Community Center. (He) must be saluted for his discovery of outstanding local acting talent for this production”. The outstanding local talents included Rix Shanline, Dwight Nesmith and Beverly Faw, all honorees tonight.
Laurel Lewis (Frank's wife) was a graduate from the Pasadena Playhouse in California. She had been professionally associated with the Drury Lane Theater where she had the opportunity to work with Pat O’Brien, Linda Darnell and Forrest Tucker. She directed many children’s plays for the Morton Grove Civic Theater in Illinois and had been associated with several experimental professional theaters in California.
Beverly Faw
Beverly was a crucial member of the Manhattan Civic Theatre with her first play in 1965 until her last in 1997. Her talents and vision helped to create an organization that has produced quality shows for almost 40 years. Beverly directed more than a dozen plays: Night Must Fall, The Best Man, Bus Stop, Harvey, On Borrowed Time, Picnic, Ten Little Indians, Anastasia, and Arsenic and Old Lace. She always insisted that her plays be suitable for the entire family.
Rehearsals often were held in her living room, and the plays were produced wherever the Manhattan Civic Theater could beg space – the Community House, Lee and Eugene Field elementary schools, The Elks Lodge and the basement of the City Building.
When she wasn’t sitting in the director’s chair, Beverly often was on stage. She was seen in 10 shows: Blithe Spirit, The Constant Wife, Kind Lady, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker, The Madwoman of Chaillot, The Heiress, You Can’t Take It with You, and the Unexpected Guest.
Beverly gave much to the Manhattan Civic Theater and in large part set the standard we still strive for today.
Doris and Gene Grosh
Over many years, Gene and Doris Grosh gave far more than financial support to the Manhattan Arts Center — they invested their time, leadership, and deep belief in the power of the arts to strengthen a community.
In the late 1990s, Gene and Doris offered a transformative $100,000 challenge grant to the Arts Center. The board rose to the occasion, raising all but $10,000 of the goal. After Gene’s passing, Doris chose to fulfill the original commitment herself, contributing the remaining amount they had intended to give together. Their generosity and vision made it possible for the Manhattan Arts Center to establish its first endowment — a lasting gift that continues to support the organization’s future.
Edith and Carl Hinrichs
“One of the best things about theater is working together.”
For Edith and Carl Hinrichs, theater is more than an occupation, it was a family affair. Both Edith and Carl began their journeys in the vibrant theatrical and cultural world of New York City.
Edith was born in the Bronx and attended the High School of Performing Arts, where she specialized in dance. She later studied on scholarship at the Martha Graham School of Dance, going on to become a professional dancer.
In 1954, while performing in the summer stock production The Lost Colony in Manteo, North Carolina, Edith met Carl. At the time, Carl was studying architecture at North Carolina State University and working as a radio announcer. Encouraged by someone at the station to audition for the outdoor drama, he stepped onto the stage for the first time — what family members recall as his very first acting experience.
They moved to Manhattan in 1964 where Carl was hired as a technical director and Edith taught dance for actors. Edith was a fixture for many years in the Manhattan theater and dance community. She graced the stages of the Manhattan Civic Theater and Kansas State University, using her talent for acting, directing and choreography. She received her master’s degree in Acting and Directing from Kansas State University in 1975.
Jeune and Philip Kirmser
Jeune’s father was a self-taught musician and artist, and her mother was a graduate in mathematics. She married Philip in June 1942 and shortly thereafter moved to Manhattan where Philip taught at K-State and Jeune received another Master’s in English. Jeune practiced social work and taught English in Washington D.C. while Phil was away in the Navy.
Besides having a Ph.D. in Mathematics and teaching Applied Mechanics at the College of Engineering, Philip was an accomplished classical musician, playing piano, flute and oboe. He played flute for many years with the Kansas State University Orchestra and while in his 80s, actively participated in a local flute ensemble.
The "Green Room" was the first room to be named in the building. Philip & Jeune Kirmser donated funds to develop this room. They named it The Damon Runyon Room. The Runyon family is a long time Manhattan family. They also donated funds for the large gallery space.
Joan McNeil
Joan showed an early talent for writing. At age 17, she had her story, “His Armor All Shining” published in Seventeen Magazine, which won her a place as a columnist for her local paper. When Joan left for college in 1947, she majored in Technical Journalism at Kansas State University and helped edit the Royal Purple yearbook and the Collegian campus newspaper.
Joan was a supporter of the arts - theater, music, and the culture - the heartbeat and soul of Manhattan. She wrote, directed and performed in popular church musical dinner theater skits to benefit her church’s outreach and growth. Joan was active in the Manhattan Civic Theatre and the Manhattan Arts Center. She sat on the Board, chaired committees, helped write and direct plays, organize fundraisers and many other activities. She even donated an entire set of more comfortable theatre chairs for the whole audience area of the Manhattan Arts Center.
Larry and Delia Marcellus
Larry spent his early years traveling on the Santa Fe Railroad with his family. He graduated from Lawrence High School and entered the Navy, near the end of WW II and attended the University of Kansas on the GI Bill. Delia (Dee) was a native Kansan, graduating from Lawrence High School and the University of Kansas with a degree in Zoology. They married in 1949 at the Danforth Chapel on the Kansas State University campus.
Larry and Dee were community minded. Larry founded the Hustlers 4-H club in Leonardville, was a volunteer fireman in McPherson and was involved in stage work for over 40 years with the Manhattan Civic Theatre. He was Dr. Eistein in Arsenic and Old Lace and appeared in Thurber Carnival. As the owner of Art Crafts Printers, he helped produce the performance programs for the Arts Center and he also directed and produced theater performances. Dee was an active Manhattan Civic Theater booster and helped with props and publicity.
Dwight and Doris Nesmith
Dwight and Doris Nesmith met in Chicago, Illinois where they were both raised. After World War II, in which Dwight piloted B24 in the Pacific theater, he earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University. In 1948 he was hired as Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering by Kansas State University. Dwight and Doris raised 5 children.
Dwight’s first introduction in Manhattan to the theater was a part in a “hillbilly melodrama” performed at the Northview Elementary School. This was the beginning of Dwight and Doris’s involvement in and commitment to community theater.
Both Dwight and Doris were involved in the resurrection of the Manhattan Civic Theater in the mid-1960’s. Dwight’s first time on stage for the community theater was in Mr. Roberts which was performed at the Community House.
Both Dwight and Doris received various recognition for their contributions to Manhattan Civic Theater. Dwight was given the Honorary Member Award and the Art Hearts award. The 2010 production of The Dining Room was dedicated to his memory.
Dorothy and James Rosenberg
Back in the autumn of 1954, a combination of town and gown actors created the first civic theater. The creative spirits who founded and carried on the early plays were Jim and Dorothy (Dody) Rosenberg. Jim had come to the English Department at Kansas State University from Denver University and brought with him the enthusiasm of a born star as well as the dedication of a poet, scholar and teacher. He had come from California but had acted in New England summer stock companies professionally and he had me and married Dody there. The two were competent professional stage people. One recalls that faculty were not permitted nor encouraged to act in university or college plays. If Jim and Dody were to perform on stage, they could not do so on campus, and the Civic Theater offered an opportunity, as it did for several other interested and talented people from both campus and city.
Vesta Sargent
Vesta was born in Manhattan, Kansas and grew up in the Riley County area.
Vesta loved the arts and worked behind the scenes on many theatre productions at the Purple Masque and Manhattan Arts Center. She volunteered her time at the Manhattan Arts Center and eventually became a staff member. Because of her love of the arts, she would contribute her talents beyond her employment and filled in wherever she was needed during stage productions.
Rix and Phyliss Shanline
Rix and Phyllis Shanline moved to Manhattan, Kansas with their young family in 1956. Rix was a professional psychiatric social worker and had been hired as the founding director of the newly formed Riley County Mental Health Center.
Rix and Phyllis were both regular fixtures and proud supporters - both onstage and behind the scenes - throughout the growth of the organization, from its early days through its evolution into the Manhattan Arts Center. They shared a love of the arts with each other and their community and were proud of its growth and development.
LeJuan Shrimplin
LeJuan graduated from Central State University of Oklahoma and moved to Deerfield, Kansas to begin her teaching and career in business. There she met Thomas E. Shrimplin and married him in 1956.
Upon retirement, LeJuan became a full-time volunteer for various groups in Manhattan, splitting most of her time between the Riley County Genealogical Society and the Manhattan Arts Center. She had a meticulous attention to detail, an understanding of historical records, and kept valued records, citing, organizing and accurately documenting them for those interested in family or organizational history. She became the first historian of Manhattan Civic Theater.
Paul and Joan Shull
Joan was born in Jamestown, North Dakota and grew up in Boulder, Colorado where she earned a degree in Business from the University of Colorado. There she met her husband, Paul. Joan was a gifted musician and educator. She and Paul actively supported the Manhattan Civic Theater while raising their children. Their commitment to Manhattan Civic Theater was recognized when the Manhattan Arts Center created a volunteer award named after them.
Pat Weisenberger
Pat was born in Sandwich, IL and attended Sandwich schools and the community high school in 1952. She met her husband Ray in Sandwich and they married in 1956. Pat earned a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts Degree in Speech and Drama from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. For the next few years, Pat and ray relocated several times before Ray accepted a “short term” position as Professor of Architecture at Kansas State University in 1964.
Pat’s first love was always theater and shortly after she arrived in Manhattan she found the Manhattan Civic Theater. She directed her first play in 1966, She acted and was involved in many other plays for the next 40 plus years, directing her 17th and final play in 2009. Pat’s memorial service was held at the Manhattan Arts Center and memorial donations were made to the Arts Center.
18 Inductees - 2026
Shel Edelman
Steve and Jan Galitzer
Jim and Connie Hamilton
Margalith Clarenburg
Frand and Laurel Lewis Cronin
Beverly Faw
Doris and Gene Grosh
Edith and Carl Hinrichs
Jeune and Phillip Kirmser
Joan McNeil
Larry and Delia Marcellus
Dwight and Doris Nesmith
Dorothy and James Rosenberg
Vesta Sargent
Rix and Phyllis Shanline
LeJuan Shrimplin
Paun and Joan Shull
Pat Weisenberger
Shel Edelman Hall of Fame
