Since she was in high school, Suzannah Levett Zody has been at home at the Brown County Playhouse. Now, the community theater has her back as she battles a medical emergency.
On Sunday, May 19, the Playhouse will host a benefit concert for Zody to help offset some of her medical costs.
Zody is currently in critical but stable condition at Kindred Hospital in Fishers as she fights a fungal infection in her sinuses. It is a result of a rare complication of diabetes, said her parents, Frank and Brenda Zody, in a statement released to The Democrat last week.
The family respectfully asks for no visitors. “We are very grateful for all of the support from the community and all of her friends,” Frank Zody said.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]For the past eight years, Suzannah has been an “integral part” of the Playhouse, a press release for the benefit concert states.
“Suzannah has touched everyone who came to the Playhouse, from the volunteers to staff to performers to the guests,” the release states.
“Now it is our turn to touch Suzannah, to reach out and show her that the community and the Playhouse is supporting her during her toughest battle yet.”
The concert will begin at 2 p.m., with doors opening at 1:30 p.m. Admission is free. Donations can be made online, at the door or during intermission. Musicians Dave Gore and Robbie Bowden; Chuck Wills and Friends; Kara Barnard and Friends; Hamilton Creek; and Jenn Cristy and Eric Brown will perform.
‘Good at whatever she did’
Theater has been Suzannah’s passion since her days as a Brown County High School student.
She had roles in “Teahouse of the August Moon” and “The Sound of Music in 1976. She played Abby Brewster in “Arsenic and Old Lace,” Minnie Fay in “Hello, Dolly” and Annie Sullivan in “The Miracle Worker” in 1977. In 1978, Zody played the female lead in “The Music Man” and Joan of Arc in “The Lark.”
In total, Zody appeared in nine productions and worked as part of the crew for two performances, according to newspaper archives.
In 1977, Zody was one of 65 high school students selected from Indiana, Illinois, Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and Michigan to attend workshops at Ball State University. In the workshop, Zody studied theater management, costuming, makeup, stagecraft, acting and publicity.
“All the times she was in Brown County she was very involved in the theater. It was her passion,” said her father, Frank Zody.
“She loves the theater and she is a go-getter. She worked hard at it and was very good at it. We’re awfully proud of her.”
Zody was ranked sixth in her class when she graduated in 1979. She attended Purdue University for two years. As a freshman, Zody played Lady Teazle in the university’s production of “The School of Scandal.” She also had a role in “Two by Two.”
She also appeared in two musicals and was one of 10 members of the chorus to support a Broadway entertainer in a musical review.
During her sophomore year, Zody had a role in the romantic musical comedy “The Robber Bridegroom.”
She also acted in Brown County community theater performances, including playing Doris in the “Owl and the Pussycat” in 1980, according to Brown County Democrat archives.
In 1981, Zody was an apprentice at Barn Theatre in Michigan. She moved to Chicago in the 1980s where she lived for 13 years, working on theater productions and advertising.
She then moved to London where she worked in theater behind the scenes. She worked for a company that sold tickets, and one of their clients was the royal family. She had the opportunity to work at the Buckingham Palace.
“She did a lot of things and was good at whatever she did,” Frank said.
While in London, Zody met her husband, Ian Levett. The couple recently celebrated 17 years of marriage.
“People may not know that Ian is the tall bartender behind the bar,” Patty Frensemeier said. “He’s the English bartender at the Playhouse.”
The two moved back to Brown County in 2002, according to newspaper archives. Zody began working as a sales associate for Hills O’Brown Realty, eventually becoming the principal broker.
She left that job to go back to the Playhouse.
She also has served in several community roles, including president of the Brown County Chamber of Commerce and member of the Brown County Economic Development Commission and Nashville Development Review Commission.
‘She did it all’
Frensemeier is Suzannah’s first cousin by marriage. “I divorced a Zody, but I did not divorce any of the family,” Frensemeier said.
Frensemeier is the treasurer for the Brown County Playhouse Management Inc. Board. She started volunteering at the Playhouse four years ago and now works as the volunteer coordinator. She worked directly with Suzannah for the last four years.
“When she was in high school, she was the main thespian. She was on stage for every play, every performance there was. She has always been about theater,” Frensemeier said about Suzannah.
“Theater has always been her love, so it did not surprise me that when IU closed down the Playhouse, that she was someone they went to straight to to say, ‘Do you want to help us resurrect this Playhouse?’”
Started in 1949, the Playhouse was a joint project between local businessman A. Jack Rogers and Indiana University theater director Lee Norvelle. IU shuttered the Playhouse in 2010, and Brown County Playhouse Management, Inc, a nonprofit management group, stepped in to take it over in 2011.
Suzannah volunteered to be the first president of the board of directors. She worked six days a week for 18 months, volunteering her time and skills to get the Playhouse up and running, the press release states.
The Playhouse has been the only dedicated stage downtown since 2013.
In 2013, Suzannah worked as a contracted employee running the front of the house, ticketing and marketing services. She was officially promoted to executive director in 2016.
“She has been the face of that Playhouse for a very long time,” Frensemeier said.
“The people who have contacted me in this three months is amazing, all the way from people in high school to people she’s traveled with to past performers. … The people she has touched has really surprised me in a good way, that she has touched a lot of people’s lives personally and professionally.”
Frensemeier goes up to visit Zody every two weeks. She tells her about all of the performances at the Playhouse, especially the sold-out shows that Suzannah had booked herself before she became ill in February.
“All of the sellout shows — Leo Kottke, Marty Stuart, Asleep at the Wheel — were all acts Suzannah had brought in, and I knew she would be very proud of that. I made sure I told her when I was up there,” Frensemeier said.
The management board recently hired Hannah Estabrook as the assistant executive director to help fill Suzannah’s shoes as she battles her illness.
But those shoes will not be an easy fit. From managing social media, to doing marketing, to organizing advertisements, to working the box office, to making sure the performers have everything they need, Suzannah does it all.
Recently, the Playhouse has been doing more fundraisers to support its operations, as many such theaters do. The Playhouse recently raised enough money to put in new sound curtains that line the entire theater.
“She (Suzannah) is the one who was pushing (for it). Being she had the theater background, she knew what was needed,” Frensemeier said.
“She knows that our sound system needs to be updated, and we’re close to having that completely done if we just had a little bit more donations for that. She was adamant about the sound. We have new speakers because of her. She is the one that led the charge for everything on the Playhouse.”
When performers come in, some had specific requests for food and Suzannah would do the shopping and prepare their dressing rooms. She booked hotels for the performers, and when country star Pam Tillis came to town, Suzannah made sure she had a driver to take her around.
“When you bring in an act, there’s a lot of organizing anyways, but she did it all. I can’t stress enough how she did it all,” Frensemeier said.
“It’s going to be big shoes to fill. We feel like she (Estabrook) will be capable. Where some theaters have people running this part or that part, she (Suzannah) just did it all. She did it all.”
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WHAT: Benefit concert for Brown County Playhouse Executive Director Suzannah Levett Zody
WHEN: 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 19. Doors open at 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: Brown County Playhouse, downtown Nashville
WHO: Musicians Dave Gore and Robbie Bowden; Chuck Wills and Friends; Kara Barnard and Friends; Hamilton Creek; and Jenn Cristy and Eric Brown will perform.
WHY: Zody is in the hospital as she battles an illness caused by a rare complication of diabetes. Donations will go toward helping to offset her medical costs.
TICKETS: Admission is free. Seat reservations and donations can be made online at: browncountyplayhouse.org/on-stage/for-suzannah-s-sake-benefit-concert. Donations also will be accepted at the door and during intermission.
HOW TO HELP: If unable to attend, check donations can be sent to P.O. Box 2011, Nashville, IN 47448. Make checks payable to Brown County Playhouse, Attn: For Suzannah’s Sake
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