Dennis D. died yesterday. He was 65. Dennis was a member of the Symphony stage crew for more than 25 years until his retirement in July 2016. Here’s a picture of all of us at the end of the load out on his last day. Dennis is sitting at the piano.
I first got to know Dennis when I worked with him at the Opera House in the 1980s. He was on the Props crew. I didn’t see him again until he came with the Symphony to the Mondavi Center at UC Davis around 2006 when I was the Local 50 Business Agent. The Symphony always hired a Union crew there. We had dinner together and had a good time reminiscing.
After I came back to San Francisco, I eventually started working more regularly with the Symphony at Davies Hall and was glad to see Dennis again. Despite my many years of stagehand experience, I was uneducated in the ways of the Symphony. Dennis helped me both directly by instruction and indirectly by example. There are a million details in dealing with a Symphony orchestra and Dennis knew all of them. I noticed that all the other stagehands would come to Dennis whenever they were stuck and couldn’t remember how to do some odd thing that hadn’t been done for a long time. Dennis always had the answer.
Even though Dennis was a life long smoker, he always had plenty of energy and seemed in good health. Two months ago, he went to the doctor with pain in his hip. It turned out to be a large cancerous mass and there were others throughout his body. He was determined to live until his daughter’s wedding, scheduled for New Years’ Eve, but it was not to be.
Our friend and colleague Arno was bereft last night. ‘Why do the good ones die young?’, he asked. I had no answer for him. All I could think of was Zach, but it would do no good to mention that.
Dennis, like Zach, lived life to the fullest. We should honor their memory by doing the same.
I will miss him, & remember him fondly. Just saying his name brings a smile to my face. I can hear that laugh!
Nishon taught me symphony sound. Dennis taught me “symphony”. How to act, how to interact, who was who, who was what, how it worked, how they work, who worked & who didn’t and ALL the little nuances in between.
Symphony IS NOT Rock n Roll!!
He taught me “symphony”.
I will now treasure time spent stage left with him & that laugh!
Thank you Dennis. RIP brother.
You said it better than I did! Thank you, Cub!
Thoroughly enjoyed your remembrance of your colleague, mentor, and your friend. So sad to to see him leave us so quickly after years of working very hard. Then, just after two years of retirement, he is gone. So untimely. This was the time he planned to spend more time with his family & friends, travel and do all sorts of projects he had set aside. Cannot help but say, he left us with more of his wisdom, “Do not postpone what you plan or desire to accomplish today. Tomorrow is never guaranteed.” RIP and thank you for being so good to your friends .
So beautifully said Chris. Dennis was in my apprentice class and I worked with him for years at the opera, he was always one of the good guys. May his wife, children, Vance and family, Mark and family find some peace❤️
So sorry to hear this sad news. I’ll remember Dennis fondly, as will all who worked with him. My condolences to his family