Left to right: David Dudley and Sue Whitehouse for Allen P. Dudley, Inez O’Brien Senn and Barbara A. Petti

The Curtain Raisers Advisory Board inducted three honorees into The University of Findlay’s Performing Arts Wall of Fame on Saturday, April 28.

The UF Performing Arts Wall of Fame honors former students, faculty and community members who have given unselfishly of their time and energy to the advancement of the performing arts at the University. Inductees included the late Allen P. Dudley, Barbara A. Petti and Inez O’Brien Senn.

Allen P. Dudley (1919-1983) graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 1942 and then began his own dance band. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a chief petty officer and was at Normandy Beach on D-Day. Also while in the service, he organized what was to become the Ninth Naval District Band, and he performed as a pianist and musical arranger for the Armed Forces Radio Services.

David Dudley (pictured) and Sue Whitehouse accepted the honor for their father, the late Allen P. Dudley.

Fondly known as the “music man,” Dudley began his career in Findlay as program director for WFIN radio station, during which time he had his own 15-minute daily piano and talk show. In the late 1950s, Dudley organized the Summer Concert Series at Riverside Park, and after his death, the band shell there was named in his honor. He also worked for The Findlay Publishing Co. where he eventually became vice president.

Dudley was a strong civic leader and was a member of the Findlay Area Chamber of Commerce & Ambassadors Club, Civic Music Association, Findlay Kiwanis Club, Findlay Junior Achievement, the American Legion, Toledo Press Club, Findlay College Associates and several other civic organizations. Allen also served on the board of directors of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra.

Dudley was married to Ruth Campbell, and she died in April. Dudley’s daughter, Sue Whitehouse, and son, David Dudley, accepted their father’s award.

Barbara A. Petti

Barbara A. Petti’s interest in music was piqued at an early age; her father was an assistant conductor for the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra and one of the founders of the National Federation of Musicians. As a teenager, Petti studied voice at the Cleveland Institute of Music and continued her studies at the Eastman School of Music and then Northwestern University, where she earned her first bachelor’s degree. She earned a second bachelor’s degree from Bowling Green State University.

In 1959, Petti married her husband, Nick, and in 1961 the couple moved to Findlay where she became involved in the arts through the Findlay Light Opera Co., Fort Findlay Playhouse and Findlay College, now The University of Findlay. In 1977, Petti approached professor of theatre Barry Alexander about the possibility of beginning a SummerStock program at Findlay College, a program that successfully continues today.

Through the 1990s, Petti assisted Alexander with every aspect of SummerStock. She arranged housing for performers, negotiated contracts, found corporate sponsors and hosted premiere receptions. Also in the 1990s, Petti was instrumental in beginning the Curtain Raisers Society, originally formed to assist with SummerStock. The group has expanded its scope to support the academic theatre and music programs at UF.

In addition, Petti and her husband owned and operated Alpine Village restaurant on North Main Street in Findlay for many years. They hosted many meals and gatherings for Findlay College/UF faculty, staff and students, and they employed students to help them pay for their schooling. Petti also has assisted in planning trips for theatre majors to New York and London, and the couple has generously supported several music events at UF.

Inez O’Brien Senn

Inez O’Brien Senn has been involved in music in Findlay for more than 50 years. In the late 1940s, the Findlay Musical Trio began as entertainment for a meeting of the Thursday Conversational Club. Members included Mary Louise O’Brien Child, narrator; Mary Snyder Kirk, a 2005 Wall of Fame Inductee, pianist; and O’Brien, vocalist.

The first performance, an overview of the Broadway musical “The Song of Norway,” was such a success that there were numerous requests for additional performances of other musicals. However, Kirk could not fit all the performances into her schedule due to church commitments, so Allen P. Dudley agreed to join as an accompanist, promoter and business manager. The Findlay Musical Trio became the Allen Dudley Trio, and each year thereafter the three artists prepared a new show, usually featuring a single musical by Rodgers & Hammerstein, Lerner & Loewe, Jerome Kern, George M. Cohan and others.

According to Senn, shortly after Allen became the accompanist, Dr. Aletha Herwig, professor of history and director of student affairs at Findlay College, heard the group perform. Herwig wanted to give students a glimpse of what was going on in the world outside the very strict social boundaries of their churches, and she asked the Allen Dudley Trio to entertain at the final convocations each year for the next 11 years. Senn noted that remuneration was “out of the question,” due to legal rights and lack of budget, but the trio enjoyed the enthusiasm of the students, and their thank-you notes and friendliness were “very much appreciated.”

Senn and her husband, Dr. Loren Senn, have been generous supporters of the performing arts in Findlay and specifically of Findlay College and The University of Findlay.