payment of competitive wages, a commitment that Mr. Reber made for the company from its inception. David Lemos, a recent graduate of Santa Clara University, became the first production manager and eventually artistic director. Lemos and Reber negotiated with Actors Equity for early concessions and eventually to full Equity (Actors' Union) status. Artistically, San Jose Rep was a bit uneven, but given its age, many productions were surprisingly high quality and were given excellent critical notices and are still revered by patrons. Among the more distinguished productions of the early Rep era were: A popular WWII version of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew directed by Anne McNaughton and featuring a dashing and handsome young John Callahan, who later went on to a successful television career, as Petruchio. A series of large productions done in collaboration with the San Jose Symphony, sponsored by Merrill Lynch and known as the Merrill Lynch Great Performances. These were produced in the massive San Jose Center for Performing Arts and had very short runs. The first was The Tempest with music by Sibelius and the next was the only known production of Peter Shaffer's masterpiece, Amadeus, featuring Ray Birk as Salieri and a chorus of Opera San Jose singers performing Mozart's Requiem. The music for both productions was conducted by George Cleave. A collaborative production of Emily Mann's Execution of Justice, which told the story of the infamous slaying of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone by Supervisor Dan White. The production was produced by San Jose Rep, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and the Eureka Theatre. It premiered at the Montgomery Theater and later moved to Berkeley Repertory Theater. The American premiere of Ken Jenkin's original play, "007 Crossfire" directed by Edward Hastings. "Translations" by Irish playwright, Brian Friel, directed by James Edmondson in 1986. A collaboration with San Jose/Cleveland Ballet company for the production of "Swan Lake" with Cynthia Gregory as prima ballerina and San Jose Rep company performing member, Joanna Munisteri in 1987. Among the distinguished alumni of San Jose Rep's early years, all of whom were recruited by the young Artistic Director David Lemos and played significant roles in launching the young company, are: James Houghton, founding artistic director of New York City's unique Signature Theater Company; Richard Rodgers, director of the Drama Division at Juilliard; James Bundy, artistic director of Yale Repertory Theater and dean of the prestigious