Nondas Metcalfe

Nondas Metcalfe began her career dancing, first in Chicago and later on Broadway, where she starred in Earl Carroll's Vanities in the late 1920s. With her first husband, Robert Cutler, Metcalfe ran a summer stock theater in Suffern, New York from 1933 to 1939. The theater was a starting point for many legendary actors such as Jose Ferrer, Helen Hayes, and Vincent Price. Although Hollywood studios were in limited production during the war, Metcalfe was featured in Alfred Hitchcock's Suspicion in 1941. Eventually Metcalfe joined the USO camp shows as assistant producer and went to England to write and produce shows for enlisted men at European bases. She was then sent to Paris as the American entertainment director of the Allied Expeditionary Forces, where she was in charge of daily evening entertainment for soldiers on leave. In 1947, Metcalfe married radio announcer Nelson Case. Ten years later, they moved to Bucks County, where she appeared at the Bucks County Playhouse, the Lambertville Music Circus and staged many productions at Phillips' Mill.

Plays
Producer:
One For the Money, 1938, Broadway Production co-produced with Robert Cutler, Metcalfe's 1st husband
The Man Who Came for Dinner, 1959 Bucks County Playhouse, New Hope, Pennsylvania
My Fair Lady, 1960s, Lambertville Musical Circus, Lambertville, New Jersey
Director, Phillips' Mill Community Association:
Brownstone Front by Emily Leith-Ross and Dorothy Summer
Double Door
One For The Money
Murder in the Magnolias
Pajama Game, 1980

Major Films
Featured in Alfred Hitchcock's Suspicion, 1941 (screenplay by Samson Raphaelson)

Major Musical Performances
John Murray Anderson's Almanac; Good News, Chicago, Illinois; on tour, 1928-1929
Earl Caroll's Vanities, New York, New York, 1930s
Lead Role in Woof, Woof, New York, New York, 1930s

Education and Training
Nondas Metcalfe took dance lessons as a child. She studied dance in Greenville, South Carolina, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Chicago, Illinois. Her first part was in Good News (Chicago, 1928, 1929). She toured with the show for eight months. She came to New York in 1929 and signed with Earl Caroll for Vanities, 1930s.

Teachers and Influences
Ina Claire, the great comedienne of "drawing room comedy," was an influence.

Connection to Bucks County
Nondas Metcalfe moved to Bucks County in 1957 with her husband, the well known radio-and-television announcer, Nelson Case. They purchased their first home by Jericho Mountain, the historic London Purchase Farm, one of the older houses in the county. They later moved to Old Windy Bush Road in New Hope. Their last home was on River Road in Center Bridge.

Colleagues and Affiliations
Nondas Metcalfe and her husband Nelson Case were friends with Margaret Mullen Root and John Root, Frances Reid and Philip Bourneuf, John and Jane Hess, St. John Terrell, Harry and Emily Leith-Ross, Mike Ellis, Roland and Sherry Fiore.

Nondas Metcalfe performed in, and directed various productions at the Bucks County Playhouse, the Lambertville Music Circus, and theatrical productions at Phillips' Mill. She also staged a show for the 50th anniversary of the Mercer Museum. She continued her service to the community as a guide at the Parry Mansion in New Hope.

Teaching and Professional Appointments
Ran the summer stock theater at the County Theater with her first husband, Robert Cutler, Suffern, New York, 1933-1939
Assistant producer, USO Shows, New York and England, 1944
American Entertainment Director, Allied Expeditionary Forces, Paris, France, 1944
Director, The Story of the Mercer Museum in Sound and Light, Golden Anniversary 1916-1966 of the Mercer Museum of the Bucks County Historical Society, 1966
Bucks County Playhouse, 1960s
Lambertville Musical Circus, 1960s
Phillips' Mill Community Association 1970s and 1980s