Washington College Magazine
That's Show Biz: Thomas C. Hofstetter '54
"Dinner is served, Mr. Whiteside." It's been over 50 years since Thomas C. Hofstetter '54 uttered those immortal words during his stage debut at Washington College. He still remembers fondly his walk-on performance as the butler in The Man Who Came to Dinner.
So fondly, in fact, that the retired investment banker is now a champion for the performing arts in Aiken, SC, as Chairman of Aiken Performing Arts Group—an organization dedicated to bringing, as he says, "a potpourri of quality professional entertainment [to] one of the most delightful and cosmopolitan" small cities in the South.
Combining his 44 years of management experience in the brokerage industry with his love of the performing arts, Hofstetter is responsible for attracting top-flight entertainers to the Washington Center Theatre in Aiken and selling out every performance. His two most recent shows included "The Second City" comedy act and the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra. Next season, thanks to Hofstetter's endeavors, Aiken will enjoy The Celtic Tenors from Dublin, Quattro Gelato's classical music; Frank Ferrante in "A Night with Groucho"; and "Red, Hot...& Blue!," a Broadway music stage review.
"It's no mean trick to attract top entertainers to a small city," says Hofstetter, who showcases every performer before contacting them. "It's a matter of slipping up on them and offering an appearance in Aiken on the way from New York to Miami," he adds with a chuckle.
Hofstetter is well aware of the importance of the performing arts as a key measure of the quality of life offered to the citizens of Aiken. "There is an inextricable link between the arts and the economic viability of any community," he says. "Quality of life is a driving force in attracting new people to a town—contributing to the vitality of the business community and in turn making that community stronger."
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