Some Plays for Decoration Day

Posted by Bruce Miller
My grandfather, Edward Miller, died near his home in Inwood, WV, when he was in his 90s. I believe it was 1967, the same year that the U. S. Congress created Memorial Day.

From 1865 until 1967, the holiday we now know as Memorial Day was called Decoration Day by a large percentage of the population. It took place on May 30. Congress changed the name and the date in 1967 in an effort to beef up a holiday that was falling into disuse. The new date became the last Monday in May, ensuring that it would be part of a three-day weekend and the symbolic start of summer. What better way to beef up a holiday than that?

My grandfather would not have cottoned to the change. Decoration Day was important to him. You may remember from previous posts that he was a Mennonite minister, originally from Springs, PA. Unique among his peers (most Mennonites during that time were strict pacifists), my granddad had given his blessing for his sons and sons-in-law to enlist during WWII. That decision earned him some stiff ridicule, but he believed in the rightness of the decision until the day he died.

My uncle, Will Pettus, died while serving as a doctor during the Second Sino-Japanese War, which, after Pearl Harbor, morphed more or less into WWII. His story is an unusual and honorable one. You can find some of it at http://www.cgu.edu/pages/3282.asp.

Will was married to my father's sister, my Aunt Maude, who is still living. My Uncle Will was and is a family hero. He died in China in 1945, five years before I was born. He is buried in Changsha in a small graveyard connected to Xiangya Hospital. The picture below and to the left is of my Uncle Will and Aunt Maude, and my cousins Anne and Sally.

Every Decoration Day, my granddad longed to tend the grave of my Uncle Will. That, to him, is what Decoration Day was all about--tending (decorating) the graves of family members who had fallen during wartime. Since my granddad was never able to make it to China, he religiously marked May 30 by tending the graves of other veterans who may not have been in his family but were in his proximity.

During a visit to Inwood when I was ten or twelve, he took us with him to the graveyard. We all worked hard, pulling weeds, mowing grass, raking leaves, etc. That evening, my granddad read to our assembled family from a book of war stories. I don't remember what book it was. I only remember it brought a tear to his eye. I have always suspected that war means even more to someone who is a converted pacifist.

This Decoration Day, in memory of my late grandfather, Uncle Will and WWII veteran dad, I assembled a list of ten plays that I think my granddad would have found appropriate to read aloud to his family that night in Inwood, WV. Each has a Richmond connection. I mention one today. I'll talk about others in the days that follow.

Journey's End by R. C. Sherriff was written in 1928. It is set in an officers' dugout at Saint-Quentin, France in 1918, near the end of WWI, and concerns a small group of British infantrymen. After catching the attention and patronage of George Bernard Shaw, Journey's End was staged in London in a production starring a very young Laurence Olivier. It eventually became a major hit, and ran in the West End for two years.

Phil and I saw a revival of Journey's End on one of the trips we led to London. After we came home, Roy Proctor called to ask if I saw any London productions that I would recommend. He was trying to decide what theatre tickets to buy for an upcoming visit. I recommended Journey's End. He saw it. loved it, and returned to Richmond to direct it a season or two later at Dogwood Dell.

The London production I saw eventually transferred to Broadway, where it won the 2007 Tony Award for Best Revival. This classic British drama is a very sober, respectful and sad depiction of the horrors of war. It would make an outstanding Decoration Day tribute to our fallen forefathers.

The Sound of Music is not exactly a military play, but it certainly takes place during wartime. As I write this series about "war plays," I look forward to revisiting The Sound of Music this week. I hope to see you there!

--Bruce Miller

Nuns, Nazis and Lederhosen

Posted by Bruce Miller
This Friday, May 28, we'll be presenting a FUN and FREE event in the lobby at Barksdale Theatre Willow Lawn. We hope you and your friends will come.

The program is entitled Nuns, Nazis and Lederhosen, and it's part of our community connections series. Sue Griffin, our smart and fascinating Director of Costumes, will take the audience on a tour of our extensive costume collection, and none of you will even have to leave your seat.

Sue and her staff have pulled a selection of costumes related to the time and place of our current hit musical, The Sound of Music. In her inimitable and informative style, Sue will dazzle you as she describes each garment, how and why it was made the way it was, and where each particular costume originated.

She's led similar programs for us in the past, and they're always just as fun as they are fascinating.

Here's the blurb:

Nuns, Nazis and Lederhosen - WWII Era Costumes from the Barksdale / Theatre IV Collection

Director of Costumes Sue Griffin has scoured our costume closet for liturgical, WWII era, and Bavarian gowns and garments from productions past. Once again, her guided tour through fashion history will set the stage for the feel and forms of our great spring and summer musical, The Sound of Music.

That blurb was written a year ago. In our conversation of a few days ago, Sue said that the bulk of what she will be bringing to this costume closet "show and tell" will be men's and women's fashions from the 30s and 40s, from both the U. S. and the Continent. Many of the garments will be authentic originals.

And I'm betting a nun and a Nazi will show up in there somewhere. Maybe even some authentic Austrian lederhosen.

Sue Griffin has been interested in costume design since her childhood. She was born in Norwalk CT during WWII. "When I was in second grade my family took a trip to Williamsburg," she recalls. "I saw those ladies walking around in long skirts and I was fascinated. From that time on, I was interested in historic clothing."

Sue learned how to sew at about that same age and would go to the library and check out books on historical costumes, some of which she still refers to today. Clothing, especially historical clothing, fascinated her. "Part of it was the fact you could sit down at a sewing machine and make those things," she says.

Although she sewed costumes for high school and college theatre productions, Sue wasn't aware that you could do it professionally--at least not at first. She earned a B. A. in Art History from Connecticut College in 1963. After college, while working as a buyer for Miller & Rhoads in Norfolk, she became involved in community theatre, then began working with the now defunct Norfolk Theater Center.

In 1980, she moved to Richmond and a new job as head of costumes for TheatreVirginia. She worked there for 22 years as Costume Director. When TheatreVirginia closed in the final days of 2002, she worked briefly for the Richmond Ballet, and then found her new home at Theatre IV / Barksdale in 2003.

Nuns, Nazis and Lederhosen is free-of-charge and open to everyone. No RSVP or tickets are required. The program will begin at 11 a.m. in the lobby of Barksdale Theatre at Willow Lawn.

Sue's presentation will be followed by a lunch buffet of sliced turkey, ham, roast beef, cheeses, lettuce, tomato, breads, salads, sweets, coffee, tea and sodas. A free-will offering of $5 for lunch is suggested for those who are able. About half of the people who will attend the program will stay for the lunch fellowship time.

I hope you'll join us this Friday morning. And I hope I'll see you at the theatre later on for a show. Now running: The Sound of Music at the historic Empire, and Crowns at the Gottwald Playhouse at CenterStage for the rest of this week. Thereafter, Crowns will transfer to Barksdale Theatre at Willow Lawn where it will play throughout the month of June.

--Bruce Miller

The Sound of Education

Posted by Bruce Miller
Chase Kniffen (director and choreographer of The Sound of Music [TSOM]), Brian Barker (set designer, TSOM), Janine Serresseque (Barksdale's liaison with Richmond Public Schools [RPS]), and I had the wonderful opportunity of conducting an after-school Educator Training Workshop last week with a dozen or so teachers from RPS. The workshop was organized and facilitated by Susan Damron, theatre resource teacher in the RPS Arts & Humanities Center.

For the last eleven years, Theatre IV and RPS have partnered as Central Virginia's only affiliate of the Kennedy Center's prestigious Performing Arts Centers and Schools program. Through this national arts-in-education initiative, we present workshops that train teachers how to use the arts to enhance instruction across the curriculum at all grade levels. Teachers receive continuing education credits for their participation.

About half of the workshops involve master educators from the Kennedy Center's roster of the nation's best arts-in-education specialists. These days, about half of the workshops are developed here in Richmond by Susan Damron and various artists and educators from Theatre IV.

Earlier this year, we created a workshop entitled Beyond the Wiz. In response to teacher requests, the goal was to enable educators with no expertise in theatre--with the exception of George Wythe, RPS middle and high schools have no drama teachers--to learn where and how to look for plays that feature African American casts and themes but have little name recognition among the general public.

We assembled a panel comprised of Dr. Tawnya Pettiford-Wates from VCU (director, The Grapes of Wrath), April Jones - guest theatre artist at the University of Richmond, Derome Scott Smith - Artistic Director, African American Repertory Theatre (director, Black Nativity), and me. Together we discussed the history of African American theatre in the United States, and explored a large number of plays that have had successful revivals with African American casts even if they were not originally written from an African American perspective.

Each participating teacher left with a new appreciation for the wealth of material out there, an expanded knowledge of where to search for new titles, and an understanding of how to obtain reading copies of less well known scripts.

The subject of last week's workshop was Creating the Team Needed to Produce a Musical. Using The Sound of Music as our case study, I spoke about assembling the lead artists, Chase talked about how the director works with the stage manager and designers to move the process forward, Janine (who works overhire in our costume department) spoke about the various steps followed to create the costumes for a show, and Brian dazzled the crowd with his models and computer work, ably revealing how a designer in 2010 can use technology to more effectively communicate with the rest of the production team.

Throughout the entire workshop, we provided tips on how to create a musical on a budget--a subject near and dear to the educators' hearts and pocketbooks.

This afternoon, I will be accompanying the teachers on a tour of the Holocaust Museum. Again we will use TSOM as our case study, and discuss how to use theatre to enhance instruction across the curriculum by showing how TSOM is being used throughout Greater Richmond's school systems to teach the history of WWII.

This Friday evening, the teachers who have been participating in this workshop series will all come to see The Sound of Music, and take a behind-the-scenes tour after the show.

For decades, education has been at the heart of our work at Theatre IV and Barksdale. As early winners of the Excellence in Arts Instruction Award from the Virginia Dept of Education and the Virginia Commission for the Arts, we're proud to be a valued partner with public and private school systems throughout the Commonwealth.

Hope to see you (and the students in your life) at the theatre!

--Bruce Miller

Everything's Coming Up Raindrops on Roses

Posted by Bruce Miller
When I opened Outlook on my computer this morning, and went back a few days to finally read some old emails, I came across this message that Janine Serresseque forwarded to our entire staff on Monday. It made me grin like a little kid with a pony. Make that a cream-colored pony. I decided to cut and paste it here. Some days my job is really fun!

Everything from this point forward is copied from Janine’s forwarded email. I’ve left out children’s names and email addresses just cause that’s what seemed right.

Hi Everybody,
I'm forwarding this love letter to the entire staff. Here is proof that we rock.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ashley Evans [mailto:xxxx@xxxx.net]
Sent: Sunday, May 16, 2010 9:14 PM
To: Janine Serresseque
Subject: The Sound of Music

Janine-
I thought I would start with you, since I have your email address from signing up my daughter, who will be participating in Stage Explorers again this Summer. Please pass this to whomever may be interested in my feedback.

Today, my husband and I took our daughter (10) and son (8) to see The Sound of Music….

Where to start… We were BLOWN AWAY
The play was OUTSTANDING in every way!
From the stage to the costumes to the voices to the story line! WOW

The attention to detail was so impressive….
Down to the looks, the expressions, and the scenes, as well as the quality of the voices of all ages and ranges.

It was such a treat and the kids had just watched the movie again recently “to be ready” and they were right there loving it and “in it” the entire time!

Maria and Mother Superior were so good it made you smile to listen, and you wanted to jump to your feet to applaud each time when they were done.

From a regular theatre lover in the audience, I just had to say something. You guys “nailed it” and you should be very very proud of yourselves.

BRAVO!!

Ashley Evans

Now this is me, Bruce again. THANK YOU, ASHLEY! I'm passing your kind words on to lots of folks who will be interested in your feedback.

And you "folks" out there, if you have yet to reserve your seats for The Sound of Music, I hope you will do so ASAP. The show really is as good as you're hearing. To break even, we need the support of about ten thousand of you.

With all the attention paid to the "Broadway" series at the Landmark, and all the marketing dollars spent, and all the costs that customers have to pay, it's really worth everyone's while to see how professional Broadway productions that originate right here in Richmond measure up.

Hope to see you at the theatre!

--Bruce Miller

"The Perfect Family Summer Musical"

Posted by Bruce Miller
The extraordinary musical that brings down the curtain on both the Barksdale and Theatre IV Seasons earned its first rave review this morning from Susie Haubenstock. She LOVED it, writing a review almost as glowing as last week's review of Henley Street Theatre's A Doll's House.

Considering that The Sound of Music is America's favorite musical, and that pre-sales in advance of opening have already hit a record high, I strongly urge everyone to get their tickets to 1938 Austria as soon as possible. I'm convinced that the Times-Dispatch review will be only the first of several great notices. No one should miss out on the fun.

Here's what Susie has to say:

"What does it take to revive Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music? Seven adorable children -- check. A Maria who's full of fun and energy and sings like an angel -- check. A Mother Abbess with a thrilling, inspiring voice -- check.

The new Theatre IV/Barksdale Theatre co-production at the Empire Theatre has all that and much, much more. Under the ebullient direction of Chase Kniffen, The Sound of Music is the perfect family summer musical, with much for each generation to love.

Even after a thousand viewings of the movie, it's possible to forget that there are serious political themes here, as well as grown-up relationships. Rodgers and Hammerstein were romantics, of course, but the Howard Lindsay/Russel Crouse book takes on Nazism, patriotism, pragmatism, moral relativism and religious faith -- and the show won the 1960 Tony Award to boot.

No need to recap the moving story of the von Trapp family in Austria; suffice it to say that Kniffen has reinvigorated what might be a saccharine bore and infused it with youthful enthusiasm. Most of the underpinnings are lush, from Brian Barker's opulent set to Sarah Grady's charming costumes to Lynne M. Hartman's beautiful lighting.

The orchestra, under Sandy Dacus' direction, is almost full enough, sounding thin only on the first-act finale, Climb Ev'ry Mountain, and Derek Dumais' sound design is nearly perfect despite its complexity.

The splendid cast is led by the delightful Stacey Cabaj as Maria, who bursts with warmth and joy and sings clear as a chapel bell. Jody Ashworth plays Captain von Trapp with admirable liveliness but a near-total lack of romantic appeal; nevertheless, his voice is stirring, his Edelweiss moving.

Susan Sanford and Michael Hawke are perfectly cast as the worldly Elsa and Max, more wryly lovable than despicable, and Kara Charise Harman provides that fabulous voice for Mother Abbess, as well as her loving manner.

All seven von Trapp children are delightful -- Ali Thibodeau, Eric Pastore, McKelvey Ewing Harrison, Cooper Timberline, Meghan Rose Cordner, Sydney Morgan Hall and Ellie Wilson -- and nowhere is Kniffen's deft touch more evident than in their performances; he elicits great work from young actors. His deceptively simple staging of The Lonely Goatherd is one of the highlights of the show.

All but the youngest kids in the audience were kept entertained by the 2½-hour show. My grandma took me to see The Sound of Music when I was little, and I've always been grateful. Given this lovely production, any grandma -- or mom, or dad, or aunt or big brother -- shouldn't hesitate to do the same."

Susan Haubenstock - The Richmond Times-Dispatch

You can reach our box office at 282-2620. I hope to hear from you soon. And I look forward to seeing you at the theatre.

--Bruce Miller