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The thought of the typical summer day often generates visions of lemonade stands, children running through sprinklers and catching fireflies. This summer, the Jackson County Stage Co. is showcasing "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" as part of its annual Summer Family Production, and is rejuvenating some of these heartfelt images.
This summertime production is run entirely by local kids with the assistance of Mary Boyle, director, and Kathy Manfredi, musical director. All of the actors and stagehands are middle school and high school students.
"Basically, it's a kid-run production," said Boyle, who taught and directed theatre at Carbondale Community High School for 24 years.
The cast is composed of students from local schools: Tim Graves, Kit Ryan, Seth Stearns and Carolyn Mead from Carbondale Community High School; Cambra Benford-Miller from Carbondale Middle School; Abi Beyke from Carterville High School; Joey Beyke from Carterville Middle School; Stephanie Jacques from Herrin High School; Lawrence O'Neill from Marion Middle School and Tabitha Lirely from Murphysboro Middle School.
"I am very impressed as a director with the kids' dedication," said Manfredi, a teacher of music at the Murphysboro schools for the past 23 years.
The entire cast and crew have been sacrificing their summer fun for fun on the stage.
"We do the best we can to bring their unique personalities to the roles," she said.
"Charlie Brown" is the sixth show this season that the Stage Co. has put on but the first musical that it has ever produced. The two-act musical was written by Clark M. Gesner and based on the Peanuts comic strip created by Charles Schultz. Gesner collected vignettes and themes that appeared in the Peanuts comics and put them to music, with the first performance taking place in 1967.
Boyle's reasoning for working on "Charlie Brown" was not only her experience but also because she enjoys the work she has done with youths for the past 25 years. She said she'd rather work on a comedy instead of a serious piece.
Manfredi wanted to do this production because she enjoys the charm and magic of Schultz and the fact that it's full of fun and connects people to their childhood. She said she also enjoys working with children and believes in giving them an emotional outlet through the arts.
"I think music is important in the schools," Manfredi said. "When I look back to history, to what remains from past societies, I see art and music. We need to provide students a chance for an emotional outlet. I think it is important for students to be in touch with that."
Though it has no real storyline, the pieces flow together through song. With funny skits such as "Beethoven Day" and "My Philosophy," "Charlie Brown" is directed toward the lighter side of life. The musical covers typical events in Charlie Brown's life such as Valentine's Day, baseball season and book reports.
A running theme throughout the musical is how Charlie Brown is complicated by the distant presence of his true love, the "little redheaded girl," who is always just out of sight. When Valentine's Day comes and goes, Charlie Brown doesn't receive any valentines. This brings him to Lucy's five-cent psychiatry booth - "The Doctor Is In."
There is a scene where the characters struggle with the homework assignment of writing a 100-word essay of "Peter Rabbit" in "The Book Report." The events of the "Very Little League's Baseball Game" are orchestrated from a letter written by Charlie Brown to his pen pal. Lucy then conducts a survey to find out how crabby she really is.
At the end, each sings about their individual thoughts of happiness and then they go off, leaving Lucy to act uncharacteristically - she tells Charlie Brown what a good man he is.
"It's like a comic strip that has come to life," Manfredi said.
Said Boyle, "We hope that grown-ups will come. It is funny for adults, not just for children. There are many aspects that children will laugh at for face value, but adults will be able to enjoy the underlying concept."
The musical will run the weekends of July 11-13 and 18-20. Friday and Saturday performances begin at 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m.
Tickets are on sale now at the Stage Co. box office and may be purchased between the weekday hours of 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., Saturdays noon to 4 p.m. and one hour prior to all performances. Tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for children.
