Random Acts of Theatre

RATco recently held auditions for its fourth production (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and it got me thinking about the theatre company I've had the pleasure of working with in Selma.

In a town as divided as Selma, it's so encouraging to see kids and grown-ups of all different ages and backgrounds come together to do something bigger than themselves. Disregarding the cultural and traditional barriers between them, I have seen people reach out and work together to create something beautiful, coming to rehearsal after rehearsal, working their hearts out to make it a good show. Although all ages participate (from a 5-year old all the way up to a 65-year old) there are a large number of young teenagers in the cast, many of them repeat performers from several very different schools. Kids from the exclusive private school sing and dance right alongside kids from some of the poorest areas of town, and bond with each other through their hard work towards a common purpose.

In our very first musical (Footloose), very few of the kids had ever even been on a stage before, let alone been a part of a production that size. None of us really knew what the response would be in the community, but we were hopeful and excited. The final night of dress rehearsal, most of the actors forgot their lines, the lights wouldn't work right, and parts of the set actually toppled over--it couldn't have gone worse! But the next night, opening night, the atmosphere was electric--every seat in the theatre was filled, black and white sitting together, everyone eating popcorn and having a good time. And we put on an incredible show (nothing like the dress rehearsal). We sold out every performance of Footloose in the local downtown performing arts center, and signed up a lot of people who wanted to audition for the next production.

The summer show was an easier show to put on, with less rehearsal time and only one performance. But on the one-night-only of our performance, our director (who was also the entire band) got very sick, and couldn't even get out of bed! But the cast, crew, and production team came together and put on the show anyway, proving that it was about the team, not just the person in charge. It turned out even better than we had hoped for, and stirred up so much interest in the community that 85 people came out to audition for the next production including Selma's chief of police and his entire family.

We had decided to do a Dr. Seuss musical for the fall 2008 show, which has several parts for small children in it--so I invited some children I know to come try out for it, including the autistic little boy I do therapy with. He did an amazing job singing his little song for auditions, and has been a great (and truly precious) addition to the cast. Although working him into the cast has not come without its challenges! Every rehearsal, I worked with him on-on-one (in the middle of the group) to teach him the choreography, the words to the songs, where to go when, etc.--not to mention standing still, paying attention, and staying in the game. It was hard for him, but so good for him! He played a Who child from Who-ville and learned all of the dance moves, including swimming like a fish. Best of all, he learned to connect with the other cast members--young and old. This from a kid who couldn't even speak when spoken to less than a year ago. He's come a long way, and having the chance to be a part Seussical is better than anything he's getting at school, according to his mother. He came to rehearsal with a big smile on his face, and ran over to wherever I was. It taught me soo much about how to reach him
and teach him the things he needs to know.

My experiences with him have also inspired me to go back to school and pursue a career in special education (autism, specifically). My little friend made leaps and bounds and joined the rest of the cast on stage for opening night. I think everybody wants to find some kind of work that is worth doing, that makes a difference --and I have found mine.