Photo by Chris Rossi/The Gazette
Advenutre Theatre's upcoming production of "Charlotte's Web" is the first time director Serge Seiden,who is also associate artistic director of The Studio Theatre, has helmed a show outside of his D.C. venue.
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Weaving a pigs tale at Glen Echo Park
‘Charlotte’s Web’ debuts at Adventure Theatre
Serge Seiden knows that character research is key in developing a play. Earlier this month, the director of Adventure Theatre’s “Charlotte’s Web” accompanied his cast and crew on a visit to Oxon Hill Farm in Anacostia. The goal was to study animals such as sheep and pigs in preparation for the barnyard tale.
For actors like Blair Bowers, who plays the young farm girl Fern as well as a goose, Seiden says observing the actual animal was helpful.
“It was really good to actually see a goose in action, also for their sound, for their vocal character,” he says. “Also, for the guy [Chris Mancusi] that plays the really huge pig uncle at the end of the book, there were three enormous hogs at this farm, and it was fun to be able to see how huge they are, how they move.”
“Charlotte’s Web” opens Friday at Adventure Theatre and will run through Sept. 5.
As Studio Theatre’s associate artistic director, Seiden rarely gets a chance to step outside of his work for the Washington, D.C. staple. Michael J. Bobbitt, Adventure Theatre’s artistic director, enlisted him to direct his first non-Studio Theatre show.
“I had worked with Michael, and Michael was choreographer for shows I directed, so I knew him and I felt like this would be a good opportunity,” Seiden says.
Based on E.B. White’s 1952 novel, “Charlotte’s Web” tells the story of Wilbur, a young pig who befriends Charlotte, a wise spider.
While “Charlotte’s Web” is a children’s story that has delighted generations with the help of a popular 1973 animated film and a live action 2006 version, Seiden says the tale is not just a piece of fluff.
“The themes are not frivolous because it deals with friendship and loyalty and courage, and even death,” Seiden says. “I mean, the book starts with the idea of the cycles of life on the farm, and the premise is that the domesticated animal on a farm has a short life.”
The story resonates with Seiden, who is very familiar with the agricultural life.
“My sister’s name is Fern and I grew up on a little farm in Maine,” he recalls. “We raised pigs and they were all named Wilbur. We’d have Wilbur One, Wilbur Two, Wilbur Three, Wilbur Four.”
Seiden sought to highlight the various actors’ strengths.
“For example, Davis Hasty, who’s playing Wilbur, has quite a background in classical dance. He studied ballet,” Seiden says. “He’s’ like Billy Elliot ... so he’s getting to use some of his dance knowledge when he’s playing Wilbur because Wilbur’s supposed to be like a spring pig he’s light on his feet.”
Aside from watching piglets on YouTube, Hasty says he benefited from watching some of the nuances of the pigs at Oxon Hill.
“Lots of scratching against things and stuff like that,and I’ve incorporated a little bit of that. But I don’t want it to get too over the top,” Hasty says. “Ultimately, the story is about growing up.”
The costumes help get this point across. Decorated in pink from his shoes to his baseball cap, Hasty looks like the spry adolescent he’s meant to portray.
Hasty, who last performed with Adventure Theatre in “The Little Engine that Could” (Dec. 2009 - Jan. 2010) grew up in northern Silver Spring.
Although he has played roles in other childhood favorites including “A Wrinkle in Time” at Round House Theatre (2010), Davis feels some pressure in taking on such a famous role.
“Everyone’s just so in love with this book and this story, and I just hope that we give it to them,” he says.
Among the ardent fans of the story are the two children of Deidra LaWan Starnes, who plays Charlotte. The actress read aloud parts of the book for them after being cast in the role earlier this year.
“It’s really refreshing to be able to do a show that they can be a part of the process,” she says, noting that her 11-year-old daughter helping with her lines.
Starnes had not performed at Adventure Theatre before, but Seiden and Starnes worked together in previous productions such as “In the Red and Brown Water” in 2010.
Revisiting the movies with her children helped Starnes develop her character.
“The later version, she moves a little slower, and it’s a little more lyrical and interesting to watch. I’ve kind of been watching Charlotte in that later version just to get ideas about movement,” Starnes says.
One detail that sets Charlotte apart from other productions is the material she uses to spin her webs. In the story, Charlotte spins words in her webs to help Wilbur stand out.
“Each word is done with a different medium because the idea is that Charlotte is a textile expert,” she observes. These mediums include a quilt and a stretchy material.
Ultimately, the cast and crew of “Charlotte’s Web” hope to weave a tale that will please both newcomers to the story and returning fans.
tforhecz@gazette.net
“Charlotte’s Web” opens Friday and runs through Sept. 5 at Adventure Theatre, Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd. Tickets are $17. Call 301-634-2270 or visit www.adventuretheatre.org.
Copyright © 2012 Post-Newsweek Media, Inc./Gazette.Net