One of the Greatest Children’s Books Ever Written
Adds Up!
by Sarah Snow
If I could weave words into a web to describe the first show of King George High’s dramatic season, I would ask Templeton, the rat, to find me these words from thrown-away clippings:
Really Great! Exuberant! Precious!
Under the direction of the locally famous math teacher, Mr. Mac, you would automatically assume that he would require the students to show their work and to always triple check their answers. It seems that the students have come to opening night well prepared and right on target to ace his test. A flawless opening night, full of charm and wonder, this classic piece of literature’s magic never really fades for readers and audiences in life.
Only 11 weeks in to the school year, amid a busy fall season, the cast and crew of this show took on the play adaptation of what most people call the 20th century’s version of Thoreau. Known for his poetic and calming pace in his writing, along with a sentence structure that makes you feel like you are swaying back and forth on a tire swing, E.B. White has been bringing together families for years now.
It took Elwyn Brooks White 3 years to write this story. Ultimately, he published it in October of 1952. He knew farm life well and had a passion for the lessons we learn from animals. Years earlier, he had tried and failed to save a pig. The experience affected him so deeply, he decided to write.
The story of a runt pig that is saved by an eager, starry-eyed little girl and then later a kind spider, weaves together a blend of characters from human to animal. All talking, of course, as if life has two dimensions, the realistic one with all the humans running around doing their normal earthly tasks and the magical, miraculous animal one.
The play handles all the themes of the story well. Mr. Mac and his talented crew kept the goal of staying true to text and true to story. The realities of death and loss are gracefully worked through amid a bubbly, lively barnyard and county fair. The character development work produced by these talented kids had me surprised when the lights came on for intermission. I could not believe we had already gotten that far into the show.
I hesitate to write about all the little wonderful things throughout the show for fear of ruining the best parts. But, if stars were awarded based on the giggles and delight of the little girl behind me, it wouldn’t be any less than 4. Most of the older “tweens” that sheepishly said their parents forced them to come, all walked out with big smiles and a spring in their step. Family members of all ages will enjoy the energizing theater production of this great novel.
“Well,” I asked Mr. McNamara on a busy rehearsal night while the crew worked to get the roof on the farmhouse, “What is the biggest lesson from this show? What is the takeaway?”
“Friendship,” he quickly replied, “The importance of friendship.” And on that crisp October night, I checked my math and realized that 66 years ago in this exact month, the world was poignantly reminded again that the greatest gift you can give someone in life is to be their friend. Come on out and see the show!
King George High School, 10100 Foxes Way
Thursday - Saturday, 7pm October 25-27
Kids 6 and under are free.
Tickets $8 at door or at eventbrite.com
$5 dinner before show, 530pm
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