Our Revels Now Are Ended!

Our revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits, and
Are melted into air, into thin air:
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As dreams are made on; and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep. 

William Shakespeare, "The Tempest", Act 4 scene 1

 

 The To Kill a Mockingbird stage is now empty - all have returned to resume their daily activities - farewell!

Winston-Salem Journal Review - "To Kill a Mockingbird"

excel: Play has consistently good acting

By Leigh Somerville McMillan | SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL
Published: October 31, 2010

Credit: Shawn Hooper photo
Laura Browne plays Scout and Jae Campbell plays Calpurnia in the Arts Council Theatre production of To Kill a Mockingbird.

     The Arts Council Theatre was packed Friday night for the opening of To Kill a Mockingbird, and, no doubt, most of the audience had either read Harper Lee’s Pulitzer-prize-winning novel or seen the movie, starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch.
     In the program’s director’s notes, Stan Bernstein addresses the challenge of following in such footsteps. He writes, “the bar is set so high, you need binoculars to see it.” Did they clear the bar? Most certainly.

     Mark Boynton did not walk on stage with Peck’s physical height — a gift when an actor plays a giant like Atticus Finch — and he certainly did not appear to be 50 years old — despite the silver hairspray. But within minutes, the magic of his acting had us convinced we were looking at the lawyer who faced racial hatred in the 1930s rural South and didn’t turn away. 

     Don Pocock is his perfect foil as the strutting, smirking Mr. Gilmer, who represents the accuser, Mayella Ewell. In that role, Rene Walek hides under greasy, long bangs, wrings her skirt and wilts into an olive-drab cardigan as she portrays a young woman who is both incorrigible in her lying and pitiful as someone who is as much a victim as the black man she falsely accuses of raping her.
     Three exceptionally talented children held their own on a stage filled with adults, and that’s not easy. Laura Browne (Scout), Adam Chase (Jem) and Britton Sear (Dill) each came to this show with an already impressive acting history. The addition of such fine performances in To Kill a Mockingbird will certainly further their theatrical careers.
     Still, one question lingers. What happened to make the spitting tomboy, Scout — dressed in bib overalls and mismatched socks — grow up to become the adult Jean Louise who narrates the story? Sheri Masters, in that role, plays prim and proper from the tips of her high-heeled pumps to her tight French twist. She didn’t even bat an eye during one or two opening night microphone malfunctions. Positioning her on stage — and yet setting her apart by having her voice the only one amplified — very effectively illustrated her intense love for her father.

     And directing the two lawyers to play to the audience — creating the sense that the audience was the jury — did exactly what Bernstein intended. From our perspective 50 years after the book was written, we longed to free Tom Robinson (played with gut-wrenching resignation by Derrick Parker). The audience may not have been as innocent as the children hanging over the courtroom balcony, but we knew the truth of the situation — and the times — and it broke our hearts.

      Mark March, as Heck Tate, drew a round of applause for his delivery of the line, “Bob Ewell fell on his own knife.” It didn’t matter whether the applause was for March’s consistently strong performance as the conflicted sheriff, or because the audience supported his decision to protect the Finch family. The applause was well-deserved and provided the point at which the entire cast cleared Bernstein’s bar — with inches to spare.

Cast List for "To Kill a Mockingbird"

 An American classic comes alive on stage

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

Based on the novel by Harper Lee and adapted for stage by Christopher Sergel

October 29-31 and November 5-7,  2010

A young girl in a quite 1930's southern town is about to experience dramatic events that will change her life forever as Atticus Finch, her father, fights the legal battle of his career and teachers an entire generation the meaning of justice, truth, and courage.

Mark Boynton - Atticus Finch

Laura Browne - Scout

Jae Campbell - Calpurnia

Adam Chase - Jem

Diana Coe - Ensemble/Court Reporter

Aleeta Dahbour - Miss Stephanie

Taylor Freeman - Cunningham

Jordan Googe - Bob Ewell

Angela Hodges - Ensemble

Guy Hull - Ensemble

Jeremy Kuhn - Ensemble

Mark March - Heck Tate

Sheri Masters - Jean Louise

Carol McConnell - Ensemble

Andrew Parcell - Boo/Nathan Radley

Derrick Parker - Tom Robinson
Don Pocock - Mr. Gilmer

Adrian Quarles - Rev. Sykes

Britton Sear - Dill

Kay Shelton - Mrs. Dubose

Mark Walek - Judge Taylor

Rene Walek - Mayella Ewell

Jean Wentz - Miss Maudie

Shannon Wicks - Helen Robinson

Apple Pie Filling

Here's the recipe for apple pie filling my brother and I canned this summer. We used Wolf River apples from a tree that our Father had planted in the Seventies. My brother had punned the tree in the Spring so the apples were huge. Of course we had to test out the filling and make an apple pie as shown in the picture. Tasted great but wasn't pleased with how the pie looked.


Apple Pie Filling

4 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons lemon juice
5 1/2 to 6 pounds tart apples, peeled, cored, and sliced.

In large saucepan blend first 4 ingredients and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir in 10 cups water; cook and stir till thickened and bubbly. Add lemon juice. Pack apples into hot jars, leaving 1-inch head space. Fill with hot syrup leaving 1/2-inch head space. (Use spatula to help distribute syrup). Adjust lids. Process in boiling water bath (pints) 15 minutes; (quarts) 20 minutes. Makes 6 quarts.

Before Serving: Prepare pastry for a 2-crust 8-or 9-inch pie. Line pie plate with pastry; add 1 quart apple pie filling. Adjust top crust, cutting slits for escape of steam; seal. Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes.

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Victory Garden

This summer I felt as though I was living in the Forties by planting a Victory Garden, purchasing a pressure canner, and wearing my hair in Victory Rolls for the play Evita. My brother and I planted a Victory Garden in June with tomatoes, green beans, October beans, peas, banana peppers, hot peppers, squash, and potatoes. We froze the squash in quart bags as they were ready and made squash casseroles. Couldn't get to the green beans quick enough to process but still managed to can 48 quarts. We also  made and canned apple sauce, apple butter, and apple pie filling. The garden and canning was a great deal of work but the taste of food you have grown is worth the time and effort.

Victory Garden in early Spring with potatoes and tomatoes growing

Canned goods from Victory garden and apple trees

 

Harvesting potatoes and preparing garden for next season

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