It never gets old, does it? Lucy holding a football for Charlie Brown, promising not to move it but always snatching it away at the very last second so that Charlie Brown ends up flat on his back? We know it’s going to happen, and yet everytime I find myself hoping that this will be the time he actually kicks the ball. Poor Charlie Brown!! Something will surely go right for him at some point, right?
It’s this empathy and love we have for Charlie Brown and all the Peanuts Gang that kept us reading the comic strip, watching the seasonal specials and buying the lunch box for all these years. The musical, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, is no different. Like Seussical, it brings to life some of our most cherished childhood characters and gives them time to win our hearts all over again.
Director Craig Gustafson has put together a cast made up of some of my favorite people, both personally and theatrically. This is my disclaimer, folks. Yep, I’m pretty good friends with half the cast and the director. However, I will strive to give you an honest and balanced review, just as I always do.
And now that that’s out of the way, let’s get to the review.
There’s no question that there are some extraordinary performers on the stage for Charlie Brown. Zach Gibson’s portrayal of Schroeder is energetic and child-like. He’s fun to watch and you just can’t help laughing at/with him. Gibson’s facial expressions alone can keep you entertained for the evening. Add to that a great singing voice and Gibson becomes one the favorites on stage.
Another favorite has to be Stuart Vance in the title role of Charlie Brown. Also very child-like, Vance plays the bewildered Charlie Brown with a great empathy for our favorite loser. From admitting all of his faults in The Doctor Is In to explaining how he lost the ball game in T-E-A-M, we felt that amused sympathy for poor Charlie Brown. Vance keeps us hoping that something good will finally happen for him.
However, hands down, the best actor on stage was Lisa Dawn Foertsch as Snoopy. I’ve already pointed out how Charlie Brown is like Seussical, and as I said in that review, just because they are silly or imaginary characters, doesn’t mean we can’t play them real. And that is precisely what Foertsch did with Snoopy. I never once questioned who her character was; she just became the sarcastic, fun-loving, adventurous beagle I remember from all the comic strips and TV specials. She didn’t chase a rabbit around the doghouse because the director told her to, Snoopy chased the rabbit for Patty’s benefit. She didn’t languish over the lack of supper in her bowl because that’s what the script says, Snoopy was really panicking and over-reacting to Charlie Brown’s “forgetfulness”. I must say that I thought Foertsch was one of the best performers I’ve seen out here in our community theater world. Well done.
There were some great song performances as well that I would like to point out. The Book Report and Glee Club Rehearsal were both done almost to perfection. Balance was excellent, each singer blending well, and yet bringing out his or her part appropriately at various points. And speaking of great musical performances, I must mention the pit band. For a while I wasn’t sure whether they were pre-recorded or live due to how well they were playing the score.
As always, there were some things I would have liked to see done differently. I really have to go back to the idea of playing these characters “real”. Too often I felt like the actors were just pretending to be children rather than actually becoming the child. It’s a fine line, and easier said than done, but I really wanted to see a bit more authenticity in the acting.
I also have to say that as much as I love to hear Genevieve Pastore (Lucy) sing, I once again did not care for what I’m sure was a clear direction given by Gustafson. Pastore spent the entire evening “mugging” and over-exaggerating every facial expression to try and capture the essence of Lucy. I just don’t like it. I didn’t believe any of it. Again, it pushed the performance too far into caricature rather than character for me.
Unfortunately Friday evening the tech side of things was a bit of a nightmare. I understand that the lighting board crashed Friday morning and that the light operator was kinda doing things from memory Friday evening. And, of course, that meant there were a few interesting cues – either missed or added – that the cast didn’t expect or that just didn’t work. All of which is unfortunate, but a consequence of live theater. We do our best with the situation we have. However, what I could decipher of the lighting design I wasn’t sold on. For one thing I really felt there were too many blackouts. I know the script calls for quite a few, but I would rather see the lights go down on one side of the stage where a scene has just ended, while simultaneously coming up on the other side where a new scene is starting. Or variations on this instead of the action-stopping blackout. For another, I just didn’t feel the stage was lit well when the lights were up. Too often we just plain couldn’t see the actors.
There were also some sound problems. At the start of the show the mics weren’t turned up enough, or there weren’t enough of them, but the balance was off and the singers were being over-powered by the band. By the start of the second act, the mics were too hot and ringing throughout Snoopy’s pursuit of the Red Baron. I’m not sure if the sound board was also experiencing technical difficulties, but if not then these were things that should have been sorted out before opening night.
Overall, this is another great show for the whole family. While the adults are reminiscing about their favorite Peanuts character or storyline, the kids will be laughing at jokes and onstage antics. And this is a show that definitely needs an audience. Get out to Lisle and support them.
You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is presented by Players, Please Theatre at Trinity Lutheran Church Green Trails in Lisle and runs through August 28,2011. For tickets and information, go to their website.
