duality of humans

Don't discount the talent just because the word "children" appears in the title of the troupe.

I run into that prejudice so often that it's truly dismaying.

Asbury Memorial has a group (mostly choir members) who have been attending plays around town ever since I alerted Tom Lewis and Linda Combs to the burgeoning activity that has resurfaced since the pandemic quieted.

(Notice: I didn't say that COVID-19 is no more, because it's here to stay. But fewer people are falling prey to it, thanks to the vaccines. Interestingly, I met someone who actually works for Moderna and was part of their vaccine development team. Wade Davis is the nephew of my friend Bev Blank and was in town to share memories of times with his aunt.)

So, where was I?

Oh, yes... trying to get folks at my church to attend plays by the Savannah Children's Theatre, and having absolutely zero success with that.

Seriously.

Tom Lewis won't even consider those plays and musicals for the group, but he's a big promoter of such things for another troupe in town.

Unfortunately, that means the theatre-loving group will miss "Jekyll & Hyde".

Why?

Because it's performed by the SavChTh Encore troupe, those very talented high school and college students who have been acting for most of their lives.

Even the fact that it's downtown, at the historic Savannah Theatre, has not been enough to dissuade the AsbMemCh folks that this musical is fit for adults.

Sadly, that is their loss.

I've looked forward to this gothic horror ever since I first heard about it last year.

Robert Louis Stevenson is one of my favorite authors and has been since I was a teen.

Admittedly, it's been probably that long ago since I read his 1886 writing, "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", so the plot was not fresh in mind, but I had the gist of it.

Still, I wasn't aware that grief was a motivating factor for Dr. Henry Jekyll's foray into the separation of evil from the human soul.

His father suffered from dementia and had to be locked in an asylum to keep him from harming others; Jekyll thought removing the evil from his father would cure him.

Ah, the lies people tell themselves in the name of love!

 

Kudos to the cast, especially Ben Templeton, who took on the dual roles of the misled scientist and the murderous Edward Hyde - wow!

I don't know who had the role on Broadway, but I can assure you he would have given them a run for their money... and he just graduated high school.

I'll look forward to next summer's production from SCT Encore!