A Musical That Beats the Odds
Theater Group Is Undaunted By Disabilities
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Thursday, March 13, 2008
When Meredith Bean McMath was asked to direct the Very Special Arts production of a new musical in Purcellville, she went in with high expectations. But even with that mind-set, McMath said, she realized after the play's debut last weekend that she had underestimated her cast.
About 35 of the 50 people in the production have a physical or mental disability. Many of the actors are dealing with autism, Down syndrome or varying degrees of developmental delay.
"What amazed me is watching them turn on a light bulb during a show, and there they are," said McMath, who directed "The Old Homeplace: A Loudoun Valley Tale," which continues this weekend at the new Franklin Park Performing and Visual Arts Center. "It's the interaction they have with the audience that suddenly brings them to a new place. It's a blast to watch."
Very Special Arts, or VSA, was founded in1974 by Jean Kennedy Smith to showcase the accomplishments of artists with disabilities, and the organization's Loudoun County affiliate has been staging shows every year since 1989.
Ben Shoenberger, who produced the show and is a VSA specialist at the county's Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services, echoes McMath on the dramatic effect that VSA performances have on the participants.
"It's amazing to see that growth in them," he said. "It really is the most amazing thing about the production."
"The Old Homeplace" is the story of a Purcellville area farm family and blends fiction with historical fact. The script was written by Alice Power, a Loudoun VSA board member who has written all the plays performed by the Loudoun company.
Power smiles as she recalls the process of writing "The Old Homeplace."
"I started in April last year and finished in July," she said. "Then we tweaked it. We tweaked and tweaked and tweaked and tweaked."
The final version was completed in October, and rehearsals started a month later.
Since then, the cast has met for 90-minute rehearsals twice a week. In the early stages, the actors also benefited from classes in acting, dancing and clowning.
"In the beginning, a lot of the time was spent doing just music and dance," said McMath, a playwright and historian who is the founding artistic director of Aurora Studio Theatre. It wasn't until the new year that they started incorporating pantomime and reading lines, but McMath said it all came together.
