FOLIOby Liltera Williams
Stage Aurora Theatrical Company is excited to present the NEA BIG READ/ TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD through March 4. The Big Read provides communities nationwide with the opportunity to read, discuss, and celebrate one of 31 selections from U.S. and world literature. As one of 76 organizations nationwide to receive a grant as part of The Big Read project of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), Stage Aurora’s book of choice is Harper Lee‘s To Kill A Mockingbird.
The month-long celebration will offer an array of creative and unique activities, including readings, panel discussions, Southern food tastings, prize giveaways, music, film screenings, and seven presentations of the To Kill A Mockingbird stage play, dramatized by Christopher Sergel and Directed by Founder & Executive Director, Darryl Reuben Hall.
Furthering his quest to produce “theatre that enlightens”, Hall offers an authentic rendition of Mockingbird. The cast of local actors auditioned in January and was expertly chosen to depict this classic example of American Literature.
Set in 1935 in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird follows the court trial of a wrongfully accused black man amid the prejudice of a small southern town. Atticus Finch (played by William “Billy” Green who appears courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association) is the compassionate and honorable attorney who is appointed by the judge to speak on behalf the accused defendant, Tom Robinson.
Narrated by the adult version of herself, Jean Louis Finch (Michelle Ruiz) recollects the action of her childhood as a tomboy affectionately referred to as Scout (Shannon Lahey). While embarking on various adventures with her brother Jem (Jacob Hart Sims) and struggling to understand the severity of surrounding action, Scout longs for answers to her own perception of inequality.
The cast shines the most as the plot thickens during the intense court scenes. Similar to the novel’s dramatic progression, this live stage interpretation provides overwhelming emotions of sympathy and sorrow as related to the apparent themes of discrimination, injustice, and human rights.
Cast:
William Green—Atticus
Shannon Lahey—Scout
Michelle Ruiz—Jean Louis Finch
Alexis Stuart—Scout
Jacob Hart Sims—Jem
Alexander Devereux—Jem
Ramona Roberts—Calpurnia
Karen Moe—Calpurnia
Leonard Alterman—Bob Ewell
Britney Barber—Mayella Ewell
Percy Shadwell—Sheriff Heck Tate
Sebastian Widrig—Dill
Aaron Ponder—Dill
Emerald Devereux—Scout
Joseph Wells—Tom Robinson
LaShawn Butler—Helen Robinson
Roxann Hilber—.Helen Robinson
John Lucas—Boo/ Nathan Radley
Deborah Hurm—Mrs. Dubose
Leisha Cowart—Miss Maudie
Barbara Lee—Miss Stephanie
Theresa Buchanan—Miss Stephanie
Frank Dancy—Rev. Sykes
Stan Mesnick—Judge Taylor
Matthew Eunice—Mr. Gilmer
Victor Jones—Walter Cunningham
Barrett King—Boo/Nathan Radley
Show Dates & Times
Friday, February 24 at 7 p.m.
Saturday, February 25 at 2 p.m.
Sunday, February 26 at 3 p.m.
Wednesday, February 29 at 10 a.m.
Friday, March 2 at 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 3 at 6 p.m.
Sunday, March 4 at 3 p.m.
Adults $15 Advance & $20 Door
Seniors and Students (with ID) $10 Advance/$10 Door
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