Call Backs

On Friday the 29th of August, I made a copy of the songs for call backs so the students could learn them over the long weekend. Call backs were held on Wednesday, September 3rd. There were 12 students that came, hoping for a lead part. [I considered the following parts as leads: Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Snoopy, Schroeder, Sally, because they were the 6 characters that the show was written for. So, they each had a solo song, and many speaking parts.]

The show that I was familiar with in 1990, was written for Patty instead of for Sally, but I decided to try the new 'revised' version, this time. After we had had the original auditions and had handed parts out for the call backs, my piano players complained of the difficulty of the music, so, I called the company and asked to exchange this version for the original version. By doing that it changed the show, especially the parts of Sally and Schroeder, but I went ahead with call backs as planned.

I arranged to give several lines and a solo part in a song to each one that was brave enough to want a lead part. The only ones that didn't have a solo were the ones that said they only wanted speaking parts. I was pretty happy about how evenly the parts were divided.

We had 23 students in all that tried out for a part and we decided that we would include everyone, therefore had 23 characters.

Auditions

Auditions were held on the 27th and 28th of August in the Auditorium at the high school. I made a handout that described the characters of the 'Peanuts Gang'. The things that each one had to do was:
1. Say a sentence of their choice with make-believe peanut butter in their mouth.
2. Say a paragraph of their choice with a paper bag on their head.
3. Show all of the emotions of flying a kite that they could.
4. Dramatize a paragraph of Snoopy's about dying from starvation because Charlie Brown had forgotten to feed him.
5. With a partner, portray each of the characters in each of 4 comic strips.
6. March to the beat of a song.
7. Dance up on the tallest box.
8. Dance with a make believe blanket.
9. Sing with the group (loud and on tune.)

We had 23 students that came to show their stuff on those 2 nights. Mrs. Seegmiller and my daughter, Jessica and I were the casting committee. We discussed each one and decided which we wanted to see back for call backs. Then we changed and decided that whoever wanted to be a lead, could learn a page of lines for the character of their choice and learn the song that went to that character.

Play selection

"You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown" was selected in May when Mrs. Seegmiller asked me, if I would be interested in directing the musical again in the fall. She had some things in her life that she felt would prohibit her from doing it, and so she came to me.

At first I said, "No," because of the bad experience that I had last year of trying to keep a complete cast. As soon as we would draft students to fill the gaps, other gaps would appear. With a cast of about 45, I never did have a practice with more than 30 in attendance at any one time, including the dress rehearsals and we were relpacing 2 of the parts 2 days before opening night. Therefore, I was truly thinking, "No, thank you!"

But later, after thinking about it, I remembered this show. My older 2 children had been in it when they were in high school, and they had enjoyed it. It was in 1990, and at that time I was a 'stay-at-home-mom.' So, I made the costumes for my own children, Cameron who was Charlie Brown, and Rushel who was Peppermint Patty. Then when other mothers who were working, had a need for help, I ended up also making the costumes for Lucy, Sally, Pat and Sophie, along with the 9 oversized baseball caps and 5 oversized mitts. Cameron needed a little extra credit for his drama class, so he (and Rushel & I) made all of the props needed for the show, except the toy piano for Schroeder.

When I remembered this show, I thought to myself, "It is written for 6 characters, but Mr. Malan had added other Peanuts characters and divided up some of the speaking parts for them, I'm sure that I could do the same, and as students dropped out, I'd just cut their part and reassign the lines to others. We still had all of the props, and I'd round up the costumes that I could, and we'd repaint the boxes used for scenery, and anything else above and beyond that would be of my own choosing. It couldn't get any easier than that, and besides it is my youngest daughter, Kurlayna's senior year, and she should have a good experience."

So, I said "Yes, I'd do the musical," and then told her the idea that changed my mind.