Part Four: Letters from the Living Dead: ‘Meet Our Cast’ by Stephen Gregory Smith

It was only a drive…

Welcome back to the Farmhouse. Night has arrived at long last. Tom, Judy, Helen, Harry, Barbra, and Ben have finally arrived. The house is boarded up tight and safe from the dangers outside. The dangers on the inside have yet to be discovered, but will become apparent soon enough. More on that later, as the night has only just begun…

Matt and I attended the first full cast rehearsal of NightoftheLivingDead  (the musical) tonight, and this was the first time that all of us were together in the same room. The first time that you see your full cast together is a thing that is indescribable. Watching their energy together and how they interact with each other helps you imagine how they will bring their characters to life on the stage. Watching how they move in real life, how they talk, and as Director/Playwright Joe Calarco once said, “How they disturb the air.”

Hearing them sing through the opening song, “perfect/night” was spine-tingling. The vocal blend, as styled by Music Director Leah Kocsis, already sounds fantastic. My Co-Director, Jenna Ballard and I sat and let the sounds wash over us, and kept leaving the room to talk about staging possibilities. It was a truly exciting evening that made me impatient to begin staging the show.

Now, for the first time we will introduce the cast to you here on DC Theater Arts:

Tom and Judy – Stephen Hock and Leslie Vincent.

Helen and Harry – Susanna Todd and Ben Gibson.

Barbra and Ben –  Karissa Lynn Swanigan-Upchurch and RaMond Thomas.

So the inhabitants of the Farmhouse are complete now, and the real work begins.

More details will follow as soon as information becomes available.

Please Stand By…

LINKS

Read Part One: Welcome to my Farmhouse.
Read Part Two: Finding Ben.
Read Part Three: Exploring the Farmhouse.

All photos by Stephen Gregory Smith.