Steps To The Stage
Steps To The Stage
The Heart of Tuck Everlasting: With Shawna Rumbaugh & Colin Thomas
What if living forever wasn't as wonderful as it seems? Unpack the timeless tale of "Tuck Everlasting" with us as director Shawna and actor Colin share their intimate connections to this captivating story. Hear Shawna recount her journey from reading the novel with her children to realizing her dream of bringing it to the stage. Colin dives into the emotional depths of portraying characters grappling with immortality and the profound realizations about life's true meaning that arise from their eternal existence. Together, we explore how the Tuck family's perspectives on eternal life provide a thought-provoking narrative that resonates with audiences of all ages.
Step behind the curtains with us in our behind-the-scenes chapter at CCCT. First-time set designer Mickey Estrella and veteran Kathy Miller bring their unique artistic visions to set building and costume design, transforming raw materials into a visual feast. Learn about the careful casting decisions, such as double casting Winnie Foster and Jesse Tuck to ensure the wellbeing of our young actors, and the dynamic energy a new theater company contributes to the production. This episode is a heartfelt tribute to the passion and dedication of community theater, highlighting the extraordinary efforts to make "Tuck Everlasting" a memorable and enriching experience for everyone involved.
July 5-13 $12 general admission -- $10 seniors and students
Tickets available at: https://chinocommunitytheatre.seatyourself.biz -- chinochildrenstheatre.org -- or contact the box office at (909) 590-1149
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And that's where they learn the true meaning of life is through not being able to die.
Speaker 2:The lights are on, the curtains up. This is Steps to the Stage. Folks at home, do you have a business, small or otherwise, that isn't pulling in traffic the way you want it to? Well, it might be, because they don't have something to remember you by, and that's why today we are sponsored by Graphic Details Inc. Signs and displays they will print out your banners, they'll cut vinyl. And displays they will print out your banners, they'll cut vinyl. They'll do window graphics for the company cars. We're talking business cards, banner stands, LCD displays, tabletop displays, logos all in full living color. Again, that is Graphic Details Inc here in Chino, California. Thank you so much. Hello and welcome to Steps to the Stage, the 7th Street Theatre podcast, where we talk to the community theatre professionals you know and love. I'm your host, Colin Pinedo, and today we are talking with Shauna and Colin about Tuck Everlasting. Welcome back, it's great to be back. So why don't you start out with talking about what Tuck Everlasting is for people who aren't familiar with the show?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so Tuck Everlasting is a children's novel written by Natalie Babbitt and it was brought to the stage, I believe, in like 2012. No, that's not right, but it was brought to the stage on Broadway. Didn't have a very long run because of financial reasons, I believe, but it is the story of Winnie Foster, who is an 11 year old girl who lives a very sheltered and controlled life, and then she meets a young boy named Jesse and they go on this adventure and he shows her all the opportunity that life really has to offer.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, that sounds wonderful. Would you mind talking about, as a director, what drew you to this show?
Speaker 3:So I remember reading this when I was a young girl and then I also remember reading it with my children, like we read it in one day, even though it's a chapter book, but we stayed up all night and we read it. It's very short, but it's a very sweet story. When my children started doing theater, this was like one of the first shows that I was like, oh, if I ever get a chance to direct, this is one that I want to. This is a story that I want to be able to tell, so I'm glad that I'm finally getting to do that so many years later.
Speaker 2:Yeah, colin, would you mind talking about what drew you to the show as an actor, like what made you want to audition and all that stuff?
Speaker 1:Yeah. So a couple of years ago I saw this show at a different theater company and I've never been more pulled to a show before, just the emotion and the characters and how there's so many different things going on. You know, you have like the story of Jesse and Winnie and how they're both like connected to each other and the parents who are struggling with life and continuing on even though it's impossible for them to die, and so I just love the fact that it's a story about life and the true meaning of life, and I love how it puts it where they have to live like they drink from the spring. They have eternal life now and that's where they learn the true meaning of life is through not being able to die.
Speaker 2:Would you mind both of you talking about that sort of immortality aspect of the show?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So one of the first questions that I like to ask people is would you drink from the spring if you were given the choice? And most people's answer is no, but I feel, I find, that it's based on their age. So, like I've asked 10, 11, 12-year-olds and their first answer is always yes, I would drink, but I think it's 15 or so where they're like no, I want to live my life. I've noticed that shift for the people who have answered that question. So would you drink, Colin? No, I would not. You have so much life to still live. So what was the question?
Speaker 2:I'm sorry, the original question was sort of talking about that aspect of the show, cause it wasn't something that I was familiar with the first time I Okay, so the the Tuck family, the show starts in 1808 and the Tuck family, unbeknownst to them, drink from the spring.
Speaker 3:That is eternal youth. And so they, they stay frozen in their bodies in that way. So Jesse is 17 and Miles, I think, is 22. And then the mother and father, angus and May, are in their I would say 40s and they get stuck in that age for them. So Miles, poor Miles, miles is 22. So he's of marrying age in 1808, and he does eventually have a family. But they notice that the children are growing faster than you know he is and they become frightened by him and they believe he's cursed. And so it's very faceted in that, like Jesse is 17. He kind of, I feel, like he's a puppy still. He's still in his youth, in like the prime of his youth, whereas Miles, five years older than him, has been tormented by this immortality.
Speaker 3:Colin can talk to you about Angus's take on immortality, but I believe that May is. She's sad that there's not much left to look forward to. And Winnie does have an effect on her life. She affects all of the tux. But I'd love to hear Colin's take on Angus.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So if anyone had immortality, you'd think that they'd want to be active in their life constantly and be going out doing everything they can and want to do and living the experience, rather than Angus, who is stuck with life, he's hard, he does not like life, he hates the fact of living forever. And in the song the Wheel that he sings, you stop growing and you stop changing and you can't move on from that, and I think that's something that everyone needs in their life. They need to figure out a way to change in order to move on, in order to grow, not just physically but mentally, and you see that in each of the characters as they take this journey with Winnie.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we talked about in Colin's character development that he's kind of become lazy.
Speaker 3:it's not out of a place of um, just that, that his soul is lazy, it's more that his soul is bored like on we yeah, and he's just just going through the motions at this point, because it's now been, I think, almost close to 100 years that they've been in this, this time frame of their lives, and I love that you talked about how we need to change, not just physically. But we have so much emotional growth to do. Even in our 40s I'm still finding things about myself, and I know other adults are as well, so it's hard if we're not maturing to fix that.
Speaker 2:That's what I think is interesting about the way that this sort of everlasting life works in this show, about the way that this sort of everlasting life works in this show, that it's not just your body that stays the same, but mentally you are in the same headspace that you were at the age you drank it, like you mentioned the 17-year-old character it's almost like a Peter Pan situation where they are eternally in the headspace of a boy and they kind of can't move on from that and I think that's really interesting.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we have talked about that Peter Pan syndrome with both of our. Jessies clear character arc and clear character development throughout the show and it's been really fun to watch them develop from that puppy and Peter Pan syndrome into this. I'm going to take responsibility for my actions and I'm going to own up to the things that I need to own up to. Yeah, yeah, it's been really fun to watch them explore that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that'll be really interesting Beautiful.
Speaker 3:And we do have an understudy cast. Oh yes, okay, so that's something to talk about too.
Speaker 1:I think they'll be very interesting to talk about performing in the show yeah With two different people.
Speaker 3:And the reactions that you have. Like you have your own, like you guys are. They're individually, they're telling their own version of the story and it's beautiful to watch the regular cast interact with them version of the story and it's beautiful to watch the regular cast interact with them.
Speaker 2:So you said earlier that the book talk everlasting was written by natalie babbitt, would you happen to know who wrote the book and the music for the show?
Speaker 3:yes, so the script was written by claudia sheer and tim federal I believe his name is pronounced um and then the music and lyrics are by Chris Miller and Nathan Tyson. Nice, and this music is so special. I love the folk aspect of it. It's very similar to like Bright Star or like Steve Martin and his like banjo playing. Yeah, it's very beautiful. I love this music.
Speaker 2:Kind of like Seeger Gardner a little bit.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and it's been really fun to see the choreographer, the way that they're incorporating some old-fashioned dancing.
Speaker 2:Who is the choreographer?
Speaker 3:So it's choreographed by Caroline Esquivel, and then she's had assistance with Savannah Rumbaugh and Gwen Gellibert Nice yeah.
Speaker 2:If you need high-quality headshots or other professional photo work done, visit Xochimilco Photography at fbme slash xniriphotos. Would you mind talking about just walking through the theater today?
Speaker 3:I saw that the set is starting to be built. Yeah, it's coming into, it's getting there, it's really close and I'm loving watching again. It's all about the process, like that's what draws me to. You know, keep doing. This is like seeing all of the parts fall into place, but I originally had the vision of them all being painted, everything being painted, but I'm seeing this raw wood.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And it's so beautiful and it would go in very well to the story for it to be stuck in that space as well. So I'm playing with the idea of just keeping the raw wood, but we'll see what our set designer, Mickey Estrella, has to say about that.
Speaker 2:Hey cool, I didn't know that. Yeah, nice.
Speaker 3:Yeah, she's doing a great job.
Speaker 2:This is her first time set designing for us here at CCCT. That's fantastic. Yeah, yeah, I'm very proud of her. It's coming along beautifully. Would you mind talking about the costumes for this show?
Speaker 3:Sure. So this is costumed by Kathy Miller. Of course we have the lovely Karen Larson as well is helping her and some parent assistants. So we have the main characters of the Tuck family and Winnie, and then her mother and grandmother who are living in 1893. So they're very period appropriate. But then we have a spirit ensemble that I like to think of them as time personified. So they're very flowy and pastel colored and there's a lot of partner work. Very flowy and pastel colored and they have there's a lot of partner work. So we asked that they would have whoever they're partnered with would have the same color scheme. That that you know.
Speaker 2:it's very clear who the couples are. They have counterparts, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yes, but it's been. It's been really. I was walking through earlier and just seeing like the color palette and like I'm just so happy and so pleased with what they've developed. Yeah, kathy is fantastic at keeping everything era appropriate.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 3:And it's so beautiful and I'm really happy with the product.
Speaker 2:So would both of you mind talking about sort of the casting process for this show?
Speaker 3:I'd love to hear Colin's take on it, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I did casting a little bit different than everybody else. None of the times worked for me, so I came in on my own time and performed in front of them, sang time stops from Big Fish, yeah. And then right after that they took me into, I guess, a dance room sort of with a big mirror, learned the dance really quickly and it's actually really fun to learn the dance, and especially this dance, because this one was a partner one and I got to do it with emily corona and so who is our stage manager?
Speaker 1:yeah, so that, yeah, that was really fun. And then the next day was callbacks, and that's when I really got to see most of the cast and how well they perform and how well they work with other people, even people that they've never seen before or never performed with and this is my first show at CCCT. I was so humbled and so proud of everyone's work at Callbacks and happy to work with every single one of them.
Speaker 2:So you mentioned that this is your first time at CCCT. How are you liking it?
Speaker 1:I'm loving it. It's the first time I've performed at a different theater company and it's really refreshing you know, to meet new people and do do a new show and see how other people work well and how theater is just all this big, lovely group of people. Where do you usually perform?
Speaker 2:at uh cat corona. Oh yes, okay, I see the connection there, yeah.
Speaker 3:I work at Cat Corona so casting for this show. Winnie is an 11-year-old girl, but Jesse is struck by her in her youthfulness as well and is taken by her not in a romantic way, but he sees potential that they could eventually become that. So it's a mature theme. So that we set the ages for this for 15 to 22, so that the actress playing Winnie would be able to understand that this isn't like instant crush, that they're truly partners in crime and it's really based off of friendship and that Jesse just can theoretically see them together in the future?
Speaker 3:Yes, when the time is appropriate. So we had several people come out and sometimes there are multiple people who are just right for the role. So we did decide to double cast the role of Winnie Foster and Jesse Tuck. They are both vocally taxing roles as well and physically exhausting, so we wanted to give not just more opportunity but time for bodies to heal and voices to rest as well. So we do have double casting or understudy cast that has two performances and they're doing a beautiful job. Colin earlier was talking about how it's interesting to see each individual actor's take on the role and that gives him something more to play with when, you know, reacting to the scene. So I'd love to hear your take on that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Every time I'm doing a scene with either Jesse or either Winnie, it gives me a chance to look at our performance, look at our characters. It gives me a chance to look at our performance, look at our characters and really change the way I react every single time, whether that's just slightly changing my reaction or drastically changing it. It's really interesting. It really helps me grow in my acting and how I portray a character, and I think that's really lovely for those who have their role or are in double casting.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's been really great to see two understudy actors. I mean, they're both great performers but specifically our Winnie understudy hasn't really been given a chance to shine and it's so beautiful to watch her develop a character and to understand the dialogue and really develop those those things that make us actors like to see her perform in more than an ensemble role. It's been really beautiful.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then only those two roles, sorry, no you're good, only those two roles are double casted, correct, yeah?
Speaker 3:So if you would love to see our understudy cast, they will be performing on July 6th and 11th, so that's our, and then the remaining the regular cast will be performed. The show opens July 5th and runs through the 13th, so the other cast will be performing all the other performances.
Speaker 2:I'm glad that the understudies get their own shows.
Speaker 3:Yes, I think that's so important. They've done so much work to, you know, learn not their track of the ensemble, which is also taxing, but to also play these lead roles without as much rehearsal time. Yes, and I love seeing how much growth comes from that. I feel like each performer. It's been beautiful to watch them. Sorry, it's been beautiful to watch them. They have to do so much more work. Not just the understudy cast, but the regular cast is also going to be stepping into that ensemble track.
Speaker 3:Okay, when they're not performing as the leads switching so those four actors have a lot to hold that they're learning separate roles. Yes, yeah so it's been really interesting to see the growth, not just in their ensemble parts but in their lead roles as well, and just see them step into those individual parts so beautifully yeah, being able to have their time in the spotlight, yeah and um the lead cast is being very supportive.
Speaker 3:Not lead cast, I hate that term yeah but the cast is being very supportive of their understudies and helping them with their blocking. If they forget and it's, there's no competition. We've talked very early on about how, like we said, said earlier, you have your own individual, winnie, you have your own individual, jesse, and there's something beautiful and that you earned those roles by showing us those versions of those characters. So it's been really, really beautiful to watch the support of these older actors supporting the younger actors in their roles.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I always think understudies are a little underappreciated, especially in instances like this, where they have multiple tracks to learn.
Speaker 3:Right, it's a difficult thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a lot to do.
Speaker 3:Those people get paid a lot of money on Broadway. Exactly, we call them a super swing.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 3:They've really shown us what they can do and it's yeah, I'm really excited for all of their future. The whole cast, they're all so talented.
Speaker 2:That's great, yeah, once again. Would you mind saying the dates for the show?
Speaker 3:Sure, so we open July 5th and we run through July 13th and again the understudy performances, and I would encourage you to see both casts because again they're so individual. Understudy performances are July 6th and 11th, Perfect.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Final question Would each of you drink from the spring?
Speaker 1:I'm going to go with. No, I think it's just I want to live life, but not forever. I think I'll get too bored of it and stuck with life and grow past everybody, and that's I want to see growth in myself yeah, that's what.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love that yeah.
Speaker 3:I think each of us has our own character that we relate to the most in any you know performance that we see of any show. But I do definitely relate to May, the mother of the Tuck family, and her having so much to look forward to before she drank from the spring seeing our children grow up and get married and then experiencing grandchildren. So no, I would definitely not drink from the spring seeing our children grow up and get married and then experiencing grandchildren.
Speaker 2:So no, I would definitely not drink from the spring. Well, thank you both of you so much for being here today. Thank you for having us. Of course, be sure to go see Tuck Everlasting. Yes, please do. All right, again, thank you so much. Thank you, yeah, if you need insurance, vince will work for you. Vince Polito is a local farmer's insurance agent who wants to help you out. Auto home renters and more open 8 to 5 on all weekdays. Over 35 years experience and licensed in four states. Call now. Thanks for listening to Steps to the Stage, and now it's time for the curtain call. And now it's time for the curtain call. You can follow us on Spotify, apple, google or any podcasting platform. We have videos up on YouTube and you can visit our website at stepstothestagebuzzsproutcom. And, as always, a special thank you to our audio engineer, joey Rice, and our producer, kirk Lane. Without the two of you, this show would not be possible.
