Meet our Mr. Banks

Our George Banks, Tod Harrick, writes about his thoughts about Mary Poppins, his role, doing this as a family, and the magical Kitsap Forest Theater:

Virginia Woolf wrote that “on or about December 1910, human character changed.” The story of the Banks family in Mary Poppins, and George in particular, is that change – of modernity – in microcosm. He is struggling mightily to be what he believes he should be, but in his heart he knows that if the child he was saw the adult he has become, he would hate himself.

To me, Mary Poppins is only a fantasy at the very surface. At its core, it is a very real, very human tale. The rigid class constraints of Victorian England are breaking down. Sweeps are coming into the parlor, nannies are kind, and Mary Poppins brings the magic of emotional freedom and with it unlimited potential. To us, living in a time and place of much, it may be difficult to remember, but Mary Poppins reminds us how magical personal freedom can be to those who do not have it.

And in the same way, The Kitsap Forest Theater is a microcosm of what to me makes the Pacific Northwest great, the combination of awe-inspiring natural beauty with vibrant human creativity and communal effort. Every time I walk down that path to the theater, through trees that could only grow here, cascading ferns evoking primordial landscapes, and – when they are blooming – Rhododendron blooms like floating pink clouds, and enter into the natural amphitheater surrounded by giant firs and birdsong, with the gentle rush of the creek in the background, I am transported into another world.

The first time we came here, it was because we thought it would be a great place to introduce theater to young kids, giving them the chance to see a show without having to sit inside a dark room for 3 hours. We saw Beauty and the Beast. We were right. The picnic lunch and trails to run on at intermission filled gaps in nicely and gave our children the opportunity to really enjoy their first musical. The show itself was top-quality. Not knowing much about the theater at the time, we assumed it was a professional production, and were amazed to learn after the show that everyone involved was a volunteer. We’ve remained amazed at the ongoing commitment of talented, hard-working people this theater inspires. It is what keeps us here, and is one of the reasons that, after 90 years, it is still thriving and growing.

The ads for this place say, “family-friendly”, and I can’t stress enough how true that is and how important it has been for us as both audience and as we’ve become part of the company. The shows involve whole families. Children grow up in this theater into kind, committed young adults, and having so many wonderful teens (and adults) as role models for our children has been yet another unexpected blessing of being here.

I’ll close by noting that presenting a story of a broken family becoming whole has driven home for me at a visceral level how positive an experience involvement in outdoor theater has been for our own family. With walks through the woods and along the creek, game nights in the cabin, building sets, and rehearsing scenes together, it’s like classes and summer camp for the whole family, plus we get to be in shows…great shows! The last night of tech rehearsal, my 11 year-old daughter Jasmine came to me and said, “you know, I just realized that – metaphorically – the lark is Mr. Banks,” to which I had to reply, “I never thought of that. I’ll use that.” And that’s the best thing. As a parent, you get chances to teach your children things or to watch them learn things, but the opportunity to learn things, about life, art, creativity and hard work -- with your children is, “much rarer, and much more valuable.” And we cherish it. Hope to see you at the theater!