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Directors come full circle in Mountaineers’ ‘Narnia’

2013 - Narnia
May 22, 2013

Kitsap Sun's preview by Michael Moore, May 22, 2013

Directors come full circle in Mountaineers’ ‘Narnia’

BREMERTON — The last time Jenny Estill and Amy Beth Nolte were involved in a production of “Narnia” at the Kitsap Forest Theater, they were performing.

“Amy Beth was Lucy Pevensie, and I was the littlest mouse,” said Estill, who was 8 when the Mountaineers Players last performed “Narnia,” back in 1996. “Amy Beth (who went by the surname Lindvall then) was 7.”

This time out, the two Kitsap Forest Theater veterans return as the brain trust for this latest mounting of the musical take on C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” the first tome in his “Chronicles of Narnia” series. Estill is directing at the Kitsap Forest Theater for the second time (the first was “Oklahoma” in 2010), while music director Nolte is a veteran of several recent KFT musicals.

Estill, who cut her theater teeth on the rustic amphitheater’s hard-packed dirt “stage,” said she and Nolte have two main challenges in their directorial roles.

“This is where we both learned to be theater artists,” she said. “This place is a village, and we really want to pass that along so that the young people here now will understand that this is something they can enjoy for a whole lifetime.”

“It’s a mix,” Nolte added. “Of course, we care about the professional quality of the show, but we’re both teachers, too.”

Tradition is not something they take lightly at the Kitsap Forest Theater, where the Seattle-based Mountaineers Players have been producing at least one musical a year since 1923 [note: except for 4 years during World War I].

The Kitsap Forest Theater, an amphitheater carved out of a rhododendron-riddled wilderness, seems an apt setting for a fantastical place like Narnia, which the four Pevensie children access through the back of their wardrobe. Unbelievably, Estill decided the venue needed even more trees than nature already had provided.

“We’re going to have some human trees,” she said. “They’ll be doing lots of things, including helping move the set. I’m a stickler about quick set changes.”

The trees, and all the story’s other fantastical characters, will be brought to life by veteran costumer Barbara Klingberg, who also dressed the cast of Bainbridge Performing Arts’ just-completed “A Chorus Line.” Choreography is by Lynda Sue Welch, with fight choreography by Ken Michels.

Estill’s also played a role in keeping things moving during rehearsals, when she says she’s been able to take over the role of the prompter, or the “book” (the person who sits in front of the stage with the script, nudging actors who might be struggling to remember their lines).

“I am the book,” she laughed. “I remember every word.”

Both Estill and Nolte, it turns out, have some deep roots in the story.

“Being Lucy when I was 7 changed my view of Narnia,” Nolte said. “That’s the magical thing about being young. You really can believe that you’re in Narnia.”

Estill said the show’s been on her to-do list practically since she served her mouse stint in 1996, letting it drop that whenever it came up in the Mountaineers’ rotation, she’d be happy to helm it.

“I’m just glad they didn’t do it last year,” she said of the 2012 season, when she was working in Ohio.

One of the biggest challenges for Estill has been to match the large, multi-generational talent pool who showed up for auditions with the characters, from the Pevensies right down to those human trees. Aslan the lion, the show’s most iconic role, was the final one to be cast, when Dave Holden (Ovation! Musical Theatre Bainbridge’s summer 2012 production of “The Pirates of Penzance”) was recommended by Mountaineers regular Jenny Dreessen, who will play the White Witch.

It isn’t lost on Estill that Dreessen also played the witch in the Mountaineers’ 2011 production of “Into the Woods.”

“She’s collecting the witch roles,” she said of Dreessen, whose daughter, Katie, is cast as Susan Pevensie.

“For our White Stag, we didn’t really have a dancer,” Estill said, “so we took Megan Castillo (who’s shone in several KFT shows) and cast her, and we just changed it from a dancing role to a singing role.

“The challenge is how best to use and showcase everyone,” she said.

In other words, you have to be able to see the forest for the human trees.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2013/may/22/local-theater-directors-come-full-circle-in/#axzz2U22xSJ41

Narnia Publicity Photos

2013 - Narnia
April 03, 2013

We invite you to travel with us to the land of Narnia for a great adventure at the Kitsap Forest Theater this spring. The cast and crew are busy working hard to make this adventure come to life on the dirt stage of this beautiful amphitheater. 

We have 14 new Players joining us on stage this year, and 22 returning Players. We have young and old joining together to bring this wonderful story to life.

Narnia is based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis and is a popular story that has been shares for generations. The outdoor Kitsap Forest Theater is a perfect venue for this story based on good and evil, adventure and imagination. Plan to bring your whole family - come early and bring a picnic lunch to eat under the firs. Tickets available on our web site and at local ticket outlets. Get yours today! Publicity pictures available here.

Here is the cast list for Narnia:

Professor Jamie Estill
Mrs. Macready Deb Harrick
Lucy Jasmine Harrick
Susan Katie Dreessen
Edmund Daniel Geiszler
Peter Jake Friang
Aslan Dave Holden
White Witch Jenny Dreessen
Dwarf Kelsie Engen
Fenris David Cravens
Mr. Tumnus Jim Welch
Mr. Beaver Tod Harrick
Mrs. Beaver Sydney Kaser
Father Christmas Scott Schmittler
White Stag Meagan Castillo
ENSEMBLE:  
Marie Bolla Charlie Castillo
Jamie Castillo Katelyn Cooper
Kamalani Fielder Madeleine Hahn
Eliana Harrick Jaden Jones
Juliette Jones Danette Lam
Jessica Lam Brian Lindvall
Layla Markovich Maya Markovich
Joseph Martinez Erica McAdams-Roth
Alaina Neuburger Kate Oest-Larsen
Evan Randall Carol Stanley
Sophie Walters  

Kitsap Forest Theater is the perfect setting for Narnia

2013 - Narnia
February 28, 2013

Guest post by Jenny Estill, director of Narnia:

Narnia was my first show with the Kitsap Forest Theater. (I was eight.) I remember spending most of the experience looking up—either in conversation with cast-mates twice my size, or else lost in wonder at the grandeur of the space around me. To an eight year-old, the Kitsap Forest Theater was Narnia. It was a space of incomparable beauty, of grand adventures, and of great challenge—a space in which I was required to work hard, be kind, and give deeply to something greater than myself. It was a space where magical happenings were most definitely a possibility.

Little has changed in the intervening years. For me, the Kitsap Forest Theater is Narnia still, and I am thrilled to have the chance to direct here again. It is a perfect setting for C.S. Lewis’ epic tale of adventure, fantasy, courage, and redemption. The immutability of the space requires an audience to use its imagination even more than does a traditional and more flexible theatre. This, in turn, requires a director and her designers to create images of exceptional beauty and creativity in order to tell the story effectively. Our wonderful production team is already hard at work figuring out how to do this, and marvelously creative solutions are emerging in every department. This is very exciting. All we need now is a cast of intrepid theatrical adventurers who are up for a truly unique artistic experience…

We are looking for all ages to take part in this production. Sign up for an audition now to be a part of this special experience. Auditions are this weekend (March 2 & 3). Or help backstage. Contact us for more information.

From Audience to Performers at the Kitsap Forest Theater

Shows
December 03, 2012

Tod and Deb Harrick, along with their girls, Jasmine and Eliana, had been attending shows at the Kitsap Forest Theater for years - telling all of their friends to join them in this great experience. This past year they decided to audition for Fiddler on the Roof and all four of them were cast in the show. Read why they decided to jump "to the other side of the ferns" - as we encourage other families to audition as a family for our next spring show: Narnia, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Guest blog post from Tod & Deb Harrick:

"Kitsap Forest Theater is a magical place. It has been full of delightful surprises from the moment we first saw it. You’ve got to start with the sheer beauty of the place that gives an expansiveness to the experience of theater. Watching shows here, under open sky and in the midst of ancient trees, your emotions soar. It is a true temple of the heart. But there’s so much more: the photos going back to 1923 that always remind us this is a real Puget Sound institution; dreamy walks through massive rhododendrons hung with decorations from each show’s story; and performances with a level of quality that frankly shocks us by matching or exceeding anything we’ve seen in professional theaters in Seattle, Los Angeles and New York. Small wonder we’re dedicated audience members.

Several things inspired us to try to make the move from audience members to company members of Kitsap Forest Theater.  First of course was the quality of the performances we saw there. But just as important were the friendliness of the cast members when we met them after performances (not just to us but to our children as well), and the genuine sense of joy they expressed when describing their own experiences.  We love live theater, doing things together as a family, and enjoying the outdoors - deciding to try out for Kitsap Forest Theater was a way to unite these three very important elements of our own lives and be with others who share them as well.

How many high-quality theaters do you go to where the actors not only come out to talk with you after the show, but gladly bring you backstage to check out their dressing rooms?  Where they talk about weekend-long performances with as much excitement as about the performances themselves? Where they talk fondly of their kids, running through the forest after rehearsals and, “growing up with the theater?” The Mountaineers Players have accomplished the unlikely feat of creating a first-class theatrical troupe that is also a real community. We are thrilled and honored to be a part of it, and we only hope we can live up to the standards it has set and give to it a fraction of the joy it has provided us"

Thank you, Tod and Deb, for sharing your experiences - and your family - with the Players' community. Please see our audition page for more information on how you, too, can become involved.

Footloose, the Musical opens to enthusiastic crowds

2012 - Footloose, The Musical
October 23, 2012

621863 4429301491145 93693216 oArielandChuck 325845 4429275570497 1440935128 oFootloose, the Musical opened last weekend and has three more weekends to go. Michael Moore of the Kitsap Sun quoted director Ken Michels in his recent preview of the show: ". . . the strengths of Footloose are its heart and its balance of music and dance with drama and comedy." "It's got everything," he said. "It's a great show, and it adds to the experience of coming to this special place." You can read the entire preview here.

We have some excellent talent in this show and a nice combination of new and returning Players. Don't miss out on a great summer adventure - get your tickets here.

Here is a perspective from new Player Carol Stanley about her experiences being involved for the first time in a Mountaineers Players show:

coach willard ren 473791 4429294370967 696965586 o"When I first decided to audition for Footloose I thought I was crazy to be driving all over Seattle just for a show. However after the first weekend at the theater I instantly knew why so many people come back year after year. The theater is so beautiful and it is amazing to be a part of such a great history of shows."

"What I have enjoyed most about Footloose is the talented and dedicated cast. Most weekends after a long rehearsal we all agree to put in extra hours [practicing] in the yurt. We practice until the late hours without any complaint. We are all invested deeply in the show. I know I've only known these people for a few months but I feel I have made some amazing friends. I guess it takes living, working, and most importantly playing with others that makes for an amazing cast. I can't wait to share all of our hard work with the rest of the world."

Leave your comments and let us know how you enjoyed the show and the "forest experience."

  1. Fiddler on the Roof opens to rave reviews
  2. "The Green Violinist" by Marc Chagall
  3. Fiddler on the Roof is cast!
  4. Why you should audition for shows at the Kitsap Forest Theater!

Subcategories

2011 - Oklahoma!

2012 - Fiddler on the Roof

2012 - Footloose, The Musical

2013 - Narnia

2013 - The Secret Garden, The Broadway Version

2014 - Honk!

2014 - Annie

2015 - Mary Poppins

2015 - Shrek, The Musical

2016 - The Music Man

2016 - The Little Mermaid

2017 - The Wizard of Oz

2019 - Newsies

2019 - Mamma Mia!

2021 - Little Women, The Broadway Musical

2022 - Beauty and the Beast

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