December 18, 2009
by Susie Pender
This weekend at Whippoorwill Hall in the Armonk Library, the high school actors of the Little Village Playhouse will present “Runaways,” a musical written and composed by Elizabeth Swados. The play was originally directed by Swados and produced in 1978 by Joseph Papp at the Public Theatre. “Runaways” will be presented in Armonk, Saturday, December 19 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, December 20 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for students and seniors and may be reserved by emailing your request to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
The origins and challenges of the play
“If you decide to make a play about Runaways . . .
Look everywhere, in the eyes of everyone.
Start with yourself.
The world is full of people running.
You are a world full of questions.”
—Elizabeth Swados
In describing the idea for the play and its genesis, Swados wrote: “Runaways is a musical theatre piece which was in the works for a year. When I went to Joseph Papp in May of 1977, I had no script, no songs, no story line — just an idea, and an intuition about the potential of adolescents and how they have been grossly underestimated. I wanted to make a collage about the profound effects of our deteriorating families. I wanted to explore the substitutes people find to deal with the loss of family and how these substitutes are sometimes effective and sometimes self-destructive. I wanted to tap the energy of young people. I have seen them excel professionally in athletics, pop and classical music, and I knew there was a real possibility for the same kind of dedication in the theatre — beyond “cutesiness,” beyond cliché.”
“We chose ‘Runaways,’” explained Stephanie Kovacs, artistic director of Little Village Playhouse, “because it is a good ensemble show that would highlight each one of the actors and give them a sense of community as well. It is not a lead and chorus show. It is a revue show in style.” As a result, it is face-paced, with all of the actors, two boys and eleven girls, on the stage together 85-90% of the time.
“Swados interviewed homeless runaways from the streets of New York City, took down their stories, and wrote this piece,” Kovacs explained. “It changed through workshops and improvisation, but many of the words in the script come directly from the runaways.”
Kovacs noted in particular, “It is a good show for our actors. They can sink their teeth into being something other than who they are.”
Reactions from actors
Several actors in the show offered their reactions to being in this fun, edgy musical. Lexie Young, a junior at Horace Greeley High School, commented: “You think of a runaway as someone who may be crazy or has drug issues or has a bad family life, which could all be true. But what you don’t think about is how they feel, or why they chose to run away, and the life they have to live in order to survive. I then thought about myself as a runaway: Where would I go? What would make me want to continue? Would anyone notice or care if I was gone? Growing up in a place like Westchester, people tend to take what they have for granted. This show really makes you grateful for all you have. One thing I have realized from being in this show is that even though you may not be a runaway, everyone has something they run away from no matter who they are.”
Emily Hess, a freshman at Greeley, acknowledged that “playing a runaway was harder than [she] expected. I have felt most of the emotions my character has felt, but on a much smaller [scale]. I get upset, confused and angry. . . . To act this part well, I feel I have to use all these emotions . . . but make them larger.”
Julia Butterfield, an actor from Pleasantville, plays a character who repeatedly faces indifference in the foster care system. “Indifference can sometimes be worse than hate and almost everyone treated her with indifference. Wouldn’t you run from that? Yet, at the same time, how can you leave anything for a life on the streets? Everyone has something they run from. Everyone has responsibilities they avoid, people they ignore or hatred they see around them that they tolerate.”
Jordyn Kaufman, also a freshman at Greeley, noted the contrast between this more gritty show and other shows she has performed at LVP. “The shows I do with LVP are always more up-beat and magical, but this show is real and it’s sad to think that kids have to go through this. . . . You want to give the runaways justice in conveying their stories and making people listen. This is very hard when you have not experienced the pain and suffering they have gone through.”
The other cast members of “Runaways” include Emma Aufrichtig, Sarah Beyler, Adam Linden, Alexandra Medway, Cordelia Nowak, Emerson Obus, Nell Okula, Ali Ross and Caroline Whalen.
“Runaways” contains some adult language and mature themes and is most appropriate for children over 12 years of age.
Same weekend, family-friendly show: “Heroes to the Rescue”
The “tween” actors at Little Village Playhouse will be performing next weekend at Whippoorwill Hall at the Armonk Library as well. Their show, “Heroes to the Rescue,” will be presented on Saturday, December 19 at 5:00 p.m. and on Sunday, December 20 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $10.00 and may be reserved by emailing a ticket request to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). The cast, all students aged 9 – 12, includes Kellie Allen, Olivia Demeo, Kate Flynn, Jordan Frank, Tishya Girdhar and Emilia Litwak.
In “Heroes to the Rescue,” the characters, all children, believe their world is in a mess, and that they need a hero, or heroine, to save it. They look around and realize that there is no one who fits the bill, so they must create super hero identities for themselves. The actors contributed to the descriptions of their characters as well as made parts of their costumes, including their super hero capes. “Heroes to the Rescue” has a slight story arc, explained Kovacs, while at the same time, it provides a showcase for each performer.
Copyright 2012 NewCastleNOW.org