Coming up for the theatre department is its performance of “Bridges of Madison County,” happening in the Redfern Arts Center Main Theatre from November 19-22 at 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. with an additional matinee show on November 22 from 2-4 pm. With less than a week left until the show, the cast and production crew are preparing to perform.
The play is based on the novel released in 1992, written by Robert James Waller, which later became a film in 1995 starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep. Later in 2014, it was made into a Broadway show.
The story takes place in the summer of 1965 and revolves around Francesca Johnson, an Italian immigrant who became a housewife in Iowa after being rescued by her husband from the bombing happening in Naples, Italy, during World War II.
When he and their two children go away, National Geographic photographer Robert Kincaid arrives at her house and asks for directions to the Roseman Bridge, as he was assigned to get pictures of covered bridges in Iowa. She agrees to show him, and later it turns into an affair, making the story about true love and longing for a better life.
The performers have been rehearsing and preparing for the show since the beginning of the fall semester back in September, the auditions taking place within the first week of classes starting back up and having their first day of rehearsals the day after Labor Day. There were rehearsals almost every day, focusing on the three main parts of the show: music, acting and dancing, each with a corresponding point person.
Keene State Alumni Riley Lynch choreographed the dancing for the show, adding additional choreography for the show to help with the storytelling, said Professor of Theatre Kirstin O’Brien, the director of the show, as well as a theatre coordinator. Deanna Zilske was the music director for the show.
The show itself will have three sets of the show are on a large turntable, making it easier for the crew to change between sets while still having the stage for the performers. With its size, it makes the set the largest the theatre department has had in a long time.
This show is also in collaboration with the music department to have an ensemble playing for the show. Some of the musicians are paid professionals, but the majority of the orchestra for the show is made up of students.
On November 10, there was a crew view where the performers got to put on the show for the production crew, allowing them to see the show since they will be backstage for the main performances. It was also the first time the show was run in one go rather than stopping between every set change.
O’Brien remarked on the theme of the show and how it revolves around the questioning of love and sacrifice, bringing the question of what love really is and what it means to be loved.
Kei Eaccarino, a senior playing the male lead Robert Kincaid, shares the same love for the show, saying, “It shows that love is something both fleeting and eternal, and moments can alter the shape of a life even after it passes.”
O’Brien was inspired to pick the show after one of her students in an audition class sang a song from “The Bridges of Madison County” the year prior. Despite never seeing the production, she was inspired by the music enough to bring the story to Keene State, saying the story is more known to older generations than last year’s fall production, “Next to Normal.”
Caroline Catino, a senior playing the female lead Francesca Johnson, is excited for the show to perform, as well as to see what the audience thinks of the many storylines presented in the show.
“I know we can show all of the work that we have been putting into it because everyone is just so committed and that’s what’s so beautiful about this production,” Catino said. “We’re growing every day with it and discovering new moments every time we rehearse it, but I know all the work we’ve done thus far will show.”
Eaccarino has been wanting to do “Bridges of Madison County” for a long time, admiring its humanism and how down to Earth the production really is, preferring shows to be grounded in reality.
“I love the character of Robert because he is very artistic, and it’s really good to see a male role to have such a certain gentleness about him,” Eaccarino said. “It’s really nice to have such a perfectly written character, and that’s what really draws me to it.”
With Kincaid being Eaccarino’s dream role, he is excited to finally be able to perform in the show after a long time of waiting, saying the show has already been a beautiful experience and he can’t wait for people to see it, adding that it’s the biggest musical the department has done for a while.
“It’s not just a love story, it’s an emotional, honest show and the music is beautiful and the story is beautiful,” Eaccarino said. “The show could change your entire brain chemistry in the most unexpected ways. You can feel the heartbeat of the show in every scene, and it’ll break your heart in the best way.”
Catino also reflected on her amazing experience with the show thus far, despite having a stressed spinal fracture in early October from overworking. She said Eaccarino was the one to drive her to Urgent Care when it happened, and after that she had a lot of support from the cast, which helped the injury not be as damaging.
“As much as it’s a community in Iowa, it’s a community in the theatre, and it just made me really happy,” said Catino. “I’m really lucky to have this support around me.” Despite her spine still being fractured, she is working with it because of how important the show is to her.
With both of the leads being seniors, O’Brien said that seeing them bring the characters to life has been a dream come true as a professor, director and mentor. While she is excited for the experience, she said she understands it is a challenge, but the challenge itself has been a blessing.
“It was a beautiful journey to introduce this story to my students who didn’t know it at all and to be able to dive into this work,” said O’Brien. “It’s diving into the history and severity of that time and being able to share that with the cast and the students to make sure they integrate that into their story. It’s not just we’re doing the show for applause and we’re in this made-up town where songs exist; it’s real and it’s human and sometimes that’s the most scary vulnerable work to do, but to me it’s also the most rewarding.”
“This show is so much different on paper than it is live,” Catino said. “Everyone is revealing their characters in their own way, making them come to life, making them truthful to the story … It’s so apparent that everyone is wanting this story to come to life.”
Tickets to attend the show are $15 for the general public, $10 for senior citizens and children and free for KSC students.
Hayley Doda can be contacted at
hayley@kscequinox.com
