Laughs for old and young alike
Published 12:00 am Saturday, October 20, 2001
When the family show, &uot;You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown,&uot; opens Wednesday at the Albert Lea Civic Theatre, young and old alike will find plenty to laugh about.
Saturday, October 20, 2001
When the family show, &uot;You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown,&uot; opens Wednesday at the Albert Lea Civic Theatre, young and old alike will find plenty to laugh about. The dialogue comes from the Charles Schulz comic strips, and the music is based on what happens to the characters.
&uot;With the comic strip, kids can read it and laugh about it for one thing, and adults can look at it and laugh for totally different reasons,&uot; said Patrick Rasmussen, who is directing the Albert Lea Community Theatre production.
The play originally opened off Broadway in 1967, with Gary Burghoff as the original Charlie Brown. &uot;This play has been around for 30-plus years now, and has really stood the test of time,&uot; Rasmussen said.
The cast is comprised of six adults, five of them from Owatonna, and one from Albert Lea. &uot;We have some excellent voices in this show,&uot; Rasmussen said.
Jim Cole plays Charlie Brown. Cole has previously been seen in &uot;Forever Plaid&uot; and &uot;Rainmaker&uot; for ACT. Betsy Petersen plays Lucy. Mike Compton of Albert Lea plays Schroeder. Keith Firstenberg is Snoopy, Bonni Allen is Sally, and Dan Rathman is Linus.
The director said some songs the audience may recognize are &uot;You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown,&uot; &uot;Happiness Is,&uot; and &uot;Suppertime.&uot;
&uot;It’s fun from top to finish, from the first note to the last chord,&uot; Rasmussen said.
The characters all do what they’re known for. Charlie Brown talks about the Little Red-Haired Girl and he gets picked on by Lucy.
&uot;He goes into everything with the best intentions, but something always goes wrong,&uot; Rasmussen said of Charlie Brown.
The audience will also see Linus with his blanket, Schroeder at the piano, and Snoopy on his giant dog house.
&uot;Everything is oversize,&uot; Rasmussen said of the set.
Rasmussen and the cast have done the choreography. Mike Wangen is designing the lights and Joan Slen the costumes. Norrine Jensen is musical director, and will have accompaniment on piano, keyboard, bass drums, flute and violin. Fran Kalis is doing set construction, and John Fure the artwork. Karen Szymanowski is doing props.
&uot;You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown,&uot; runs Oct. 24-27 and 31, and Nov. 1-3 at 7:30 p.m. A 2 p.m. matinee has been added on Oct. 27. There is also a special dinner package with Crescendo on Nov. 2. Ask at the box office for details.For tickets, call the box office at 377-4371. The production is sponsored by Albert Lea Medical Center.
&uot;This truly is escapism,&uot; Rasmussen said. &uot;It’s a nice respite. Come and laugh.&uot;