Whether anyone realizes it or not, the spring production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is already in the works.
Hours have been spent rehearsing; lines have been memorized, and song and dance numbers have been rehearsed.
The musical captures moments of Charlie Brown’s life. If one is familiar with the Peanuts comic strips, it can be seen that some scenes are taken verbatim from the comic strips, while others bring the comic strip themes to life.
“I am excited to see this show go up, because it is so different from what the Eastern Theatre has done in the past,” assistant director junior Jennifer Dries said. “It’s like a breath of fresh air.”
This light-hearted musical is full of laughter, childhood wit and laugh-out-loud lines. Some cast members said that they hope the audience will leave with a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling inside.
The idea to bring Charlie Brown to Eastern came from senior Josh Landis.
“I knew Charlie Brown would be an amazing show,” he said. “The show contains great music and movement, and all the musical numbers make the dreams of the characters come true. Charlie Brown can bring everyone back to their childhood.”
Landis, who plays Linus, also alluded to the fact that the musical revolves around happiness. He said that this musical allows one to step back and realize that happiness is not all about power, money and fancy things. True happiness comes from the simplicity of life.
According to senior Rob Miller, who plays Charlie Brown, the musical also captures innocence.
According to the cast and crew, Charlie Brown is appropriate for the Christian venue because it captures childhood.
“This has been so much more fun than I ever expected,” director Teresa Moyer said. “The cast and crew are stunning, and the musical is funny and poignant.”
According to Moyer, the cast has, in a way, become the characters they are portraying. She said each cast member has dug deep into themselves to create a persona similar to their character. In other words, they are not just acting like children.
“The musical makes you realize that you have to remember the fun in life,” lighting designer junior Rachel Lambert said. “Think back to when the biggest problem in your life was jumping rope or flying a kite.”
According to a consensus of the cast and crew, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is a fun, family-friendly musical with easy-to-follow but show-stopping moments.
The cast and crew alluded to several surprises in store for audiences.
“These [surprises] have never been seen in any production of Charlie Brown, ever,” Moyer said. “Many of which the Eastern community will not expect!”
“This predominantly student-run production has definitely been a collaborative effort of cast and crew,” Lambert said. “Everyone gives and takes.”
As Moyer said during practice one night to the cast, “Take it to the moon!”
Other cast members include junior Natalie Cisternas as Lucy, senior Adelle Swartz as Sally, junior Elliott Simko as Snoopy and first-year Kevin Monaghan as Schroeder.
Dates:March 28-31 at 8 p.m.March 31 and April 1 at 3 p.m.Place:McInnis AuditoriumTickets: $12 general, $10 students,$8 groupsSpecial Eastern University nights: March 28, 29, just $8 with EU ID