Prime Stage puts on ‘Perks’ play
year ‘Speak’ by Laurie Halse Anderson came out, they ushered in a new era of realism in young adult literature,” Mr. Chbosky said. “It continued with writers like John Green, Jay Asher and Siobhan Vivian, who’s from Pittsburgh, taking it to new heights. If it’s true that ‘Perks’ was instrumental in that, I am certainly proud.”
Jeffrey Cordell, the director of “Perks” for Prime Stage, is an educator and LGBTQ advocate. He said the 2012 movie “saved my life, and I was in my 30s.” He has kept in touch with Ms. Rohn, who has graduated from Penn State and is living in Washington, D.C., during the 10-month process of bringing the work to the stage. The production has a new ’90s-centric soundtrack and a few tricks, including the all-important tunnel scenes. In the movie, Emma Watson as Sam stands in the bed of a truck, arms outstretched, while riding through the Fort Pitt Tunnel.
Teen dramas such as “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” and Paula Vogel’s “How I Learned to Drive” have inspired Mr. Cordell to be “bold and brave in making the story theatrical.” He emphasized that you don’t have to be familiar with “Perks” to approach the theatrical work, which he hopes will at least keep up the discussion Mr. Chbosky started back in 1999.
Mr. Chbosky and Mr. Asher, author of “13 Reasons Why,” were invited to discuss their books for a Pittsburgh gathering of the Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts in 2014. They bonded when Mr. Asher was given “the full ‘Perks’ experience,” Mr. Chbosky said. “He saw ‘Rocky Horror’ for the first time in his life at the Hollywood Theater, where I first saw it, and then I took him through the Fort Pitt Tunnel, and he had his own tunnel song.”
The writer added, “I like Jay very much. I think his book is important, and I know it’s making a big splash.”
Mr. Chbosky made a big splash of his own in March, as co-writer with Evan Spiliotopoulos of the live-action “Beauty and the Beast” film, which has earned more than $1 billion worldwide. He was speaking about “Perks” during a lunch break on his recently completed directorial project, “Wonder,” based on the R.J. Palacio children’s book and starring Julia Roberts. The film is due in theaters Nov. 17.
“Perks” getting a new life onstage is “icing,” Mr. Chbosky said.
“I just love that this story inspired Hailey and these artists in Pittsburgh. It’s wonderful to watch them make it their own.”