‘Little Women’ at Playhouse Stage Company a joyous return to normal – almost
COHOES, N.Y. » Over the past year, everyone’s life has changed. It’s been so affecting, it’s difficult to single out one segment of the population as losing the most.
Yet, almost everyone agrees that young people suffer a great deal in this time of social isolation. Anyone who remembers being a teenager or has raised one knows the value of group activities and socialization at this age.
This makes Playhouse Stage Company’s production of the musical version of “Little Women” especially timely. Even though it was first published in 1868, the novel’s author, Louisa May Alcott, knew the process of teenagers coming-of-age was timeless.
One person who agrees with that is Alexis Papalco, who is playing Jo March in the Playhouse production. A senior at Holy Names High School, in Albany, she admits her final year of school, which was a combination of virtual and in-person classes, was a letdown.
Being isolated from classmates and extracurricular activities was, she says, frustrating.
This makes the production of “Little Women” very important to her. She’s been involved with theater since being a small child.
She played Baby June in the Capital Rep production of “Gypsy” when she was in 5th grade. She’s taken tap dance lessons since she was 10 and been studying at the Park Playhouse Stage Academy since 2013. Papalco has starred in several of their productions – both at Washington Park in Albany and at Cohoes Music Hall.
The show’s co-directors, Ashley Simone Kirchner and Chuck Krause, explained how they handled safety protocols during rehearsals and filming. They said that the first two-anda-half weeks the music and character development was rehearsed on line.
For the final three weeks they rehearsed in-person.
Kirchner points out that the structure of the play is that most of the scenes use only two and three characters. Krause added that double masking and social distancing created a safe environment.
The show was filmed during school break and the cast members kept isolated and needed negative sameday Covid tests before they were permitted to take off the masks for the final days of rehearsals and the filming.
Young Papalco remembers the first day without masks vividly. “It was like a wave of normal. It was the first time we saw each other’s faces in a long time. Everyone was so happy, we were laughing with joy. It was one of the happiest experiences I’ve had in a long time. I learned I will never take anything for granted, ever again.”
The co-directors felt the same sense of elation at being able to work in a “normal” environment. However,
they feel the virtual experiences had positive aspects.
Kirchner, who is also the Playhouse’s Director of Education, said the one-onone Zoom discussions with her actors about character development was a luxury. “We got to drill down with the students. Our conversations were longer and deeper. It was so rich to see the students’ curiosity aroused which encouraged them to do more outside work on their own.”
Krause said “It helped the students breathe a little. We were about getting to the truth of a character in a less pressured environment. It was not only about individual characters, but how they existed in the world of the play.”
For an example, he pointed out that the time of the play is 1863, “which was a very political moment,” he says. He quickly adds that though today’s world is not exactly the same, the students understood how similar they are.
Papalco agrees. Jo and I are alike – we are both determined. When we want something, we go after it,” she explained. “Our Zoom meetings helped me understand traits that she has that I don’t. I think it helped me to really get to know her better.”
There is a pride in our film version of “Little Women”, not only for the quality of the production. The co-directors expressed their awe for the resiliency the young performers have shown – not only in their performances but how they handled the past 12 months.
“It hasn’t been easy, but we and they are doing more than making the best of it. We’re doing good work,” says Kirchner.
This is probably the last production at Playhouse Stage for Papalco, at least as a student of the company. In the fall she heads down to New York City to study at The Tisch School at NYU. Her major? Theater and the Performing Arts. Her goal after that? Broadway and not via Zoom.
“Little Women” streams March 18-21 and 25-28 Access is $10 and is available at playhousestage.org