Familiar, but unfamiliar

Actor from Northeast Ohio is out on first big tour — but he’s no stranger to ‘The Color Purple’

Less than a year after graduating from Baldwin Wallace University with a degree in musical theater, Woodmere native David Holbert is returning to Northeast Ohio a happy man.

The actor, who dreamed of one day being in a national tour, is doing exactly that as a member of the ensemble in “The Color Purple.” The Tony Award-winning production plays Feb. 11 and 12 at E.J. Thomas Hall in Akron via the Broadway in Akron Series.

“Three months after I graduated I went to New York City and started auditioning,” said 2015 Orange High School graduate Holbert, 22, calling from the road. “It was about four months later that I got the gig. It was awesome.”

Holbert — despite his young age — has had quite the history with “The Color Purple” having appeared in not one but two Karamu House productions over the last decade.

“It’s a story that’s very, very near and dear to me because it was one of my first professional credits with an actual titled part,” Holbert said. “(It) was really cool to put my hands on this now, being able to realize how important this story is and why it needs to be told. I’ve learned so much about myself through this story.”

“The Color Purple” takes place in 1930s rural Georgia. Focusing on AfricanAmerican life in the Jim Crow South, the story revolves

Presenter: Broadway in Akron Series.

When: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 11 and 12.

Where: E.J. Thomas Hall, 198 Hill St., Akron.

Tickets: $20 to $82.

Info: broadwayinakron.com.

around the poorand-uneducated Celie, who is sexually abused as a teenager and made to marry abusive widower Mister.

Based on the classic Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker, the popular 1985 Steven Spielberg movie was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and in 2005 became a Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical. A decade later, a Tony-winning revival landed in New York City.

Holbert said the biggest difference from his earlier experiences with “The Color Purple” and the current production is the stripped-down new affair forces him to focus on acting over his dancing skills.

Considering his vast experience with “The Color Purple,” Holbert said the show is about hope, faith and redemption. The latter is tied to the brutal character of Mister, who takes the biggest journey in the story.

“Seeing Celie having literally nothing — everything is taken away from her — and she still finds the strength, the community and the sisterhood with Shug and Sofia is very important to me,” Holbert

said. “I feel like a lot of people need to see this show and realize that you need faith, you need community and hope.

“And, there is time for redemption. We see that significantly in Mister’s story, where he goes from being so abusive to this woman and then realizing that all of the things that he has done and the cycle he was put in with his father. His overarching story comes out to be really good at the end, where he’s able to say, ‘All of this wrong I did, I’m ready to make it right.’”

Mariah Lyttle performs in the Akronbound production of “The Color Purple.”

PHOTOS BY JEREMY DANIEL The company of “The Color Purple” performs.