By ELIZABETH SHEPHERD
For The Beachcomber
This summer, my teenaged kids will spend a few weeks in a dark theater, rehearsing a musical with toe-tapping tunes but also themes including bullying, mental illness, child abuse, and revenge. Oh, with a little supernatural powers thrown in, and the worst prom ever.
That’s right: A Vashon Youth Theatre production of “Carrie: The Musical,” an adaptation of Stephen King’s classic horror novel, is underway, with performances scheduled for July 31 to Aug. 2 at Vashon High School.
Some parents are scratching their heads over the choice of this show. Is a story about a telekinetic girl, who gets a bucket of blood dumped on her at the school dance, really appropriate fare for a youth production, they ask? And didn’t “Carrie: The Musical” go down in history in 1988, after it closed after only five performances, as one of the most expensive quick Broad-way flops of all time?
Other parents, like me, are kind of thrilled.
First of all, “Carrie” is being directed by Elizabeth Ripley, who has given the island exuberant youth theater productions of “Godspell,” “Grease,” “Cats” and “Into the Woods.” Ripley has a real talent for creating youth shows that are very successful experiences for young actors and audiences alike — no easy trick. Seeing what Ripley has accomplished with past shows makes it easier to trust her on this one.
And also, the subject matter of “Carrie,” when you stop to think about it, is aimed directly at young people. It’s about the lives of teenagers, their own uniquely intense social pressures and the relentless and chaotic power of their good and bad choices. It’s also a tale that might have one of the most powerful anti-bullying messages ever written.
In the decades since Stephen King published the novel in 1974, bullying and teen angst haven’t exactly gone away. In fact, with the explosion of social media, these things may have gotten worse. Young people are still being bullied, shamed and harassed, with devastating results.
“Carrie” shines a light on all those issues and examines them, through the lens of theatrical art, which can’t be a bad thing.
It will also be great to have another look at the musical itself, which despite its spectacular failure on Broadway, has refused to die. In the late 1990s, scattered revivals of the show started to take place. An off-Broadway version of the show resulted in a cast album finally being recorded in 2012. And in March, a new “Carrie,” featuring strobe lights, smoke and haze, loud music and special effects, opened to ecstatic reviews in Los Angeles.
“Carrie: The Musical” might well have been ahead of its time back in the 1980s — we’ll see.
But no matter what happens onstage, Ripley is providing our town and our kids with a chance to see what edgy, artistic risk taking really means. That too, is an important lesson for our kids. Be bold. Take chances. Dig deep and don’t make the obvious choice.
The grand experiment that is “Carrie: The Musical,” will kick off at 8:15 p.m. next Tuesday, July 7, at Vashon Theatre, with a fundraiser screening of the 1976 film version of “Carrie,” directed by Brian de Palma and starring Sissy Spacek.
The film will be introduced with information about local agencies that provide services for bullied and abused kids, and after the show, Greg Thompson, a licensed mental health counselor working for Vashon Youth & Family Services, will take part in a discussion with the audience.
Don’t bring your little kids to the film or the musical either, for that matter. “Carrie” is scary. But honestly, I’m not at all afraid of art, and I don’t think our teenage kids should be, either. I think they can handle “Carrie.” Sure, it may make them shudder, in places, but I’m betting it also makes them think.
— Elizabeth Shepherd is the Youth Programs Director at Northwest Film Forum.
The film “Carrie” will be screened at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, at Vashon Theatre, as part of the theater’s GreenTech series supporting community projects. Tickets are $5 per person, with additional donations accepted for the production of “Carrie: The Musical.” The film will be introduced with information about services for bullied and abused kids, and afterwords a licensed mental health counselor will take part in a discussion with the audience.
