Musical Theatre

On the heels of previous mountings of the classic Three Penny Opera, the slightly more obscure Eclipsed and the quirky Title of Show, Street Theatre Company continues to showcase the theatre’s ability to offer up rarely presented theatre with their current production, The Burnt Part Boys; on-stage thru September 1. What’s more, Cathy Street, the company’s founder has briefly returned to Nashville to direct with musical direction from STC’s Artistic Director Randy Craft and a mood-enhancing set courtesy Will Butler.

While the story of a West Virginia coal mine set to reopen in 1962, on the tenth anniversary of a fatal cave-in that took the lives of several of the small town’s men might not seem the stuff of which musicals are made, in the more than capable hands of Street and the top-notch cast she’s assembled, The Burt Part Boys is an unexpectedly emotional coming-of-age story, the likes of which Nashville’s theatre community has rarely seen.

Surprisingly, The Burnt Part Boys isn’t the first musical to broach the subject of a mining town, lest we forget Billy Elliott the Musical, the lesser-known Floyd Collins and the oft-rumored in-the-works Loretta Lynn forthcoming autobiographical musical, but thanks to Street Theatre’s current production, it’s certain to ignite interest going forward.

The Burnt Part (named for the section of the mine where the aforementioned fatal accident occurred) is of particular interest brothers Jake (Nick Fair) and Pete (Seth Bennett) and their respective best pals Chet (Shane Kopischke) and Dusty (Chamberlin Little). As the play opens, Jake and Chet, both now grown men, are excited about the reopening of the mine and the chance to carry on their late-fathers’ legacies as they take up the literal torch to join the miners. Meanwhile, armed with a bit of TNT borrowed from Jake’s locked work-kit, younger brother Pete, who was only a toddler when the mine shut down, has other ideas, as he convinces his friend Dusty to join him on an mission to stop the mine from reopening. Along the way the two younger boys enlist the help of Francis (Kayla Petrille), orphaned by the incident, to be Sacagawea to their Lewis and Clark.

Poignantly featured throughout the piece as the men lost in the mine’s now legendary cave-in are Imari Thompson, Tyler Evick, Elliott Robinson, and Brooks Bennett. Rounding out the cast is Mike Baum as Pete and Jake’s father (and a myriad of other characters summoned courtesy Pete’s imagination.

With a hefty nod to the storytelling abilities of Mark Twain, playwright Mariana Elder has created a cast of likable young characters. To their credit, each of Street’s actors not only makes the most of their individual roles, but also portrayed this in such a nuanced way that they are uniquely their own.

Making his Street Theatre debut, Fair plays Jake with a bit of self-assuredness mixed with a sense of duty and responsibility. Poised to take up the mantle of leader for the new miners, Fair’s Jake comes across as a natural leader. Fair’s nuanced portrayal emphasizes Jake’s commanding presence by stranding tall, never slouching and walking across the stage with chest-out and arms swinging in perfect synchronized movement.  Conversely, when scenes involving his younger sibling, Jake’s nurturing side is revealed, offering the audience a different side of the seemingly stand-offish Jake.

Kopischke’s Chet, on the other hand, while outwardly boasting about his latest romantic conquests, simultaneously talks of contentment with being Jake’s right hand man, revealing a more obvious internal self-doubt and sense of place. The above-referenced nuances of characterization are most evident in Kopischke’s Chet. In finding his character, the actor has adapted a forward-pelvic-thrusted stance and way of walking leading with his hips, perhaps to reinforce the fact that he’s no longer the little boy who lost his father in the mines. It’s a sort of redneck swagger that visually says “I’m the man, don’t f with me”.

Having seen both Fair and Kopischke in shows since they were youngsters, and knowing they have known each other since they were young, it’s nice to see them both mature as actors and to witness their growth as musical performers as well. The fact that they have a friendship off-stage certainly benefits the duo’s onstage chemistry.

As for the younger trio, Seth Bennett’s Pete comes across as the boy next door. Charming, kind, and full of determination. Alluding back to my Mark Twain, comparison, he’s definitely the Tom Sawyer of the piece.

Pete’s best friend, Dusty is played to perfection by Chamberlin Little. If Pete is Tom Sawyer, think of Little’s Dusty as Tom’s faithful friend Jim, albeit much younger and, in a nice change of pace, the only of the characters whose home life is ideal, considering Pete has both is parents and as the story frequently reminds us, always has plenty of Alpha Bits cereal in stock in the family pantry. Chamberlin plays Dusty with an eagerness and devotion to his friend Pete, but with reservation about their pending mission to stop the mine from reopening. Their relationship showcases a more balanced friendship that that of Jake and Chet. While the older boys seems to be content with what would appear to almost be status differences, Dusty and Pete are equals in their friendship.

Continuing with the Twain allegory, Petrille’s Frances can be seen as equal parts Huck Finn and Becky Thatcher. Having survived in the woods near the Burnt Part since her father’s death in the mines, she’s got the street smarts—or, more accurately wood smarts of Huck Finn, but when her defenses are down, their an obviously attraction to Pete, allowing her to be just a little bit Becky Thatcher.

While Evick, Robinson, Thompson and Bennett have only limited on-stage time as the original miners, when their voices blend for the ensemble numbers, its a joyful sound indeed. Perhaps because Street Theatre is housed in the auditorium of a church, the term raise the rafters certainly applies. Limited as their appearances are, they’re key to the story and the outcome. There’s truly not a miscast actor amongst the ensemble or the entire show.

Given the fact that Pete was so young when the mining accident occurred, it’s evident he looks up to older brother, Jake as a father figure. Through dialogue and a few clever fantasy sequences, Pete’s penchant for movies of the day, as they relate to historical figures like Sam Houston, Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie is also revealed. Reinforcing the hero status of his late father, you gotta love that Baum not only plays the boy’s dad, but also appears (hilariously so, I might add) as John Wayne, Houston, Bowie and Crockett in these fantasy sequences.

The score, with music by Chris Miller and lyrics by Nathan Tysen, is absolutely beautiful with traces of period-authentic mountain music that doesn’t rest entirely on bluegrass, also incorporating the gentle resonances of mid-century gospel and more classic show tunes of the era. The tunes throughout are enjoyable, with some even evoking unexpected emotions. Heck, my eyes may or may not have sweated a time or two during the show. From Kopischke and Fair’s Eight Hours and Bennett’s telling Man I Never Knew to each and every fantasy segment featuring Baum, the songs, while perhaps not as earworm-worthy as your average Disney musical, do indeed serve the show well.

That said, to be honest, the only song I truly remember is the humorous Davy Crockett, midway through Act 1 as performed by Baum as Crockett and the rest of the company. No, they don’t do a cover of the 1955 chart-topper theme from TV’s Fess Parker-starring western (as sung by then-future Days of Our Lives legend Bill Hayes), instead, it’s a clever little ditty in which Pete imagines Davy helping him break down the fence at the entrance of The Burnt Part. With simple, but noteworthy lyrics about why Davy Crockett hates fences, there’s a definitely SPOILER ALERT hidden within the words of this song.

While that may be the only song I remember, most likely because of my affinity for all things related (even remotely) to Days of Our Lives, the show is peppered with some quite beautiful songs that, in the more than capable talents of cast members like Fair, Bennett and Petrille, serve to not only move the story along, but to also, as indicated above, move the audience as well.

With the majority of the action taking place on the side of the mountain leading to the mine, the choice by director Street and set designer Butler to not go literal with a slanted mountainside, but rather to feature a stripped-down set constructed intricately, but visually simply, of wooden slates, reminiscent of the interior of the mine shaft itself, is truly inspired. Also notable, the movement of the actors as they scale the mountainside, thanks to Street’s astute direction, it comes across as realistic, and not overly-done. Drawing the audience into the physical (and emotional) struggle of these young people as they head to their destiny.

Congrats also to lighting designer Katie Gant, whose subtle, but powerful use of lighting, from a simple flashlight to the dead miner’s headlamps, only adds to the power of the piece.

One final note…with Pete, Dusty and Frances on a course to prevent the mine from opening, and Jake and Chet hot on their their tail like Sam Houston racing to victory in San Jacinto, the fate of our five is blissfully left to interpretation, but thanks to Street’s thoughtful and meticulous direction, there are indeed hints to their fate throughout the play, whether it be as subtle as a spoken promise that comes to fruition in a single action near play’s end, or a shared glance between actors, the hints are their, it’s just perfectly left for the audience to decide, should they choose.

Street Theatre Company’s The Burnt Part Boys continues on the perfectly intimate stage located in the west wing of Holy Trinity Community Church (6727 Charlotte Pike, Nashville, TN 37209) with performances at 7 :30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, August 24 & 25 and Thursday, August 30 thru Saturday, September 1. CLICK HERE for tickets or more information. Next up for Street Theatre is Bklyn: The Musical, on stage November 2-17. Follow Street Theatre Company on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest.

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