iBerkshires article

Play About Loss to Help Memorial Garden Fund
By Tammy Daniels - November 27, 2007

NORTH ADAMS - Alice went down the rabbit hole and found an altered state of being in the classic childhood tale. Now Mill City Productions is taking that journey into a new perception - but not it's not following a white rabbit.

The local theater company instead is tackling David Lindsay-Abaire's "Rabbit Hole," a journey through grief when a childhood is cut short.

"The play deals with a family coping with the loss of a child, their stages of grief over a few months," said Joshua Bishoff, the director. "Ultimately, it ends with hope - sort of like the light at the end of the tunnel."

It's the first time the company has produced a play this contemporary. The drama was first produced on Broadway in 2006 and won the Pulitzer Prize this year.

It's also a first directing for Bishoff, who's been with the company for several years.

"I wanted to choose a show that's contemporary and dealt with real people in real situations," he said. "I wanted something that would be a challenge for the actors in the company."

For Trevor Foehl, the challenge is getting into the right state of mind to play the teen driver who accidently killed the Corbetts' 4-year-old son, Danny.

"I'm proud to say I've never accidently killed a 4-year-old," said the Drury High School junior, who has just come off the school's production of "The Wizard of Oz." "But it is easier for me in that I'm actually the same age as the character. It's easier to relate to the feelings."

Foehl was able to grab the part, his first with a non-school production, when the original cast member bowed out. Jackie DeGiorgis, a teacher at Drury and another member of the cast, went on the school's public address system asking for Drama Team volunteers. Foehl auditioned and got the part.

"This is a good opportunity," said Foehl, who plans to continue in theater in college.

The play includes a spare cast of five - Becca and Howie Corbett, Becca's sister and mother, and Jason, the teenager. The set is simple - a living room, kitchen and dining room all share the stage at the Main Street Stage.

With the contemporary setting, costumer Dawn Shamburger, an assistant professor in the fine and performing arts department at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, was "basically dressing them out of their closets."

It's important to make sure what each person wears doesn't upstage the others and that they dress appropriately for their characters, she said. "A lot of it is about style and color. We want to make sure the color works on stage."

While the set designer is Timothy Mangun, everybody helps out, said Liz Urban, the troupe's president. "It's a great to be able to work with such good people. We all pitch in and everybody works together."

Urban is playing the role of Becca Corbett, Danny's mother.

As she was reading the play, it brought to mind someone she knew who had suffered the loss of a child: Donna Morgan.

Morgan lost her only child, 19-year-old Diana Maria, 11 years ago to bacterial meningitis. Diana was in her first year at Marist College.

Over the past year, Morgan has been raising funds to create a children's memorial garden for bereaved parents at Southview Cemetery.

Morgan and Urban's father had been colleagues for many years at Clarksburg School, so Urban knew the journey through the "Rabbit Hole" could help bring some light to Morgan's endeavor by raising awareness and funds.

Morgan is trying to raise about $25,000 to build the park, which will include an "Angel of Hope" statue, benches and memorial pavers. The garden will be similar to the 75 other Angel of Hope gardens scattered across the United States.

She still needs to raise more than $12,000. It's not just the construction, she said, "it's the maintenance, and we want something like a scholarship fund for parents who can't afford the bricks."

The engraved pavers are expected to cost about $250 a piece; the statue, about $14,000.

But Morgan has gotten support from a broad section of the community - a Clarksburg pupil held a muffin sale, there's been a couple spaghetti dinners and a solicitation of businesses up and down Berkshire County and into Southern Vermont raised funds.

"Many who have given didn't really even know me," said Morgan.

Urban thinks the fund drive isn't known enough, so she's hoping that tying it into the play will help raise awareness.

"People can support us and people can support her by the whole community coming together."

The "Rabbit Hole," which also features Chad Therrien and Amelia Wood, will open Friday, Nov. 30, at 8 p.m. Performances will be Fridays and Saturdays at 8 on Dec. 1, 7, 8, 14 and 15; Sunday matinees at 2 are Dec. 2, 9 and 16. Tickets are $8 adults and $6 seniors and students. The play is not recommended for children under 13.

For reservations: 413-663-3211 or www.millcityproductions.org . Main Street Stage is at 57 Main St.

To donate to the Angel of Hope garden: Children's Memorial Garden, in care of Donna Morgan, 19 Pinehill Terrace, North Adams, MA 01247. Morgan can also be contacted at 413-663-3555.