Let’s do something fun and goofy together — go to the comments to add the next two lines. Feel free to participate repeatedly until we put together a biographical poem. 
Don’t worry, it doesn’t have to be good — just have fun with it.
I’ll start.
On February 7, 1867,
A baby girl was sent from heaven.
I may be a writer, but I’m not a review writer. I’d much rather sit back and read the music reviews and book reviews of my colleagues who craft them so much better than I ever could. And I hate the idea of writing something that will be mediocre at best. But for my Little House brethren, I’ll bend. Here’s my review of the Little House on the Prairie musical at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey. I saw it last Friday night.
Let’s talk about what didn’t work first. The New York Times’ review of the play, my theatergoing companion reminded me, complimented the music while dissing the lyrics. I wanted not to agree, but in the end, I did.
That’s not to say there aren’t some wonderful songs in the production. After all, the few songs I did remember from the Guthrie made quite an impression, and I was scared walking into the theater that my favorites would be MIA. But I needn’t have worried. From “The Earth Doesn’t Care How Old You Are” (sung by Almanzo when he’s filing his own claim as an underage homesteader) to “Faster, Faster” (sung by Laura and Almanzo in the cutter) to “Teach the Wind” (Mrs. Brewster, driven mad from the prairie gusts) to “Wild Child” (Ma to Laura) to “I’ll Be Your Eyes” (Laura to a newly-blind Mary), every song that had lodged in my subconscious was retrieved. There was also at least one new song, when Almanzo sings about his frustration in the wake of Laura’s rejection after the Brewster school.
But the rest of the songs? Unfortunately, forgettable.
Another thing that didn’t work very well for me was Melissa’s portrayal of Ma. She plays the character well–very well–but the character she’s playing is not Caroline Ingalls. I’m not a diehard TV show fan, but Karen Grassle was, in my opinion, the epitome of Caroline. I’m not saying that Melissa should have played Karen playing Caroline. After all, I don’t think that Kara should play Melissa playing Laura–not at all. But Melissa’s Ma … she’s saucy. She’s a little devilish. She hardly resembles the Caroline Ingalls we know. As the NYT put it,
“She still has a little bit of the devil in her demeanor, rather than the signature serenity of Karen Grassle, who played the mother in the series. Ms. Grassle always seemed to take the attitude that if you were stuck in the middle of nowhere (the Ingalls claimed a homestead in Minnesota) with an unrelentingly hard life, you might as well smile resignedly, bear it gracefully and hope for comfort and ease in heaven.”
But Melissa likes Caroline that way; she’s said as much in interviews. And it does serve the story, so I can’t get too upset over it.
The third thing that didn’t work was Pa’s beard, or the lack thereof. For the love of Pete, why? If it had to be shaved for whatever reason, why not wear a fake one? I couldn’t help but shudder, just a little bit.
Now, what worked. First of all, the show is way longer than it was at the Guthrie. So many new scenes. And I loved them all–thought they all served a purpose. Out of the scenes that were brand-new to me, two themes emerged: First, the show was much more cohesive, really carrying along the theme of Laura changing from a carefree, freedom-loving tomboy to a less carefree but just as freedom-loving partner to the best horseman in Dakota Territory. In this transformation, she draws from Mary’s blindness, her parents’ relationship, and her experiences with Almanzo, this man who suprises her in being her perfect match in every way. And–I’ll be curious to see if anyone else agrees with me–it seems that the biggest force in getting her to see the folly of her ways in rejecting Almanzo is her own Ma. This influence of Ma’s, I think, is really highlighted in the new play. It feels rather odd to me, but it does provide an interesting arc to the story.
And second, it seemed that there were many, many more verbatim lines taken from the books. True book fans will find a lot of gems in the dialogue. (And great news! Steve Blanchard has changed his delivery of the speech after the girls get sent home from school. He’s still severe, but much quieter about it now. Thank you, Steve! We know you know Pa would never yell like that.)
There also seemed to be a lot more scenes–or at least longer ones–inside the Brewster school. And at the Guthrie, did Mrs. Brewster ever pull a knife on Laura? Because she doesn’t now. The knife plays a supporting role in one scene, but it’s nothing like the frightening “Knife in the Dark.”
Another thing that was different — at least I think it was — is that Loftus’ Store is now Olesons’ store. I didn’t necessarily agree with that change, but again, I can see how it helped the story. Still, it was weird seeing Nellie hanging around while the men were discussing wheat prices.
I think Melissa’s voice got stronger. She seemed more confident in her singing, although it’s still clear that she’s not the trained vocalist the rest of the cast is.
I have to sigh here and say one of my favorite scenes was spoiled by my seating. I was in the balcony this time, as opposed to tenth-row center at the Guthrie. And although the scene with the Fourth-of-July horse race was played pretty much the same (except Laura, Mary and Carrie actually bet their pennies on Almanzo’s horses–horrors!), it looked nothing like I remembered. When you’re at ground level, the race is right in front of you, terrifying and exciting. When the race is over, Almanzo pops up from behind the crowd all at once, and the audience cheers, realizing he’s won. But seeing that from up above really spoils the effect. So take note: get seats on the lower level! Simply for this scene, you’ll be glad you did.
As for Kevin and Kara, I stick with my opinion from last time. Kara is a perfect Laura–for this character, in this show–and Kevin is perhaps an even more perfect Almanzo. I could watch them ride the cutter forever.
I talked with both stars after the show, and both were perfectly lovely as always. Kevin is really enjoying his new song, and Kara is clearly excited to get back into her Laura role alongside the actor who originated it.
I went hiking this weekend along the Sakatah Singing Hills Trail in southern Minnesota, enjoying the crisp fall air and the changing colors. The Sakatah Trail follows an old railroad bed that led from west to east, beginning and ending in Mankato and Faribault, Minn.
The section of the trail I hiked with the Man of the Place followed a creek that led to the Minnesota River. We’ve had a great deal of rain lately, and the creek burbled powerfully behind crowded thickets of elder and ash.
As we headed toward a more deeply wooded area of the trail, the MotP asked me if I could identify the trees on either side of the trail: short, broadleaf trees heavy with small black fruit. I looked, I touched, I smelled. And it hit me.
Ripe, wild chokecherries.
Laura writes about picking chokecherries along with the other fruit they found on Plum Creek. They’re small, cousins to the black cherry, and called “choke” because the tannins in the cherry are highly acidic if they’re picked before they’re ripe. According to some sources, chokecherries were a staple of Woodland American Indian diets, and foraging for the berries, drying and pulverizing them into fruit leather were annual tasks.
Today, many who are “in the know” about chokecherries plant them, rather than forage for them. But they still offer a ready source of vitamin C as well as a fresh, sweet accent to many meals. (The bears love them.) My grandmother had huge stands of chokecherries at the edge of the woods on her forty acres. When I was small, we’d help her pick them, and she’d make chokecherry jelly to spread on toast.
On the trail Saturday, I crushed a handful of berries in my hand as I pulled them off the tree with a little too much force. Perfectly ripe, they smelled sweetly of fall.
Anybody got a recipe for Chokecherry Jelly?
My review is upcoming, but in the meantime, check out this three-minute segment of interviews with Kara Lindsay (Laura), Steve Blanchard (Pa), and Melissa Gilbert (Ma), as well as the director, Francesca Zambello.
I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed the play, and I’m so glad I made the trip. I’d say I enjoyed it more than the first time, but since my seats were so much better last time, I’d have to say it’s a toss-up.
Tomorrow morning, I get on a train. Destination: New Jersey. To quote Bull Durham, I’m goin’ to the show.
Well, not that show. The “Little House” show. At the Paper Mill Playhouse. I’ve done a little digging–enough to re-familiarize myself with the show since I saw it almost exactly a year ago in Minneapolis, but not enough to give too much away. Steve Blanchard’s “Pa,” as Rebecca noted, seems to have lost his beard. Ouch. And Nellie, Mary and Carrie have been replaced by new actors. I expected as much about Carrie’s role, since the actress playing her was local to Minneapolis. But I admit I am going to dearly miss the actress who played Nellie. She brought such a delicious combination of sympathy and humor to that character.
Another noted addition is Melissa Gilbert’s son Michael, who is playing Willie Oleson. (Michael, the only biological child between her and Bruce Boxleitner, recovered marvelously from his very preterm birth back in 1994. He’s named after both Michael Landon and Melissa’s best friend’s son, Garrett.)
Kevin Massey and Kara Lindsay (Almanzo and Laura) tell me that the script has seen some changes as well. I wonder how well I’ll be able to pick such changes out.
I’ll report back on the play when I return. I hope I don’t miss anything! Tell me: if you were going tomorrow to see the play, what would you look for? What would you be excited to see again? Or even merchandise-wise … what would you buy?
That’s right, another giveaway — but not from us this time.
Visit Wide Open Spaces and leave a comment to enter a drawing for a copy of The Prairie Girl’s Guide to Life, by Jennifer Worick. Good luck — and may the best prairie girl (or farmer boy!) win!
I’ve already outed myself as someone who’s not necessarily a TV show expert. And I do admit, at times I can be so detail-oriented on the one hand, and so completely oblivious on the other — often at the same time.
But did this really go right by me?
I was investigating a DVD collection I have of the series. It’s Season 3, and I received it as a gift. (My husband actually gifted me with the entire series this past Christmas, but I returned it. I’m still not pleased the collection’s been released without complete episodes, and it made me mad that we were filling the pockets of the production company to get an inferior product.) The kids have been watching this collection ad nauseam for the past two weeks. Every night, it’s popcorn and Little House. Popcorn and Little House. (Popcorn and milk?) And when I was studying the DVD case, I noticed a very weird thing, which I assumed to be a mistake that nobody caught.
“Look at this,” I said to my husband. “They got Mary with her eyes closed.”
He looked at the case. “But doesn’t Mary always have her eyes closed?”
“Because she’s blind?” I was incredulous.
He shrugged. To him, a casual fan at best, seeing Mary with her eyes closed to indicate her blindness was business as usual.
Is this really the way it’s always been?
Last weekend, my niece and I traveled to Mansfield, Missouri, to celebrate their annual Wilder Days. Although there are several events from Wednesday through Sunday, the majority of the festivities took place on Saturday, which was the only day we were able to be there.
We were looking forward to a wonderful day of Little House fun: first, the Little Laura lookalike contest, followed by old-fashioned children’s games and a parade. The Wilder Home had their share of activities too, with crafts for children throughout the day, and entertainment on the front lawn, including the playing of Pa’s fiddle.
The Little House Memories pageant had two scheduled showings for the day, in the afternoon and at night. So we had a very packed schedule, to fit in all the events both in town and at the museum.
And then it rained. It started raining Friday night, and it rained, and it rained, and it rained.
I was very discouraged. Had we come all this way only to have everything spoiled by the rain? What could be done in the rain? The Little Lauras would be soggy and bedraggled. Who wants to play outdoor games in the rain and mud? Would the parade even be held if the rain didn’t let up? What about the events at the Wilder Home? In past years, they’ve had a large tent set up in case of rain, but this year as we pulled up, we noticed there was no tent. “We usually do get a tent,” the director, Jean Coday, explained, “but this year it wasn’t supposed to rain!”
Surely there would be no playing of Pa’s fiddle in the rain, with no tent available. And the outdoor pageant? I saw no way around it. They would have to cancel it.
But the fine people of Mansfield pulled together and used a bit of ingenuity to make sure that even the heavy steady rain couldn’t put a damper on everyone’s fun! The Little Laura/Little Farmer Boy contest and the children’s games were moved into the Community Center. At the Wilder Home, the children’s activities were housed on Laura’s sleeping porch (an exciting moment for me, as I’d never been on the sleeping porch before!) and the video room was used for the playing of Pa’s fiddle. Mansfield High School kindly lent their gymnasium for the heartwarming Little House Memories pageant so a warm dry performance was still enjoyed by all.
If you’ve never been to Wilder Days in Mansfield, you’ll surely want to put it on next September’s vacation agenda. It was an eleven hour drive for us, and even so we were able to make the trip with only a half day of work for me and a half day of school for my niece missed. So even though it’s held during the school year, most people in the southeast or south-central portions of the United States should easily be able to attend. And I assure you, it’s worth it. Even in the rain.
Because when else can you both see — and hear — this?
The Little House on the Prairie musical opened this past weekend in New Jersey. Rumor has it that there are several big changes from last year’s run at the Guthrie in Minneapolis.
Judging from the pictures I’ve seen, it appears that one change is that Steve Blanchard is now playing a beardless Pa. Please say it isn’t so!!
So now that the musical is off on a national tour, who is planning to see it, and where?
(I’m still grumbling because there are certain large chunks of the country missing from this so-called national tour, my local area being one of them. I’m therefore still up in the air on when and where I’m going to be able to work it out to see the musical, if at all!)
If you saw the show last year at the Guthrie and are seeing it again this year, please come share with us what the changes are, and whether you think they were for the better or the worse.
Let’s see if we can have a Beyond Little House reader at every city on the tour!
An interview you might be interested in reading, with Dr. John J. Fry, professor of history at Trinity Christian College in Chicago, discussing the politics of Laura Ingalls Wilder, was published today. Read it here and feel free to comment below!
