Christopher Sergel’s stage adaptation of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird has presented theaters with an unpleasant dilemma since it first appeared in 1991: Everyone wants to stage Lee’s compelling and evocative Southern story, but few want to use Sergel’s static and over-narrated adaptation, which is the only approved (and legal) stage version.
The Milwaukee Rep finally bowed to the temptation, using its production as the centerpiece of a city-wide “Big Read” that offered discussions and lectures about Lee’s iconic novel. And they mounted a production that the city can be proud of, thanks to an outstanding cast and the savvy direction of Aaron Posner.
Posner recognizes that Lee’s story is familiar territory. So he avoids a naturalistic approach to staging the play, instead turning it into a sort of historical ritual—a memory play in which the reminiscences of a woman stand in for the powerful recollections of an entire country. Like the novel, the play is narrated by Jean Louise Finch, better known as “Scout,” the young daughter of Atticus Finch. Honoring Lee’s evocative prose, Sergel incorporates a hefty dose into the play, here handled skillfully by Rep resident actor Deborah Staples. But narration that makes a book come alive can make a play fall flat, no matter how skilled the actor. Posner, however, makes the best of it (along with set designer Kevin Depinet), turning the Macomb, Ala., of Jean Louise’s memory into a magical feast for the senses, a place where people burst into song, characters transform before our eyes, and emotions ride along on a soundscape of varied voices and twangy National Steel guitar.
A Greek chorus, in fact. For Posner populates the stage with a host of local residents who observe and comment on the action. Sometimes it’s simply through a collective “Hah!” or rhythmic footfalls to punctuate the action of a scene. Sometimes it’s in a sung, wordless chorus that’s so subtle it seems to emanate from the sun-bleached timbers of the Finch’s porch. And sometimes, the soul is too weary, the spirit too trampled, so that a song just must rise up with a clear, pleading voice. When Lee Palmer, playing the Reverend Sykes of the town’s negro church, raises his voice at the end of the climatic courtroom scene, it’s the evening’s most evocative moment.
The other challenge to Mockingbird is its child-centric narrative, requiring kids to do much of the dramatic heavy lifting. Posner scores big here, with a trio of exceptional actors (John Brotherhood as Jem, Thomas Kindler as Dill and Mallorey Wallace as Scout) who bring the scenes to life with an easy charm. They’re supported by a host of great character work from familiar faces like James Pickering, Ora Jones, Jonathan Gillard Daly, James DeVita, and a true star turn from intern company member Eva Balistreri, who has been acting in Rep productions since she was a toddler. Lee Ernst has the unenviable task of taking an iconic, familiar role and making it fresh (something he’s been doing a lot lately—Willy Loman, Vince Lombardi, Atticus Finch), and he does so with a quiet, steady presence, revealing both Finch’s sense of justice and his weary acceptance that it is not often realized.
Being such a familiar and loved story, it’s not surprising that The Rep has already extended the run of this production. But it’s refreshing to know that those who show up to hear a well-known story will see it in a new and compelling form.