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LIFE
Musical 'Little Women' celebrates strength of females, family bonds
"Little Women" will be performed Wednesday, April 23, at the Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center as part of the Marshall Artists Series.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- Pauline Cobrda knows there's nothing finer than the footlights in Carolina.
The 50-something Greensboro-based gal has racked up more than 50 regional theater gigs as an actor and director from the coast to the mountains of North Carolina.
But going on the road to literally play mom on-stage and bring to life one of her favorite books growing up was too good to pass up.
Cobrda, who plays Margaret "Marmee" March, is just one of the members of a talented cast that act and sing to life, Louisa Mae Alcott's beloved classic, "Little Women," at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 23.
Tickets for the Marshall Artists Series production are $55, $50, and $45. Youth tickets (17 & under) are $27.50, $25, and $22.50.
Written during the Civil War in America, the musical and the book trace the often boiling-over drama of the March sisters -- Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy -- dealing with life and love, their mom and the absence of their father who is off fighting in the war.
Cobrda said that like the book, the musical, which debuted on Broadway in 2005, tells the beautiful story of how a family is knotted together even through changes.
"As a parent myself, I am so inside the story of the family and how strong the family ties are in the book," Cobrda said. "To me that is the beauty of the story and how important family is. I think we get away from that. This bond with the sisters and the mother is very special and that is what's charming to me."
Cobrda also loves the message of strength found in these women, and especially Jo, the free-spirited young novelist whose character was considered one of the first feminist characters in mainstream fiction.
She said the Broadway Musical (written by Allan Knee, music by Jason Howland and lyrics by Mindi Dickstein), also celebrates those strengths.
"It really shows the strength of the women of the period," Cobrda said. "Jo is very much a free thinker and she is a role model for so many young people now. They can live their dreams. If they work hard enough and pursue their dreams, it can actually happen. It sounds cliche but it is indeed true. She was a real pioneer."
Playing with a live, eight-member orchestra and with the original Broadway costumes, "Little Women" highlights some of the best part of the book, turning new generations onto the story.
"It's a wonderful way to bring the generations together," Cobrda said. "We've ran into a lot of people who said they read this as a child, and so they are already in love with it before we even come, and then we have run into a lot of young girls that haven't read it yet. So we've encouraged them to open the book and explore the characters they never knew."
On tour around the country since Jan. 25, when the tour started in Frostburg, Md., Cobrda said the cast, too, has become like family in four months.
The tour winds up Friday, has nine days off, then concludes in May with 12 days in New York.
"It was very unusual with this cast because we have become instant friends from the first time we met," Cobrda said. "I room with a 25-year-old, and I'm well over 50, so I sort of instantly became the mother of the tour."
Though she said it has been tough to be away from the family, she has loved seeing the country and sharing her love of this story and the arts with so many people.
"We've had the opportunity to see this beautiful country of ours, and that has been a real privilege to be in the small-town markets where people are overjoyed to see us and go out of their way with hospitality," Cobrda said. "It's given me a chance at my ripe old age to see things I never would have seen."
Cobrda, who was born in Connecticut, raised in Florida and then has lived in North Carolina for 21 years, said one constant thing they have seen is so many amazing theaters.
"Getting to see some of the old theaters that have been restored is nice," she said. "To see that everywhere all over the country people are devoted to the arts and really put a lot of credence into how important the arts are in their lives that they bring in quality productions and have done amazing things with these theaters that are such a part of our history. As the tour wanes it is getting even more special. We're carrying on the legacy of this book and the theater's legacy going into these places."
If you go
WHAT: "Little Women" the musical
WHEN: 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 23
WHERE: Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center, 925 4th Ave., Huntington
HOW MUCH: Tickets for adults are $55, $50 and $45. Youth tickets (17 and under) are $27.50, $25 and $22.50
GET TICKETS:Tickets can be purchased through the Marshall Artists Series box office, located in the Joan C. Edwards Performing Arts Center, or by calling 304-696-6656 or 304-523-5757. The box office is open from noon to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com. Patrons can pick up tickets at any Ticketmaster outlet, as well as FYE in the Huntington Mall, and at Macy's in the Charleston Town Center.
PRE-SHOW TALK: At 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 23, join Dr. Paulette Wehner, director of the Women's Heart Program at St. Mary's Medical Center, before the presentation of "Little Women" at the Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center as she gives a brief presentation on women and heart disease.
ON THE WEB: Patrons can also visit www. marshallartistsseries.org or go online at www.little womenonbroadway.com for more information.
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