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Clinton
Brandhagen's (Inspector Howle, Winfield
Pearce, William Worthington, Daniel Worthington, James Hale) credits
include The Shakespeare Theatre - Romeo and Juliet (Gregory/Company
Fight Captain); The Studio Theatre - The Invention of Love
(Frank Harris/Balliol Student/Young Housman Understudy); Longacre
Lea Productions - Dogg's Hamlet, Cahoot's Macbeth (Abel,
3rd Witch, Ross, Lennox); Project Y Theatre Company - Terra Nova
(Evans); Washington Shakespeare Company - Love's Labour's Lost
(King of Navarre), Macbett (Banco); Shenandoah Shakespeare
- Richard II (Thomas Mowbray/Harry Percy), Much Ado about
Nothing (Claudio), Dr. Faustus (Wagner), The Knight
of the Burning Pestle (Rafe), The Merchant of Venice
(Prince of Arragon/Lorenzo), Macbeth (Malcolm), Romeo
and Juliet (Romeo), The Taming of the Shrew (Gremio/Tailor/Page).
FILM: Vegas Vacation, Toy Soldiers, The Exorcist
III. TELEVISION: The Field of Lost Shoes (WVPT/PBS).
EDUCATION: University of Nevada, Las Vegas; Southern Methodist University,
Meadows School for the Arts.
How will the setting of the
play, the border state of Delaware at the very beginning of the
Civil War, affect the way you prepare for your role or roles?
I am faced with a very interesting
challenge in preparing the roles of William and Daniel Worthington.
William Worthington is pro-slavery and Daniel, his brother, is
abolitionist. Some questions that I will need to think about and
consider are: Why were so many people so attached to the institution
of slavery in the border states? What did it mean socially and
economically for those folks? Also, many families in Delaware
were split on
the idea of slavery. What was it like to be in a family that was
divided about this issue?
What similarities and differences
have you discovered between yourself and your character or characters?
There are a ton of similarities between the characters
that I will be playing and myself in that they are all young men.
The differences however are actually quite vast. One of my characters
is a government official who is very business-like in his intentions,
another is a young student who doesn't see any harm in disrupting
the class (something that I never did when I was in school...no,
really!), and finally, I don't know that, in my lifetime, I have
ever believed in a cause so much that I would volunteer to go
to war for it and face uncertain death. I am very excited about
exploring all of these character traits.
What do you think are the
challenges presented by playing more than one character in a play?
How will you address them in this production?
I love the challenge of playing
multiple roles in a play. The biggest challenge that I will be
faced with in preparing for A Light in the Storm is playing the
pair of brothers, William and Daniel Worthington. Brothers are
often quite alike both in appearance and personalities. Because
I have the privilege of playing both of them these two will definitely
look like one another, but how else will they be similar? Do they
have the same laugh or use the same gestures? And then, what can
I do to make the differences between them clear to the audience?
In addition to costuming, what can I do physically and vocally
to make them distinct?
What are some of the differences
between acting in a period piece and one set in more modern times?
It always strikes me that
little things matter so much to the characters in a period play.
For example, it is rare today that someone will make a dress when
they could simply go down to the mall and buy one or take the
time to draw or paint a portrait when it is simpler to just take
a picture. Language is also very important in period plays. There
is a heightened sense of being "proper" or "formal",
both in the clothing that the characters wear and with what is
termed "acceptable" speech and behavior.
 Caren
Anton (Mother, Oda Lee Monkton, Reenie
O'Connell) is so pleased to be appearing in a production for the
Kennedy Center Youth and Family Programs. She has performed extensively
in the Washington, DC area for the past 20 years for Horizons Theatre,
Theatre J, Source Theatre, Rep Stage, Washington Shakespeare Company,
and others. Recently she has performed the one-character play Shirley
Valentine in DC, Delaware and North Carolina. She has appeared
on television in Homicide: Life on the Streets and in the
independent feature film, 5 Lines.
How will the setting of the
play, the border state of Delaware at the very beginning of the
Civil War, affect the way you prepare for your role or roles?
The divisiveness of the politics in Delaware
- and in the country - at the beginning of the Civil War parallels
the divisiveness in the Martin family. Everything that is happening
in Delaware and the surrounding states has a direct impact on
the characters in the play. So, understanding this part of America's
history is crucial to understanding who my characters are and
why they do and say the things they do. It is especially important
for me to appreciate both the northern and southern philosophies
so that Mother does not come off as a villain.
What similarities and
differences have you discovered between yourself and your character
or characters?
This may surprise you: the character I identify
with the most is Oda Lee. Not the unpleasant part, but the fact
that she has had to survive on her own. I see her as a strong
woman. Mother is tougher for me. It's difficult for me to relate
to a person who is pro-slavery. I do understand, though, her deep
attachment to her roots and her unhappiness at being torn from
them. Reenie is an outstanding student, as was I, but she tends
to flaunt it. Each character is feeling the effects her world
being torn apart. I experienced the divorce of my parents when
I was 18 years old, and, much later the dissolution of my own
marriage.
What do you think are
the challenges presented by playing more than one character in
a play? How will you address them in this production?
This is not the first play in which I've
played more than one character. I love it, but it does make maintaining
a character's emotional through line more challenging. I plan
to make each character completely different from the others vocally,
physically and rhythmically.
What are some of the
differences between acting in a period piece and one set in more
modern times?
An actor must consider that the way we
moved, spoke, related to each other, worked, played, ate, etc.
was different 140 years ago from the way it is now. But my goal
of achieving complete truthfulness in my performance remains the
same, regardless of the play's setting.
 Kimberly
Gilbert (Wickie) is reprising the role
of Wickie from last November's production at The Kennedy Center's
Theater Lab. Since then in DC she has played Girl in By Tooth
or By Tongue at The Source Theatre, Iphigenia in The Supper
at Scena Theatre, and Bianca in Othello at The Folger Theatre.
She received her M.F.A. with the inaugural class of 2001 at The
Shakespeare Theatre's Academy for Classical Acting under the direction
of Michael Kahn. Kimberly is proud to be a part of the talented,
loving and supportive family that is DC theatre.
What similarities and differences
have you discovered between yourself and your character or characters?
She keeps on trucking, I would
have curled up under my covers to escape what was going on outside
the safety of my home. She never escapes. But, we both have been
outsiders in a community. I lived in a diverse neighborhood. I
did not feel that my ideas were the same as others that lived
there and it was a very difficult situation.
Is there a particular experience
from your life that you will draw on while working on this play?
My journal writings. Being a
bit of an outsider, I spent a lot of time on my own. My journal
became a necessity, it was the only thing that understood me,
heard me. It is funny too because just like Wickie, I would write
apologies to my journal when I missed a few days; I know how that
feels.
What challenges are there
in creating a "family" onstage?
History! Whenever you see brothers
or sisters together, you can always point them out in a crowd.
There is an energy that is shared, either comfortable or uncomfortable,
but definitely specific. Plus, I have a huge family (4 brothers
and 4 sisters) and only one parent (my father passed away when
I was 5).
What are some of the differences
between acting in a period piece and one set in more modern times?
Mainly the difference is on the
outside, the physical. People have the same insides (feelings,
emotions, desires, etc.) no matter what time or period. It is
how those emotions are presented, if at all, is the difference.
Each period has a set of norms, rules that are naturally followed,
and the only difference in doing a period piece is doing the research
in order to portray that period accurately.
 Timothy
Flynn's (Father, Uncle Edward, John Moore,
William Hale) training took place in Washington, D.C. where he received
an MFA in Acting from Catholic University. He recently relocated
from the D.C. area to New York City where he recently co-founded
the Willie Bobo Production Group and played "Eddie" in their inaugural
production of Hurlyburly. During his time in the nation's
capitol, he performed at the Kennedy Center, the Olney Theatre Center,
Theatre J, Washington Jewish Theatre, The Source Festival, Rep Stage,
Library Theatre, and completed two tours with the National Players.
Favorite roles include: Bennedick, Much Ado About Nothing;
Dysart, Equus; MAN, Closetland; and Duke S./Duke F.,
As You Like It. Tim is grateful for the strong support of
his family.
How will the setting of the
play, the border state of Delaware at the very beginning of the
Civil War, affect the way you prepare for your role or roles?
The differences that divided this country
and led to the Civil War were obviously very strong and very emotional.
Imagine having such strong feelings about something or against
something and to be surrounded by people who believe exactly the
opposite and who feel very strongly about their viewpoint as well.
The intensity of the conflicting beliefs of this time period is
amazing, but setting this play in a border state increases the
tension even further by showing people from opposing sides of
the issues, living and working together in daily life. Our biggest
challenge has been finding the details of that daily life tension
and intensity for these characters.
What similarities and
differences have you discovered between yourself and your character
or characters?
The most obvious difference has been the
age gap between myself and the young boys I play (John Moore and
William Hale). It has been a lot of fun to rediscover how children
think, what's exciting to them, what's boring, how much energy
they have, etc. With the John Moore character there is the added
difference of his wholehearted acceptance of slavery.
Both of my adult characters are relatively
near my age and are abolitionists. Their beliefs, within the structure
of this play, are not that different from my own. It is the time
period that makes the challenge. For example, the idea of equal
rights for all races is something that most of us take for granted
today, but to be an abolitionist in 1860, especially in a border
state, took extraordinary courage. It would be nice to believe
I have this kind of courage but there is no question that the
characters of "Father" and "Uncle Edward"
are courageous men who have been tested and have passed that test.
"Father" has an almost military quality to him from
his days as a ship's captain, and he moves somewhat quickly to
anger. Both of those qualities are different from myself. I think
"Uncle Edward" is the closest to me. His patience and
student/teacher relationship to "Amelia" is something
I relate to.
What do you think are
the challenges presented by playing more than one character in
a play? How will you address them in this production?
It's important to have clear physical distinctions
between the characters to differentiate them for the audience.
This includes the way the characters move, talk and dress. These
are the most obvious elements, but it is then important to be
very specific about the differences in how these characters think,
act, and express themselves.
Each of my characters will have a distinctly
different costume and physicality. The voices of the children
will be different from the adults and from each other because
one of the boys comes from a southern family. But since "Father"
and "Uncle Edward" are brothers and close to the same
age, there will be some vocal similarities between them. My intention
will be to give the audience four clearly different personalities
with different ways of interacting with the people in their worlds.
What are some of the
differences between acting in a period piece and one set in more
modern times?
When working on a modern play you can
often approach the character from your own context of life and
our society's ideas of what is considered good or bad, right or
wrong, etc., and most of us know our current society's answers
to these questions without even thinking about it. But for a period
piece, you have to find what is the social context of that time.
What year and what country is the play set in? Is the character
upper, middle or lower class? How do different races and sexes
treat each other? Is the country where the play is set at war?
Recovering from a war? Is it a prosperous time? The list goes
on. These answers combined with clothing styles of the time may
influence how these characters move, and how they talk, and they
will definitely affect how they think, act and react.
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The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts