S3E8: The Little Prince: Wonder and Whimsy Await!

Resident Artists Amy Rene Byrne and Aaron White chat with fellow Ensemble members Sarah Elizabeth Yorke and Jen Lippert about the upcoming production of The Little Prince. Discover how each member is bringing this whimsical play to life—from directing to costume design to playing key characters. They dive into their personal connections to the story and what it is like working with the three community youths playing the Little Prince while exploring the themes of childhood, connection, and imagination. Join the conversation and get a sneak peek into this heartwarming and thought-provoking theatrical journey.

The Little Prince Pay-What-You-Decide-Previews are April 3rd and 4th at 7:30pm. The show runs April 5th-27th. Get your tickets online at www.bte.org

Sponsor Spotlight: Colleen Phillips of Service 1st Federal Credit Union

Original Music by: Aaron White
Recorded by: Aaron White
Edited by: Amy Rene Byrne

Transcripts of all Season 2 and 3 episodes are available on our Buzzsprout website.

Check out our current season: http://www.bte.org
Ensemble Driven. Professional Theatre. Arts Education. Rural Pennsylvania. For Everyone. With Everyone.

Transcript

Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble: Down Center
Season 3, Episode 8
The Little Prince: Wonder and Whimsy Await! 

Amy: Welcome to Bloomsburg theatre Ensemble Down Center, a podcast where we savor the small pleasures of our company, our people, our art and our town, and appreciate how unique and extraordinary they really are-- front and down center. 

Hello, I'm Resident Artist Amy Rene Byrne, and I am here with my fellow Ensemble members, Sarah Elizabeth Yorke, Jen Lippert, and Aaron White.

And we are chatting today about what BTE has in store for our whimsical, magical Sarah, how would you describe our production of The Little Prince? 

Sarah: I think whimsical is a great descriptor.

So for our listeners, Sarah, you are Directing The Little Yes. And Jen, what are you doing for this production?

Jen: I am the Costume Designer and Shop Manager.

Amy: Beautiful. Aaron, what are you up to?

Aaron: I'm playing a, a number of roles primarily the Fox. I guess that's the biggest guy. But when the Prince goes on a tour of different planets, I get to be a, bunch of people and I get to play a disembodied Echo, I guess. 

Sure do! 

I'm excited about I have some fabulous costumes from Jen. When you say shop manager, what does that actually mean? 

Jen: It means that I make the costumes as well as design them, so, yeah.

Amy: Yeah. I'm also playing multiple characters. I am playing the King, the Snake, uh, a Wall of Roses, the Desert Rose-- that's all of them, isn't it? Yeah. Yeah. So let's start out with Sarah and just talk a little bit about your relationship to this, and then we'll jump over to Jen.

Sarah: Sure. My first introduction to the Little Prince was in fourth grade. Um, we read it as a class assignment, and I remember we had to, you know, read a certain amount of pages per day. And then we discussed it, and I think it was the first time I was given a piece of literature or art that I was able to like, analyze and think about in a much grander way.

Mm-hmm. 

And so I felt like my imagination was tapped into as a young person who really appreciated and valued the arts, but didn't have much exposure to the arts. And it was funny because, you know, I'm a kid in fourth grade, but I loved that I was being valued like an adult and valued for my analysis and my opinions.

And so I ended up developing this infatuation with the book and with the film and got the, the film on VHS for Christmas and I watched it every single day for a year. And there was just something about the exploration of what it means to be a child, but also how. That develops and grows as you age.

And I think as a fourth grader, I was still a child, but there were a lot of things that I had to deal with that were very adult. And so this stuck with me because I was navigating a lot of complexities that allowed me to tap into my inner child, but also understand that what I was feeling and what I was experiencing I didn't have to give up on my imagination to, to still accomplish those tasks and accomplish those responsibilities.

Aaron: It's funny because my relationship is almost the mirror opposite of that it felt like a grownup book. Because it was one of the first where there weren't pictures. How about you, Jen? What was your first uh, interaction with it?

Jen: My first interaction was actually reading it in French class in high school, so right in between adulthood and childhood. So I latched onto a couple different parts 'cause we read it in French, and then we would read it in English and we would read it in French and then would maybe watch a clip. So I got to interact with it in a multitude of ways. But something that sticks with me is the fact that, yeah, it's these childlike, whimsical themes, but also very adult themes. And I just love that, the complexity of that. And it sticks with me. So.  

Aaron: And it feels like the removal of childhood too, because that, I feel like that's such a big dialogue for the Aviator. He likes thinking as a child. And I think that's maybe where some of that attraction to the little Prince comes from. Yeah. But all the adults saying, you're seeing the world wrong. 

Sarah: Mm-hmm. 

Amy: Mm-hmm. 

Aaron: You know,

Jen: And it's interesting to read it as a teenager and to like be straddling both of those 

Sarah: worlds 

Jen: at the same time.

Sarah: It's interesting the forward to the book. He dedicates it to an adult friend of his and then he apologizes to all the children in the world because he's dedicating it to an adult.

He's like, but remember he was also once a child, and I think that speaks very highly to the book and the book's message. and I know he had put the illustrations in because he talks about that you just can't encapsulate certain things in words. 

Aaron: Mmhmm. 

Sarah: And so that's why those illustrations are there and they're a part of the production I wish I had read it in. French, but I don't speak French. But um, I think having read it in two languages and also having the visual because that's straddling two languages and what are the, how do you translate that? But the picture stays the same.

Jen: Yeah. it was interesting 'cause I mean, I was learning French. I wasn't fluent; I'm not fluent in it now. Reading it in a different language, you're not only reading it and being like, these are the words, and then you dive in and be like, what does this all mean?

Mm-hmm.

Aaron: Well, and the movie is, it's interesting you watching the film it's a pretty trippy movie. Um, I don't remember who directed it but Bob Fosse plays the Snake. 

Sarah: Mm-hmm. 

Aaron: And uh, Gene Wilder plays the Fox. 

But it was that time period in the seventies where they were remaking all these classic 

things, but I remember it being so odd and almost disturbing because the planets would be filmed through the fish eye lens. And so that abstraction felt so-- it didn't feel whimsical. It felt almost malevolent in some way.

Sarah: . Yeah 

there's this distortion because none of the adults are interested in getting to know him or establishing those ties or really connecting with him. And then we see him in very clear cinematography with the Fox. And so contrast between those two and, what it means to, be a stranger to someone and what it means to establish ties and, and build a bond with someone

Aaron: Or have space. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Aaron: That fisheye or that feeling of, there's no room on this planet. 

Mmhmm. 

It was like, this planet is made for one person and a rose. Um, And then the Earth, when Little Prince comes to Earth, it feels like the expansiveness of the world is so visually represented. I, I'd never thought about that in, in regards to that movie. 

Amy: Yeah. I've never seen the 1970 seventies one. I've seen the 2015 animated one, which is definitely an adaptation of the book for sure. I like the vehicle through which told it. 

Jen: Mm-hmm.

Amy: But I don't have the strong connection to the source material that y'all have, which is a little bit fascinating to me because I also took French in high school and I studied abroad in France, and for some reason this was just not one of the books in my orbit. Like we did a lot of L'estranger and that type of stuff, but I didn't have that experience that you guys had growing up. So I'm excited to sort of get it now as an adult. I'm hoping for a little bit of a, a return to my childhood-- uh that rediscovery of what it is like to look at the world as a child. I've discovered a lot of that through my son the last couple of years. Like just how big small things really can be. And how important those things can be and what it is like to discover something as simple as a rose. Yeah,

Aaron: Doing this play right now is interesting because the theme of connection or trying to connect and tethering yourself to other, other individuals feels like something that we are doing less and I was just running my fox lines today. 

Mmhmm. 

And just realizing how much skepticism is baked into the beginning of it. The sort of measuring of whether you're safe to connect myself to, to the fox talks about being tamed. You know and the little prince choosing to do it in every instance, like attempting all the time. 

Amy: Mmhmm. 

It, 

Aaron: it, it's, it's something that is I don't know. I have an appetite for, I think I recognize that other people don't. But recognizing there's an absence of it. 

Jen: Well, I think it's, a lot of what me and Sarah discussed as a Costume Designer and Director: was making sure that these characters feel human. You're, not gonna be in a Fox costume. But you'll have like aspects that will make you appear Fox- like, but you are still a human. And so just making that connection to our, to our audience of like, we're representing those beings, but they are representing humans as well. 

Sarah: The concept of taming when I was younger, when I read this was really fascinating to me 'cause I didn't understand it and it was the one thing I think I worked really hard to understand. And even when we, had selected to do this play, I really kept going around and round in circles with taming, even with the casting and who is being tamed and you know, what that means and what that means in 2025. And I think it's so fascinating to revisit this as like a thirty-five-year-old adult. I think about my nephew and my nieces and what that means to be tamed and like. I, you know, was my own wild adult and being and person out in the world and thriving. And there was no one that I was responsible for except for myself. And there's like this solitary nature in that. And I, I am very independent and I was like, nothing can tamed me. And then there comes like these little tiny humans that they do. And it's, it's, I mean, in the book describes it as like establishing ties.

And so for me it's like. Oh, I get it. You have this routine, you have this thing. And you know, my niece says whenever I walk in the house, they go, "Teta, you came back" and it's like a routine, like a pattern, right? And it's this thing like they know. And then, you know, I take them to dance class, I'm like, wow, I'm in such a regimented schedule. But like, I think in, in, when I was a child, I used to think of taming as a bad thing. 

Aaron: Yeah. 

Amy: I feel like I associate it with control. 

Yeah.

Aaron: Or power. 

Amy: Yeah. 

Sarah: Yeah. and I'm understanding more now as an adult, like taming is connecting and it's letting the wild parts of yourself be seen and letting the wild parts of yourself be manifested in a way I think that they serve the people you connect with and I am very reserved about letting people in in general. And I think it's because you're so afraid of breaking those ties feeling disappointed or experiencing the grief of loss of someone. And so I think it's fascinating, like the Little Prince tames, the Rose, and he has no idea.

And then he leaves his planet and then he meets a fox, and the fox is like, oh, tame me. And he's like, what does that mean? And he's like, established ties. And he is like, oh my gosh, wait, I've already done this and I abandoned this. Person. And then it, it's just the responsibility you have when you also establish those ties. So I think it's, as an adult, it's resonating a lot with me. And in those connections right now that people are lacking or not really--

Aaron: Are skeptical of. 

Sarah: Yeah. And I think about even friends of mine who I've had for years, who we have different opinions about things and it's like, how do you continue to nurture that relationship without cutting those ties?

Aaron: Yeah. I was ruminating just about the power dynamic , I was thinking about an adult playing the fox and a real young child playing the child. Like, what does that, what does that mean? Or how, what, what things could be written on that. the, the way that the concept is given is that it is a naming of uniqueness. That there are a hundred thousand other foxes, there are a hundred thousand other roses, but because I've named this one, that gives me power by naming that you're unique to me, but then also recognizing that I need you. there's a, a cyclical power dynamic as opposed to a, hierarchical one. And so, the severing of those relationships is also part of this play. Yeah. 

Sarah: The loss, the grief. And like, 'cause you can grieve someone while they're still alive. That is hard. I think about friendships I've lost, I think about people I've lost, and I know they're still out there and it's, they're still unique to me. But that, you know, that relationship isn't there anymore. 

Yeah. Yeah. 

Amy: Aaron, you were talking about what it's like to have an adult versus a child in those roles.

We do have real children cast as our, our little princes.

Sarah: We do! We have David Knight, Margo Figueroa, and Aiden Kawas, who is our understudy Little Prince. But they all have performances and watching them audition each of their auditions were so unique and moved me so deeply because to hear a child say these words and hear children who were my age when I read this book 

Mm-hmm.

It was just like, whoa. You know, in a really interesting way. And then seeing how they're gonna interact with adults. And, I was very adamant about a child being in this role. I think it holds a different impact and a different level of connection, seeing a child in this role as compared to an adult playing a child. 

Jen: I think it also adds to the whimsy of the world. Of like it is just this child in the middle of the desert, where did you come 

here?

Yeah. So I think, I think it adds to that, that meaning and vision.

Amy: Well, and I think it would change the end a lot for me too, if it were not an actual child.

Sarah: Sure. Yeah. That makes sense.

Aaron: The, The melancholy of-- 

Amy: Even just the Aviator having to accept it.

Aaron: Right, right. right, 

Amy: right, 

It feels so much harder if its a kid. 

Aaron: Yeah. Well there's a cliffhanger for everybody. No spoilers.

Amy: I mean, this book has been written since uh, when? 

You gotta read the book or you gotta come see the play, I guess you can 

Jen: watch the movie, but--

Aaron: Is it sixties? I wanna say, that's a great question actually. I'll, I'll look it up while talking.

[Service 2st Federal Credit Union Commercial] (1min)


Colleen Phillips Sponsor Spotlight

Aaron: Our Supporter Spotlight this month is focused on the show sponsor of The Little Prince: Service First Federal Credit Union. I sat down with Colleen Phillips to find out all the ways her organization serves, not only BTE, but individuals across Central and Northeastern Pennsylvania. 

All right. Well, let's, let's dive in. 

Colleen: Sure. I have been with, , Service First for just over 10 years. I live in Dallas, Pennsylvania. So I'm partially in the Danville area or whatever location that we need me to be at, And then partially in Dallas where my family lives.

Aaron: Why don't you say your name too? I'm so sorry. 

Colleen: Sure, sure. Colleen Phillips. 

Aaron: Oh, wonderful. What is uh, Service First's relationship with BTE? 

Colleen: So, We've been a long time sponsor of BTE. I think that BTE, you know, reflects a lot of the core values that we share at Service First, one of which, you know, being "Support Community." I t really gets the family involved and it provides education on the arts, and that's something that we care about supporting as well. 

Aaron: Yeah, yeah one of our missions is "For Everyone, With Everyone" which is trying to serve a community that we work in. I imagine that Service First has a similar sort of mandate. How do you provide services to the community in that way? 

Colleen: Well, I think one of the things that sticks out, you know, as we get ready to celebrate 50 years-- 

Aaron: Mmhmm 

Colleen: Actually we're in the midst of celebrating the 50th year, the actual charter date's August 25th, 1975. But you know, we have the slogan you know, "Friends you could bank on." We want people to feel comfortable coming in. Right next to their medical information, their financial information is that important. We want them to be comfortable asking questions and getting options you know, there's so many big things to save for so many milestones that we experience in life, but we don't always know all the questions we should be asking ourselves at that time. 

Aaron: Yeah. Yeah 

Colleen: And we have people who are trained professionals, you know, Certified Financial Counselors that are ready to work with them.

You know, I think back to when I first had my son. 18 years ago. And you know, somebody walked into me and said from my credit union and said, "Hey, what about life insurance?" 

Aaron: Mmhmm. 

Colleen: And I felt like the worst parent in the world. I'm like, I didn't even think about that. But they not only got me thinking about it, they also knew the questions to ask me to help me plan. Yeah. And that's what I think is so special about the relationship that we have with our members. It's, they're ready to ask them questions that are gonna help them where they're at and where they're going. You know, we have a retirement investment center that's free to our members as well. 

Aaron: Yeah, It, it's funny you saying about not knowing what questions to ask. And of course, banking and theatre making are probably two very different fields of, of, uh, or disciplines. But, one of the philosophies I adhere to as a theatre maker is, is giving folks the opportunity to see themselves in a way they didn't expect. Or expand the horizon or their worldview. So they, go, oh, I never even considered that this is an experience or something that related to me or applied to me. And it's an important role to play in people's lives, to say there are all of these other options out there that you haven't considered.

Colleen: No, that's a great parallel. I mean, and you know, we always try to tell people it's relative to where they're at. Some people will say, "Well, I can't spend $500 on savings. Like, I still need to focus on groceries and my family, this kind of roller coaster of an economy we've been on." But if they realize that it's relative, whether it's $5 or $10, now-- that adds up. I think that's a great parallel. 

Aaron: Yeah. I really excited to show that, you're sponsoring this year is Little Prince and we have quite a few schools coming. Student matinees are selling very well and speaking about perspective, the show is actually about someone attempting to marry their perspective with someone else. It's such a big part of, the show's core themes. And so it's really interesting that we're talking about opening up other people's perspectives about what is possible. 

Colleen: Yeah, because I did read a little bit, I'm kind of excited to see it. I have not seen it before. Mm-hmm. And, um, being able to, I think it's an adult. Correct? And Little Prince is younger, so kind of that, that really open opportunity to look at perspective. 

Aaron: Yeah. And, and, and someone who has cut off, um, , so the Aviator, has cut off, viewing the world as he did when I was a child. 'cause people told him to look at things that were important. But as you were saying, everything is relative, right? Even if you believe there's no way that I can do this, if you open your mind and see What possibilities there are, you will find possibilities. 

Colleen: Yeah. I mean, I think our entire world right now can do a bit from learning from perspective and that alternate and being open-minded. And so I'm really excited about being able to, be part of and sponsor the, The Little Prince. 

Aaron: Thank you. Thank you. Well, I, I appreciate it for sure. Um, beyond supporting BTE how does Service First carry out its mission of, "People helping people?" 

Colleen: You know, I think in addition to, our slogan, which is "Friends, you can bank on," and being that we've been doing this for 50 years now, which is just incredible. 

Aaron: Congratulations, by the by the way.

Colleen: Thank you. We're very excited about that. It's been a fun year so far, and we're not done yet. I think being able to give back to the community and be able to give back to our members is so important to us. And this is one way, you know, we are not only, working very closely with our members to identify what their needs are and helping them get to that goal but being part of the community and that " People helping People" mission that started back in the early 19 hundreds when credit unions first came on board , helping each other, whether it was a farmer helping another farmer and kind of bringing those funds together to be there to support people that may have otherwise been turned away from, from financial institutions. That continues in a different way today, and this year we were able to help 55 local charities. With over $200,000 in donations and, to hear some of the responses that we get from them is just beautiful. I mean, it just helps 'em get over that hump. So we know could be tough right now, so. being able to make that connection is really important to us and, and our staff. Yeah. Um, I laugh, you know, one of our very dear friends said, you guys are kind of Like ants. You're everywhere. 

Aaron: And as in the family member or the, no hardworking insects?

Colleen: Um, and I, we all thought it was funny, we take great pride in the communities that we're able to be in. 

Aaron: Yeah. those central values can really motivate and Coalesce people. Yeah.

Colleen: Yeah. I have the fine opportunity to talk to all of our new hires when they come in they're part of this incredible team of people that that Service First has managed to put together. Where I always joke that like, do you remember when you were in high school and you were like, you'd get on a team and you'd be like, oh no, I got team that person. But this is so different. This is, you're on the team with all these people who you want to be on the team with. They wanna make it go further. They wanna make it better for the member, and everything's done through the eyes of the member. That is the primary goal, is to be there to support them and again, be that friend that they can bank on. So we take great pride in it and, um, it's, it's a pretty special place to be. 

Aaron: Wonderful. That sounds I wanna work there. Fantastic. Last question. What do you hope to see for BTE in the future? 

Colleen: I think continuing to do and expand on what you're currently doing is just great. Being able to come to, you know, shows and see just such a varied group of people doing well and spreading this message and whether it's education or the performance itself, continuing to see that be such an important part of our community We're very excited to be able to support again this year. And like I said, I'm really looking forward to The Little Prince. 

Aaron: Good. Good. I'm glad. Well, I'm glad that also that our reach is going out to Dallas, I hope Dallas, Pennsylvania. Although Dallas, Texas would be great too. 

But we really do appreciate, your support and, and it helping us continue to grow our reach. It really is essential and I can't. say thank you enough. I really do appreciate it. 

Colleen: Oh, thank you. And we, you know, we currently cover seven counties in Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania. And everywhere I go, everybody knows who BTE is. So I think you guys are doing a great job.

Aaron: Well, that's fantastic. We'll, We'll spread the, good word of Service First Credit Union too. Thanks so much.

Colleen: Sounds good. 

Aaron: Take care, Colleen. Thanks again to Colleen Phillips for sitting down with me today and to Service First Federal Credit Union for their support of BTE. Congratulations on 50 years of being "Friends that You Can Bank on."

Back to the Episode!

1944 was the original.

Amy: Oh, this one says 1943. 

Aaron: Oh, well, okay. 

Amy: Interesting. 

Aaron: Oh, no, wait. The author's death was 1944. 

Sarah: That's an interesting time for this book to come out. 

He was aviator, too. 

Amy: It published with his own illustrations in French as Le Petit Prince in 1943. 

Aaron: There you go. Wow. Hmm. It is an, an interesting time. 

Jen: Yeah for this book in particular with the themes. 

Aaron: Yeah. For sure. For sure. Well, speaking of interesting times we talked a little bit about your designs do you want to talk a little bit about what, what, what designing these whimsical costumes was like? 

Jen: Yeah. what so like right off the rip knowing that Sarah and I both agreed that these characters were to be human characters with characteristics of the beings that they're representing. So not putting you in a Fox costume or Amy in a Snake costume, but just to really pull from the characteristics of these beings. So the Fox is playful and wild and eclectic, scrappy. So pulling images and textures from that and using like a fox color scheme. Um, similar with like the Snake being this desert snake. Resilient survivalist in a way. And so a lot of my inspiration for that was some like desert warrior and, how they present, not only like personality-wise , but then little nods to what a fox or snake would look like without handing an audience a snake and a fox.

Sarah: Yeah. I was really glad that Jen and I were on the same page in terms of like, we see humans with the characteristics of these things. 'Cause like I could think of in my life, having met someone who had the characteristics of a fox and they're quick and they're sharp and they're, you know, really stealthy and all these things and they're a little bit more wild.

And then, you know, I think as we move through life, you know, you, you meet people who echo what you see on stage here. And I think Jen has done that in a really smart way. 

Jen: Also pulling a little from the actual illustration specifically for sure, the Little Prince. 

Sarah: Mm-hmm. 

Jen: Of teal green, we, we decided pajamas-- we thought, better way to like, have a kid in pajamas feel like other Worldly. And not fit in, but. Super comfy. Super relatable too. 

Aaron: I have to say that the planet characters are on for split seconds. They're like sometimes half a page, Yeah. but I'm so thrilled. Already the Lamp Lighter is my favorite costume. 

Sarah: It's great!. 

Jen: Yeah. The concept for these guys was like the characters, again, their personalities and what they're representing but also trying to keep a certain color palette for these folks to identify them as, you know, planetary beings that aren't of our universe. 

Aaron: Right. Right. 

Jen: Even though they may look like they could be from Earth, but they're in different color palettes and they're a little more, a little more whimsical, a little, odd at times to just show that they're not our normal everyday folks that we see here. 

Aaron: Part of it takes place in space, but it was written before the space race. That's actually something I hadn't really thought of before, that, you know, it's a Little Prince who lives on a planet but can breathe and walk around the planet without, you know, gravity. You know, and very much an allegory in that way, or poetic in way. 

Sarah: For sure. Yeah, 'cause I do think, you know, the planets are our own little worlds. You know, he leaves his world in search of something greater only to find out when tames, the Fox. I had everything I wanted. I had someone I loved I just didn't understand what love was. I think for me, like I do live in my own little planet and world sometimes, and then, you know, it's. Am I making space on this planet for other people or is it just me? 

Aaron: Right.

Sarah: And I think these are solitary beings on their planets who are so focused on that routine that they aren't making those connections. And I think the one that we see the most form of connection with is the Lamplighter. There's this thing that he does, and he constantly lights this, and it's so like in service of like, he doesn't understand why he's doing it, but he knows he has to do it. 

But I think it's interesting you talk about it being in space and, what we knew about space at that time and then thinking about it in allegorical sense, but that we are literally in our own planets and is what we're doing in our day-to-day life, self-serving? Or is it a much larger picture and how are we making space on our planet for other people? 

Aaron: Yeah. All of them are so preoccupied That there's not room, there's not room for another point of view, another perspective. The only reason the Conceited Man is interested in the Little Prince is because he wants the acclaim that the Little Prince can give.

Sarah: I love when he teaches him to clap. He has him like, clap once. Yeah. And then again, And then he is like, faster. And then he is like, thank you. You know, there's like a, it's an interesting, like every single person he meets on the planet is it's how can he serve them?

Aaron: Yes.

Sarah: And the Fox is the first person he meets where it's like this is how we can connect together. It's interesting because I, you know, I'm obviously like a theatre practitioner and a theatre maker, and I love my job. And I've had someone say to me once, like, what's your hobby?

And I was like, "Theatre." And they said, "Isn't that your job?" And I was like, "oh, yeah." and then where am I making space in my life for other things and should I, you know? Um, and I think that's something like I've definitely in the past few years come up against because it can be all consuming even when you love it. 

Jen: Sounding a little like the Lamplighter there. 

Sarah: Yeah, you know know, I do think by nature I probably am a little bit of a Lamplighter.

Aaron: Well, I, the and the Lamplighter also because the world started spinning faster. It was a manageable gig until the sunrises and sunsets started to get closer and closer together. 

Sarah: And then the little Prince offers a solution that the Lamplighter never even considered. 

Aaron: Right. 

Sarah: And I think it's like that perspective of letting someone into your world and they can see things a different way and help you navigate those problems.

Aaron: I love this play.

Jen: Lots, lots of, lots of layers.

Aaron: Lots of layers. Lots of layers. 

Sarah: Yeah. It is gonna be different for all of us. Some of us are gonna see the hat, some of us are gonna say there's a little dot at the end of that hat. What does that mean? And I mean, everything thematically is, symbolic for something else. And the quote that I'm going to pull here is, "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye." I think no matter how you walk away from the show, it's your perception is what have you gleaned from it that is personal? And like, what's invisible to the eye is going to affect me differently than it's going to affect you. What is the takeaway that you have? What is the takeaway that I have? 

Aaron: One of my mentors would always ask of the acting classes, "When does art begin?" And, ultimately getting to the point that art begins once we start paying attention. And so the artist's job is to point at something so everyone can throw their attention to the thing. And that communion over what it is to be human, right? It's like to say has importance. And I think that. there, can be this idea that art can be a very solitary thing but without the communication, without the connection and, and the discussion about what this means to me individually mm-hmm. That art's not actually happening. It's an artistic exercise, or it's an artistic expression, but it's not yet art. And I, and I and I like work that that leaves space for us to be subjective and take it away and say well this resonated with me this way.

Amy: And it's interesting too to think about how different your art would be if you had not ever interacted with anyone outside of yourself or consumed art outside of yourself, and how consumption of those things changes what we create and how we create. Because you take all of that in, in some capacity and are affected by it, and what you make from there on out is different in some way. 

Aaron: Yeah. Like, my conceited man without the pants that you're making right now is an entirely different individual. Right.

Jen: Yeah. 

Amy: are your pants? 

Sarah: Oh, they're 

Amy: so 

Sarah: fabulous.

Aaron: It's a harlequin pattern. But the, the fit of them is sort of this burlesque buffoon. Like, they're so huge and oh I am just so excited. 

Sarah: Yeah, I mean, 'cause like when you think of a conceited man, like if I said to dear audience members, I'd like you to close your eyes and picture conceited man, we're gonna see something different. And so I think it's funny 'cause like in my head I'm seeing something and then Jen had shared her design with me and I was like. "Oh yeah. That's incredible." And so I think it's just like, how is your perception and how is what you and experience shaped by those around you. Yeah. And it's funny how you're saying like, when does the art begin? It makes me think of like how we talk about like, a church is a building. Like it's just a building until it's like the congregation is in there, then it's mass, then it's, you know, it's this thing. And so it's like, it's interesting like how people make the thing the thing. 

Aaron: Yeah. Well, I mean, we're not making art for squirrels. It's a human endeavor. Right. There's something innate in our humanness that makes us need to understand things through stories. Or need to, you know, need to have these conversations Maybe other species are having that time, but. 

Amy: Speaking of understanding stories, what would y'all say to people who maybe like myself upon the first read of the story were like, "huh?" because I think it can be a little heady, a lot to kind of like take in. 

Aaron: Yeah.

Jen: I think you like take it in little by little. when I was reading it, like Reading it little by little, you actually got to like digest it a little more of like, "Why is seeing an elephant in a boa constrictor important versus seeing a hat?" And then just letting that sink in of like, "Well you're seeing the same thing, just with a different mindset, different perspective." 

Aaron: And I, mean, I think with all esoteric or abstract things one of the great things about good theatre is that it can take those sort of heady, abstract ideas and put a visceral spin on it because you're dealing with these interpersonal connections, which I think are pretty universally potent. Hopefully you can tell when people are angry and everybody goes, oh, something's happening. Or you can tell when a couple is in love and you're like, oh, or ugh, you know, like you, we, we are social beings in that way where seeing those abstract ideas manifest between two people really clarifies what that is. So I'm, I'm excited to play with, Margot and David and Aidan. They're so lovely. And to get those interactions in intimate ways where someone can say, "Oh, that's tamed."

Amy: Even just to like hear their own individual perspectives about what certain things mean, I'm really looking forward to that too. 'Cause I'm sure they have a very different point of view than what I have. And they're all three such smart actors. Um, They like every single one of them at some point has said something and I've been like. Wow. Like, so, to cue into something that you said Aaron, I am really excited to work on this and to get to see other people work on it too because of what it is like to take something that is abstract for me. I really struggle with abstract thought when it is in my head. It has to manifest physically in some way for me to understand it or to be able to digest it, which is why I think reading it for me is not the way for me to digest this particular material.

I think seeing it is absolutely the way for me to connect, so I'm excited to get, to have that experience. 

Sarah: I think you all bring up such great points and I think something I would encourage audiences to think about coming into it because it can be heady, is has there ever been a time in your life, particularly when you were young, when you tried to explain something to someone and they couldn't understand it

Amy: Every day of my life. 

Sarah: Yeah. And you were like, it made perfect sense to you and you didn't know how to explain it, you just knew it because you felt it. And I think that's what is so pertinent here in the text is like what is essential is invisible to the eye. What is essential to me is what I'm feeling. It's what my experience is. It's what I'm living in, in, in my body. I think you bring up such a great point with the kids because what they feel and what they experience for me as a director is what's so exciting because I can give them a blocking note. I can give them a note, but like, watching how they experience something, knowing how they interpret it and how it manifests in their body is going to inform me as a Director.

And I think I would encourage audiences to come in with that little piece of their childhood and say, I know what it's like to try to explain this to someone. I know what it's like when people didn't understand me. And I think even in our adulthood, there's times where people don't understand us. 

And I think I would just encourage audiences to come in and feel it and experience it. And don't try to get too heady because I think if you try to pick it apart, if you try to analyze it, it could lose its meaning.

Aaron: That's a good place to stop I think.

Sarah: Sure. 

Aaron: I guess I should say anything else that we haven't said that should be said? 

Sarah: We have some really incredible Designers coming in that are complimenting Jen's Costume Design and really bringing the world to life. And for me, I wanted the world to feel like it's bursting off of the page. And so when you walk into the theatre, there is this immediate acceptance of I'm, here with you know, I'm experiencing this on the planet with you, and I imagine it like opening a book and the pictures pop out and the visuals pop out and everything's very tactile and tangible. And just being able to escape into your childhood for 80 minutes I think is a gift that we don't often get the luxury of exploring. 

Jen: It'll

be beautiful and heartfelt. , 

Aaron: I'm, really excited to jump in. 

Sarah: Me too. I've been waiting for this since I 10.

10 

Amy: This has been Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble: Down Center, Ensemble Driven, Professional Theatre, Arts Education, Rural Pennsylvania. For Everyone. With Everyone. Little Prince runs April 3rd through the 27th. Take advantage of our Pay What You Decide Performances. April 3rd and 4th at 7:30 PM. There are no tickets required. You just show up. These preview performances are a chance for our team to fine tune the show based on audience feedback. It's the full production presented to learn how it resonates with viewers like you. And the best part is that you decide what you pay, see the show, and contribute whatever feels right for you. It's theatre on your terms, and you being there helps us make the show even better. We would like to thank our show sponsor Service First, and we would like to thank the foundation of the Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce for the use of equipment that makes recording this podcast possible. Discovering Frederick Douglass: the Remarkable Life of a National Leader is on the road touring to schools all across PA and New Jersey. You can catch a public performance at the Bloomsburg Renaissance Jamboree on April 26th in the Phillips Emporium at 2:00 PM. We would like to thank Sekisui Kydex for sponsoring our TIC tour. Book A TIC performance and get your tickets online@www.bte.org. 

Aaron: But it was that time period in the seventies where they were remaking all these classic things on cocaine and, or, or, 

Jen: Child's book on cocaine. 

Aaron: Yeah. Yeah. Or, or marijuana or whatever, you know, under, 

under some substances. Um, or with the clarity that substances bring.