SEQUIM — An upcoming production at Olympic Theatre Arts, “Silent Sky,” will tell the real-life story of astronomer Henrietta Leavitt and her fellow female “computers” who persisted against the scientific community of the early 1900s to make groundbreaking discoveries.
Silent Sky will run from Nov. 8 to Nov. 24. Performance times are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. at the theater at 414 N. Sequim Ave.
A pay-what-you-will show for any and all budgets is slated for Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m. and every Sunday show is a Talkback show where audiences can stay after the performance and talk with the cast and crew about the production.
Tickets are $18 for the general public, $16 for OTA members, and $12 for students with school identification card, and are available at the theatre box office from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., Mondays through Fridays or online at www.OlympicTheatreArts.org.
OTA director Josh Sutcliffe said he believes contributions of these female “computers” are not sufficiently recognized and would like to change that.
“It helps that the script is so good,” said Sutcliffe. “And I think every one of the cast members is really invested in the story and in the project itself, and in the message.”
Playing the lead role of Henrietta Leavitt is OTA newcomer Ginny Holladay Jesse.
“I’m thrilled to be cast in this,” Jesse said. “It’s a beautifully written play, but just reading it is not enough to realize just how personal it can get with a character.
“I’ve found a lot in common with her and I’ve found a lot about her that reminds me of other women in my life — it’s fun to portray their perspective, which is very different from my own experience, but that’s the beautiful thing about getting to take on such a role.”
Emma Jane Garcia plays Margaret, Henrietta’s “homebody” sister back in the Midwest.
“Margaret provides this counterpoint example of what Henrietta’s life could have been, or maybe what Henrietta was expected to be,” said Garcia, who was last seen on OTA’s stage as “Casey,” the lead female role for “First Date.”
“I think if these really impassioned, powerful women — the scientists at Harvard — are influencing in any way the housewife back in Wisconsin they’re doing something even bigger than the incredible science they are undertaking.”
“It’s exciting playing a real person who was so awesome and has such a rich backstory,” said Tia Stephens, who plays Annie Cannon, Leavitt’s colleague who becomes a real “firebrand.”
Stephens’ last role at OTA was that of director for the comedy “Sylvia” last fall. Stephens also ironically planned to major in astronomy before moving on to study theater at Western Washington University.
Another newcomer to OTA’s stage is Matt Forrest, portraying the only man in the play, and the head astronomer’s apprentice Peter Shaw.
“It’s just great to get into acting again,” said Forrest, who was last on stage in 2014 as part of a high school production. “I’m very pleased to be part of a play that has a ‘movement’ behind it.”
Also cast is Marissa Wilson as Williamina Fleming, a fellow scientist who is fun, Scottish and “smart as a whip.”
This is Sutcliffe’s third foray into directing at OTA after “Time Stands Still” and “Bakersfield Mist.”
“Silent Sky” represents a significant raising of the bar toward a more complicated show.
“I have so much faith and trust in Kelsi Chambers, my stage manager, who has a lot of backstage experience at OTA,” he said.
“I really appreciate Josh because he’s coming from an acting background into the directing role,” said Forrest. “Honestly, Josh is a bit of a role model for me.”
“From that first audition phase you could see that Josh really facilitates a container of lightness and fun which I think balances out some of these serious topics that we have to dive into,” said Garcia. “He’s kind of mastered dipping back and forth between the serious and the light.”
“It’s really rewarding coming to rehearsal and having ideas and being able to work out the ideas with a receptive group of people who have also come to rehearsal with their own ideas,” Sutcliffe said.
“It feels very collaborative, which is what I really like.”
For more information, see www.OlympicTheatreArts.org or call the theater at 360-683-7326.
Director Josh Sutcliffe, center, works on presence with actor Ginny Holladay Jesse, with cast member Matt Forrest in the background, during a rehearsal for “Silent Sky.” (Olympic Theatre Arts)
