PORT ANGELES — It’s about time we took two hours out to laugh together.
So believe the cast and crew of “Meet Me in St. Louis,” the classic comedy about a houseful of sisters — starring real-life sisters — opening tonight at the Port Angeles Community Playhouse.
“Meet Me” was of course a huge hit movie in 1944, a “Technicolor romance of gaiety and song!” according to the trailer.
With Judy Garland and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” it’s one of the best-loved films in American cinema history.
But this chance to experience “Meet Me” as done by the Port Angeles Community Players, instead of watching the old movie on television, is one worth taking, promises Richard Stephens.
He’s the director, and he’s plain in love with what’s unfolding inside the intimate playhouse.
“It’s an absolutely beautiful production, with gorgeous sets and costumes; it’s family friendly, but not in a sugary-sweet, cloying way,” Stephens began.
“Meet Me” is the story of Rose, Esther, Agnes and Tootie Smith, and their all-out effort to stop their father from accepting a promotion at work and moving the family to New York. The World’s Fair is coming to their home town of St. Louis, for one thing; they adore their house, and Rose is in love with the boy next door.
The girls put together grand schemes; there are confrontations that escalate and plots that backfire, and “anybody who’s had a family can relate to the antics,” says Stephens.
“This looks like a very proper Edwardian comedy, but these girls are anything but proper.”
Jennifer Fodge, who plays 18-year-old Rose, acknowledges that she and her sisters do get into some trouble as they assert themselves.
But when things go wild and awry, it’s all funny, Fodge says.
“There’s a whole lot of comedy in it. And it’s all good, clean humor. There’s no violence,” except for when she slaps her boyfriend John (Lukas Sarkowsky) because she thinks he hurt her little sister, Agnes (Hope Chamberlain). John later gets a chance to explain.
Rose is caught between womanhood and childhood, Fodge said, adding that one of the challenging parts of her role was the back-and-forth.
“I love the sibling relationships,” said Janessa Fodge, Jennifer’s younger sister who portrays Rose’s sister, Esther. She knows all about those: The Fodge family has three boys and three girls.
Alongside Janessa and Jennifer, “Meet Me” also stars three girls from the Chamberlain family: Sisters Hope and Faith play Agnes and Tootie, the two youngest Smith girls, while their cousin Danielle Chamberlain plays the snobby girl from New York who tries to steal the heart of the Smith girls’ older brother Lon (Peter Hanes).
These girls have their dads on stage with them, too: brothers Tim and Steve Chamberlain, who play the toadying Mr. Duffy and boss Mr. Dodge, respectively.
Veteran actor George Wood plays Mr. Smith, father to the five Smith kids, while Barbara Frederick is matriarch Mrs. Smith.
“I’ve approached her as a mother who lets her kids have some freedom but reins them in when they need it,” Frederick said.
She and Stephens describe the play as a high-spirited celebration of family and connection to one’s home — something they reckon we can use right now.
“There’s so much bad news out there,” Stephens said. “People want to see that there are good families who can hang together, love each other and work through their problems together.”
Janessa Fodge sums up “Meet Me” more succinctly.
“It’s a blast to be in,” she says.
Curtain time for “Meet Me in St. Louis” is 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Tuesday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Port Angeles Community Playhouse, 1235 E. Lauridsen Blvd. Tickets are $12, or $6 for students for all shows except on Tuesday nights, when all seats sell for $6 at the door.
Outlets include Odyssey Books, 114 W. Front St., and www.PACommunityPlayers.com.