The Prince and the Pauper

Here in Ohio this morning, green grass, daffodils, warm air blowing in from the west. What more can anyone want?

Last night Philip and Kim took us out to dinner at The Long Horn (a restaurant with western underpinnings.) Everything was meltingly good. Then we went to the Miller-South School for the Arts in Akron and saw their latest production--The Prince and the Pauper. The play is adapted from Mark Twain's novel and the story is about two young boys who look alike. One is Prince Edward, son of Henry VIII, and the other is a ragged street urchin who lives in Pudding Lane in London.

Accidentally, the boys switch roles and suddenly the little prince finds himself in rags and living among the worst elements of the city, while the other boy gets used to being waited upon hand and foot by servants. When the King dies, the prince becomes king, but which of the boys actually sits on the throne with the orb and scepter in his hands? It gets sorted out and the real prince is crowned. He then passes knighthoods and other honors among some of the Pudding Lane people and the pauper stays on as the new king's best friend.

It was a magnificent production. Many in the audience were parents and friends of the actors and technicians and you could tell they were absolutely awed by the challenge the children and the director had taken on and by the pure entertainment value of what they were seeing. This was not your average school play. This was art and we all knew we were seeing something tremendously special.

The director cast two African-American boys as the prince and the pauper and they were perfect as they changed from prince to pauper and back again. They both are twelve years old. As she said in her notes in the program, "The students worked on voice technique and breath control to help them express the language clearly. They also learned Tudor history, customs, and social conventions by actually living the lives of the nobility, the serving classes, guards and sheriffs, ordinary citizens and those living outside the law." She said they were all shocked at the awful disparity between rich and poor and to discover that in England of the time, human beings could actually be bought and sold as slaves.

The Tudor costumes were absolutely gorgeous. You could tell the kids just loved wearing them and they looked as if they had stepped out of a Holbein painting.

In all her productions the kids are taught to handle all the tasks--backstage and management. They manage the lights, sound, makeup, props, and wardrobe. Others are in charge of rehearsals and some are assistants to the director. The director arranged for VIP seating for us.. A tiny little usher took us down to the front and cut a ribbon that served to hold the seats. The ages are from 8-14 (fourth to eighth grade).

Tomorrow Paul will have a long day at the Clinic beginning at 9:30 and ending at 4 p.m. They sent him a map of the campus and an itinerary listing the tests, procedures, and specialists he will see. I will drop him off at the first building and then look for parking space and rejoin him. They have a wonderful cafeteria and I look forward to sampling some of the goodies while I hang around waiting--for good news we all hope for. Will take some crosswords, a book, and some knitting.