Written by: Rebecca Straits (Rjs006@marietta.edu)
April 10th, Marietta College had its opening night for You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown in the Friederich Theater, Hermann Fine Arts Center.
The musical features several of the scenes from the Peanuts comic strips by Charles M. Schulz and follows an average day for Charlie Brown and his friends.
Maurice Riley played the character Charlie Brown, a shy, wistful, and overall kind hearted kid who is just trying to get through the day in one piece, followed by his pragmatic little sister, Sally, played by Lais Gabriela Flores, and his dog, Snoopy, played by Riley Matchinga.
The musical also followed Charlie Browns friends, the Beethoven obsessed pianist Schroeder, played by Jackson Bandy, the tough but deep down kind hearted Lucy, played by Riley Anslow, and Lucy’s philosophical blanket clutching little brother, Linus, played by Jackson Vargo.
During the musical, the actors gave out “Beethoven Day” t-shirts to crowd members featuring a Peanuts style cartoon drawing of Ludwig Van Beethoven wearing sunglasses.
The costumes were simple and cartoonish, matching the Peanuts classic cartoon art style, and the set pieces were the same, featuring Snoopy’s iconic red dog house, a small tree, a mail box, and Schroeder’s piano.
The musical ended with a sweet scene with the Peanuts group staring at the stars, discussing what happiness is, and Lucy delivering the final line, “You’re a good man Charlie Brown.”
Sitting down to watch this musical, I didn’t expect to relate to it, but I ended up really seeing myself in Charlie Brown, and enjoying the themes of seeing happiness in the little, everyday things found throughout the musical.
Overall, both the actors and production team did an excellent job making the musical fun and engaging for all ages.
The musical went on from April 10, 11, 16, 17, 18 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. and had no intermissions. Marietta College’s theater season isn’t over just yet. May 1st and May 2nd is the free Spring Dance concerts. To find out more, visit Marietta College theater event calendar: marietta.edu/theatre-season.
