Actor/director Hoffman has been involved in nine productions of show
By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
For local actress, singer and director Jenny Hoffman, the musical “Godspell” has always been about creating a magical environment.
“Every time I’ve done ‘Godspell,’ there’s been magic from day one,” said Hoffman, who is in her ninth time through the show as either a performer or a director – this time with the CATHE Youth Theater in Burlington.
“It’s just magical,” she said. “I think a lot of it has to do with what it’s about.
“The whole thing is about coming together as a community.”
CATHE’s production of “Godspell Jr.” opens tonight at 7 p.m. at the CATHE Center, 125 East State Street, Burlington. Tickets are $10 and available by calling the CATHE Center at 767-9661.
Shows will be at 7 p.m. Oct. 10 and 11, and Oct. 17 and 18. Two matinees starting at 2 p.m. will be Sunday, Oct. 12 and 19.
The show centers on the gospel and the teachings of Jesus Christ. For Hoffman, the show is special for many reasons, not the least of which is that it was the first musical she ever saw done professionally.
“I was like, ‘yes, I definitely want to do this,’” Hoffman said of when she saw it for the first time as a teenager.
“And it was also the first show I was ever in,” she added.
She performed for the first time at age 14, and also performed in the show at the Good Company in Lake Geneva. But she’s directed the show twice at Catholic Central High School as well as at other Catholic schools, with the Haylofters in Burlington – and now with the CATHE Center.
As varied as Hoffman’s memories are, so are her experiences. She’s getting a chance to share the magic this time with a group of about 30 youngsters ranging in age from grade school to high school.
And also, with a small group of people who have worked with her in the past. Hoffman extended the invitation to perform the song “On the Willows” to that group, and got a handful of responses.
Now, Ann Phillips, Troy Everson, Tom Niccolai, Lisa Wagner, Laura Brandt, Melissa Grandi, Brandon Ghislain, Jillian Siehoff-White and Carrie Jacobsen Lee will get a chance to step on the stage with the youngsters.
It is a mixed group of performers – both young and old.
For the youth cast, Andrew Kawalec – who is playing Jesus – just saw the show for the first time this year.
“I fell in love with it,” said Kawalec, who is a freshman at Burlington High School. “At intermission, I knew I wanted to do that show.”
Kawalec found out Hoffman was directing the show while asking about the shows being done this year at school.
“I just completely lost it in the hallway,” Kawalec said. “I was, like, I have to audition for this.”
Also new to the show is Zach Spencer, who is one of the actors portraying Judas.
“I actually didn’t know anything about ‘Godspell’ before I started this,” Spencer said. But he knew Hoffman, having performed in “Kiss Me, Kate” with her last summer.
“She’s a really great director, and I always wanted to keep up with her and do a show with her,” Spencer said.
The adults, meanwhile, include Everson – a BHS teacher who is heavily involved with the drama department in the high school and most recently directed “Les Miserables” there.
“Jenny Hoffman, since doing ‘Godspell’ with her, has become a wonderful, wonderful friend of mine,” he said. “And there’s something magical about being in the show.
“It turns into kind of a family-type affair.”
That family atmosphere is something Hoffman sees at rehearsal.
“This group, some people don’t want to leave practice,” she said. “They’re good, and they’re motivated. And we’re talking about some of the 10 year olds, too.”
The show is, as Hoffman said, happy for the most part – at least “until the end,” she added.
The feelings it invokes and the lessons it offers are ones that Willow Causey, 13, thinks should bring everyone to the show.
“Even if you’re not religious, it’ll teach good lessons,” Causey said.
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