BWW Reviews: YOU'RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN Sparkles Under the Stars

On my way to review YOU'RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN in Garden Valley, I had a lovely drive to take in the scenery and get the city dust blown away. I had not had a chance to visit Starlight Mountain Theatre before but I had heard whisperings of the company in the city. If you are a "city" person, this is NOT the city. The theatre is open to nature, and sometimes even nature is on cue. (Six geese flew over during "Snoopy's" Red Baron scene)

The cast and crew were very welcoming. The theatre offers a pre-show dinner, sponsored by Sizzler this year, and the ensemble are the waiters. They were friendly and attentive, and were in character while they served dinner. This was a fun start to the show. However, remember I mentioned it was in the country and nature was in full force. It was outdoors at picnic tables and there were a few uninvited guests.

"Charlie Brown" played by Dale Hoopes, was also responsible for the choreography (inspired by the previous choreographer, Dugan Jackman) and was the choir director as well. Being a community theatre production, I imagine that the cast worked on more than just their part. The cast are, as follows: "Lucy" is Jewels Love, "Linus" is Jesse Klick, "Sally" is Gracie Holmes, "Snoopy" is Brendon French, and "Schroeder" is played by BJ Howard.

The show was entertaining. The cast had great singing voices and hit some perfect harmonies. The only problem was some sound issues with the microphones. After the show, I learned that this was the first time all of them to get together to "rehearse" as a group even though it was opening night on stage, so with that in mind - the issues won't last long. And the issues were minor. They were not enough to take away from the enjoyment of the show.

They were funny and quirky and the audience responded well to the production. There was laughter where appropriate and they willingly went on stage when asked by "Lucy". The size of the audience was not bad considering the show was on the first day of the Labor Day Weekend.

I will definitely be returning to Starlight Mountain Theatre next summer if they will have me. But next time, I will arrive early so that I can just soak up the calmness of the mountains and make a day out of it. I would recommend checking on traffic patterns and which weekend you are traveling to make sure to give yourself plenty of time to get there.

Photo by: Tina Hunsaker
Pictured:(left to right) Jewels Love, Jesse Klick, Brendon French, Dale Hoopes, BJ Howard and Gracie Holmes

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