Interview: David Hatter of BRIGHT STAR at LionHeart Productions

LionHeart Productions is presenting Bright Star, a beautiful story about faith, hope, love and forgiveness. Written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell. This Tony nominated show (nominated the same year as Wicked)  will have you tapping your toes to it’s country/bluegrass sound.   We had the chance to interview one of the male leads of the show and see what David had to say about playing the role of Jimmy Ray, and his thoughts on Bright Star.

Broadway World Michigan: Can you give our readers a brief background of yourself and then your theatre career as an introduction?

David Hatter: I was born into a very religious family that included four ministers in three generations, including my father and mother who raised us in Grant through my high school years. The greatest gifts God gave me are patience, peace, love, music, logic, and mathematics. I’ve been married to my wife Megan for about two years, we live about a mile-and-a-half from Lake Michigan in Muskegon, and I’ve worked in finance for a family-owned medical equipment manufacturing company in Grand Rapids called Skytron for 20 years.

My theater career started with a great friend in high school telling me I should audition for a show to be in the ensemble because it was “just like singing in the choir but with dancing”. I had INCREDIBLE stage fright but could handle choir because I could hide within a large group. The drama teacher, Brenda Huckins, cast me as a lead (“male that can sing well”…) and refused my refusal, and I never looked back. Since then I’ve been on stage for a combination of 28 plays and musicals in various ensemble, supporting, and lead roles between Grant, MI (LionHeart), Cincinnati, OH (Forest Dale Church of Christ), Grand Rapids, MI (Grand Rapids Civic, Circle Theatre GR, Actors’ Theatre GR), Holland, MI (Exit Left Theatre), and now Muskegon, MI (Muskegon Civic).

How would you describe Bright Star in your own words?

Bright Star is about hope. It’s about finding a way to deal with the cards you’ve been dealt. That’s never going to be the same for any two people, and there’s no “right way” – everyone’s path and everyone’s trauma is different, but you either have to hope or fall into despair.

How would you describe your character, Jimmy Ray?

In 1923, Jimmy Ray is a young man with a single path laid out before him but 100 paths in his mind. While his father pushes him to the same path he took himself, he sees the same destination but a much broader route. He wants to explore that route. He’s friendly, values the community around him, and loves the adventurous spirit he sees in Alice.

In 1946, Jimmy Ray is a much-matured businessman. He still has the values that he had when he was young, but the world and the road behind has beaten a little bit of the adventure out of him. He

nearly reached that destination, but not the way he hoped.

Who do you think Jimmy Ray is?

Jimmy Ray is that child that exists in all of us at some point in our lives (some earlier, some later, and some forever) who cannot decide what he wants to do. He sees the world as an open book with a thousand possibilities, each with its attraction and nuance that would make it amazing.

Do you see any similarities between Jimmy Ray and yourself?

I certainly see reflections of my life in Jimmy Ray’s story. I remember being that bright-eyed youth that couldn’t decide what he wanted to do. I wanted to be a minister like my dad, then a singer, then a math teacher, then an audio engineer for a touring musical group,… the decision was impossible. The career I ended up in was NOTHING like what I planned or expected, yet I’ve been doing it for twenty years. I think Jimmy Ray chose his path more than I did, but I see a very similar start.

Did you do any special preparation for your role?

The preparation for this role was mostly about learning the period and location background. I’ve played one “southern” role in the past, which was Hugh Dorsey in the musical Parade with Exit Left Theater in Holland. But that show was set in Georgia and required the thick, southern drawl of that place and time. Mid-state North Carolina is an entirely different place, and the speech patterns are more of a combination of far-southern drawl and mid-south (Kentucky/Tennessee) twang. Speaking and singing in the correct dialect requires work or you fall back into your normal, learned patterns.

What was your introduction to Bright Star? 

As with many shows, my introduction to Bright Star was upon finding out that LionHeart was doing the show. I had not heard of it prior, so when they started talking about putting it on the stage I searched out the music and listened to it. What I found in the music was an incredible story, beautiful music variety, and that message of hope that I noted earlier. The show is incredible and I’m excited to be able to be a part of it.

Do you have a favorite moment, line, “and/or” song in the show?

Wow… this one is tough. It has changed multiple times since we first started working on it. The song “Asheville” has been a favorite since the beginning because of the harmonies in the music and the combination of strength and weakness that the character shows in the lyrics. I also love the arc that the writers created between Jimmy Ray and Alice – the playfulness at the beginning, the blossoming love in the middle, and the true bond between the two of them in the second act.

What makes LionHeart’s production of Bright Star special?

I’ve said this a hundred times before and I’ll say it again here: community. LionHeart, being the small-town theater that it is, is ENTIRELY volunteer-run. No one is paid, and that is unheard of even in other community theater circles. At least the orchestra, the director, the assistant director, and sometimes a couple of others are typically provided some kind of reimbursement. LionHeart is truly a community coming together for nothing but the love of storytelling, spending time together, and this beautiful art form.

If given the chance to see something else or Bright Star, why should people come to see your show?

My true answer to this question is “find a way to see both”. Theater is an incredible art form that is never the same twice, from one theater to another or even one performance to another. Being a part of that is a treasure, both for the performers and for the audience. People should come see Bright Star because it isn’t a well-known or often-staged show so there aren’t a lot of opportunities, and because it can be an eye-opening and heart-changing event. Any opportunity to grow oneself shouldn’t be missed, and this has that.

Why should people come to see LionHeart’s production of Bright Star? 

This cast and production team is putting a lot of energy, sweat, and heart into making this a story that the audience can connect with. The presentation will be truly beautiful, and not something that you want to hear about afterward and find out that you missed.

What would you say to someone with no prior knowledge of Bright Star to get them to see the production?

Steve Martin is one of the storytelling geniuses of our times. His comedic, stage, and musical work are all truly fantastic, and this show brings all of that together along with the same skills of Edie Brickell. While bluegrass music isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, the drive that a banjo and a fiddle can give a song is simply incomparable to anything else and fits this story absolutely perfectly. And if that isn’t enough, who can’t use a little boost of hope? This story will likely bring you to tears more than once, but tears help you grow, learn, and make tomorrow better.

Bright Star opens Next  Friday, November 3rd, and runs until November 11th at Grant Fine Arts Center located on the campus of Grant High School at 331 East State Street in. Grant, Michigan.

For tickets and more information, visit lionheartproductions.org and click on "Current Production". Tickets are currently available online and in person on the day of show.

Connect with Lion Heart Productions for complete info on Bright Star on Facebook LionHeartProductions, on Twitter at @LionHeartProd7, on Instagram at @lionheart_productions, and online at www.lionheartproductions.org.

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