Photo courtesy of Set Directors Society of America
The Little Women Legacy
By: Svara S. ‘28
As we move into November the Upper School’s musical, Little Women, is in full swing. Along with Gilman students, Bryn Mawr’s theater company and crew have dedicated many tiring hours of rehearsals in preparation to perform Bryn Mawr’s school musical on November 1st, 2nd, and 3rd.
Little Women The Musical is a stage adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel Little Women. The story follows the four March sisters - Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy - as they pass from childhood to womanhood. Through her writing, Alcott empowers young women to strive for independence despite being constrained as women. The book has left its legacy on generations of women, as seen through the multiple film adaptations created over the years, and the many schools that include Little Women in their English curriculum.
There is an undeniably rigid and short time frame between the start of school and opening night. Ms.Cardall, Bryn Mawr’s Upper School theater director and public speaking teacher, has had the pressure on her to portray the classic book while leaving room for her personal spin. Her past experiences with the musical and the book, along with the spring play of a Bryn Mawr student, ultimately led Ms.Cardall to choose Little Women as the Bryn Mawr musical due to her appreciation for the universal experiences each character undergoes.
⦍ “Despite being in Concord Massachusetts in the late 1800s, there were some real growing up struggles to grapple with, and some real challenges that women have that still exist today,” ⦎
- Ms.Cardall
However, as someone who grew up with the book, Ms.Cardall was disappointed with the representation of other characters, such as Laurie or Professor Bhaer, in the movie and musical adaptations. In preparation, she read the book once more, with a determined spirit to present the characters in a way she believed was accurate, and would pay homage to what Louisa May Alcott would have wanted. With some tweaks, and close attention to the detail of the staging, time period, costumes, fabric, and character, the Upper School theater director has created her own interpretation of Little Women - which is for you to enjoy!
When asked, Ms.Cardall wants to leave the audience with a sense of appreciation for Louisa May Alcott and the barriers she broke for women, as well as the frontiers she created in literature.
⦍ “Sisterhood can mean much more than your biological siblings. Whatever your family looks like and whatever sisterhood looks like to you, I just hope that people come away with how important that is, especially in hard times. ⦎
- Ms.Cardall
Ms. Cardall has had great successes with her past shows at Bryn Mawr, and has hopes of leaving an equally impactful mark with her interpretation of Little Women The Musical premiering this Friday, November 1st.