UNL Opera presents regional premiere of 'Far from Heaven'

The Whitaker family in "Far from Heaven" includes (from left) Janice (Susan Twiehaus), Frank (Trey Meyer), Cathy (Patty Kramer) and David (Noah Trumble). "Far from Heaven" will take place Feb. 24-26 in Kimball Hall. Photo by Justin Mohling.
The Whitaker family in "Far from Heaven" includes (from left) Janice (Susan Twiehaus), Frank (Trey Meyer), Cathy (Patty Kramer) and David (Noah Trumble). "Far from Heaven" will take place Feb. 24-26 in Kimball Hall. Photo by Justin Mohling.

The Glenn Korff School of Music will present the regional premiere of “Far from Heaven” Feb. 24-26.

Performances are Feb. 24-25 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 26 at 3 p.m. in Kimball Recital Hall. Featuring music by Scott Frankel, lyrics by Michael Korie and book by Richard Greenberg, “Far from Heaven” is directed by Alisa Belflower, coordinator of musical theatre studies, and conducted by Tyler Goodrich White. The piece is adapted from the 1982 Todd Haynes film of the same name.

“Far from Heaven” is an operatic musical that transports us to 1957 to meet the Whitakers, a nearly perfect young couple with a beautiful home in the suburbs and two young children. They are living the American dream, or so it seems. Issues desperately hidden in the 1950s still surface today, and these issues cause the couple’s life to unravel as they try to hold the seams of their dream together.

“Audiences will get to know a family—a husband and wife and a daughter and a son, who on the outside, have the most desirable, perfect life,” she said. “And even when everything appears perfect, you know it’s not.”

Belflower is eager to bring this production to Lincoln audiences.

“My criteria for picking a show is to do something that isn’t being done by the local community theatres, so that I’m giving something to the community and giving something to our students,” she said.

The production features 30 actors with many actors playing more than one role.

“Every single person has really important things to contribute,” Belflower said. “Everybody has a well-developed character and something significant to do on stage. It’s inspiring to watch people try in hard circumstances. I know audiences will identify with somebody onstage.”

She is proud of her cast and the way they have taken to the production.

“More than any other show I’ve directed in the 17 years I’ve been here, this cast believes in this show like no other experience I have had,” Belflower said. “They are so excited to get to tell the story and to be these characters on stage. And the cast has bonded with each other more than any cast I’ve had in the past.”

Patty Kramer, a second-year D.M.A. student from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, plays Cathy Whitaker.

“Cathy Whitaker is the picture-perfect 1950s wealthy suburban house wife and mother,” Kramer said. “She is a wickedly intelligent, strong, compassionate and loving woman admired by all for her social charm and humility. She does everything in her power to be and appear to be the perfect housewife, all while subtely harboring progressive and liberal views on equality, particularly black equality. She is a woman dealt a tough deck and, without knowing how, learns to adapt and persevere.”

Susan Twiehaus, a sophomore music major from Lincoln, plays Janice Whitaker, the daughter of Cathy and Frank Whitaker.

“She is a wide-eyed young girl who loves ballet almost as much as she loves to tease her brother, David,” Twiehaus said. “She always tries to win the attention and praise of her parents and longs to be a beautiful woman just like her mother.”

Twiehaus is looking forward to playing the role.

“I am looking forward to performing the role because I get to embrace my inner child,” she said. “Janice has such a lovely energy and youth about her that is so much fun to share.”

Jeremy Blomstedt, a senior theatre performance major from Palisade, Nebraska, plays Dr. Bowman, a psychiatrist who treats Frank Whitaker.

“He’s a genuinely good doctor who is true to the Hippocratic Oath: ‘First, do no harm,’” Blomstedt said. “Although Bowman isn't onstage for very long, I'm very proud to portray this character. As an actor, I feel that it's a gift to embody a person like this—someone whose life struggles were terrible, but identifiable and relatable for everyone in the audience. I hope to do this character justice.”

Belflower said the story is timely.

“It’s set in 1957, which is exactly 60 years ago,” she said. “And in 1957, the characters are dealing with the unrest between Russia and the United States. They’re dealing with racism issues. They’re dealing with issues of gender roles for females and female empowerment issues. If you think about all those things, those are things we are still dealing with.”

Twiehaus agreed that the story resonates today.

“The extent of the issues faced in this time period shocked me,” she said. “Although we are no longer in the 1950s anymore, unfortunately, some of the themes are still present with what’s going on in the world today. This show, in some ways, helps us to remember not to repeat history.”

Blomstedt said he grew up in the 1970s and 1980s and was raised by parents who know first-hand about American society during the 1950s.

“I wasn’t surprised by the world of the play, whether we’re talking about the good or bad parts of that time,” he said. “But I do think that for my younger castmates, there were likely several things they simply never knew. I hope audiences come out of ‘Far from Heaven’ thinking about how far we’ve come from those less-enlightened times, but still knowing that we have many more miles to go, and that we must go forward together.”

Kramer said many aspects of the setting in the 1950s have surprised her.

“As part of our preparatory work, all the performers were given a ‘Far From Heaven’ glossary made by our director Alisa Belflower with pictures, articles and definitions of everything in the show, from Nat King Cole and how popular he would’ve been during the time to pamphlets on ‘perfect house wife expectations’ to recipes to newspaper advertisements,” she said. “The amount of detail that has gone into this production is beyond anything I’ve ever experienced. The year of 1957 is like an alien world to us now, yet the issues portrayed in the show of race, gender roles, sexual orientation and class are just as relevant and important today as they were sixty years ago. Being a part of this show is like being in a paradox: you realize how much our country has changed, yet at the same time we haven’t changed enough.”

“Far from Heaven” is designed by graduate designers from the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film, including scenic design by Lisa Haldeman, costume design by Rebecca Armstrong and lighting design by Maxx Finn.

“They are doing a very professional job,” Belflower said. “The set design is being supervised by J.D. Madsen and the lighting design is being supervised by Laurel Shoemaker, their professors in the Carson School. I could not be more pleased with their work. They have done a magnificent job.”

Belflower said the music in “Far from Home” is beautiful.

“The music is really sumptuous,” she said. “It has different flavors, according to what’s going on. There are some sweeping string orchestral moments that are operatic in their scope of the expression of music and amplifying the emotions of the characters in a way that fills the heart to brimming, and the music is lovely and romantic at other times. And then the numbers with the children are very spunky and up tempo. And then there are times when the characters are struggling, and the music is really heartbreaking.”

Blomstedt also likes the music.

“The music is fantastic,” he said. “Not only the score, but the songs. The main theme, ‘Autumn in Connecticut,’ as sung by Patty Kramer, who’s portraying Cathy Whitaker, is merely one highlight.”

Twiehaus is looking forward to “Far from Heaven” opening for audiences.

“I love this production because we get to share an amazing story on stage,” she said. “We have such a talented group of individuals in this production who have invested their time and energy to make this a truly inspiring production. I can’t wait to see everyone there.”

Kramer said audiences should expect to be moved by the production.

“You may not leave the theater with a big smile on your face or a bounce to your stride, but you will leave having experienced a real story with real emotions,” she said. “You will leave the theater with a great sense of what is truly important in life and why. And finally, you will leave the theater feeling a strong sense of human connection and love. Is there anything greater in life?”

Belflower said in the early rehearsals, she would only call the people who were in each scene. Though the cast had read the whole story, by the time they did their first run-through, they hadn’t seen a lot of the production.

“The first run-through is usually kind of what we call a ‘stumble-through’ because you haven’t done it before without stopping. I was so encouraged because my cast laughed, they cried—even though they knew what was going to happen,” she said. “I had to say, ‘Pull yourself together, you’re on!’ I think if it could move them so much in such a rough state, it speaks to the power of the show. We are working as hard as we can to give a spectacular performance.”

Belflower promises audiences will be glad they came.

“It’s never been done in this area before, so they don’t know the show, but if they come, they’ll never forget it,” she said. “I promise that they will be glad they came to see something that maybe they weren’t already familiar with because it’s kind of unforgettable. The story is extremely moving, and I think it’s one reason the cast is so invested.”