Young and old will enjoy the special effects and imaginative story told in “James and the Giant Peach,” said Alicia Hall, who’s directing the children’s play for the College of Lake County.
“It’s definitely engaging and interesting for all ages,” said Hall, who has more than 25 years of experience acting, directing and teaching theater, including at CLC.
“I am drawn to the writer, Roald Dahl, and I love the story,” Hall said. “It’s compelling how James is able to find security and family in a completely untraditional way. I love that journey that he goes through to find belonging, and how beautifully imagination is embraced through Dahl’s work.”
Sixteen actors ranging in ages from 12 to 25 will portray about 31 characters, she said. Those characters include James, his two cruel aunts and a horde of insects including a centipede, earthworm, grasshopper, ladybug, spider and glow worm.
“That’s his nontraditional family,” Hall said. Supporting roles include sharks and cloud men, she said.
“It’s really very magical and fantastical. There are some really cool lighting effects and sound that all add to this magical world. And magic is a big part of it. You have bugs that are coming to life. We’re really embracing that atmosphere of magic. The costuming is incredible. We have some neat effects with costumes I don’t want to give away.”
She praised Christopher Welsh, 12, of Round Lake Heights, who plays James. “He’s terrific. He has such an ease and professionalism about him. He’s an absolute pleasure and dream to work with. He has so much skill at age 12.”
Hall said she is working with Christopher to help him portray James as a resourceful, resilient boy who maintains a positive attitude in the hands of two awful women. “He’s just a loving warm character,” she said.
Dahl wrote the book in 1961 about James, who crawls into a giant peach to befriend a variety of insects, each with its own quality and characteristic.
“For instance, we have the centipede, who is solid and rugged and earthy, and at the same time, he likes to lift everybody up. He knows how to turn a situation around and make everybody feel really good,” Hall said.
“We have the earthworm, he’s blind, he’s very nervous, he gets uncomfortable very easily. He has a tendency to look toward the negative in the situation and gets really worried really easily. We have a spider, on the outside that looks fairly intimidating and cold, but as we get to know her, she’s really maternal and really loving.”
Looking beyond someone’s physical attributes is a big theme in the play, Hall said. “You have these insects people consider to be pests. They turn out to be the most wonderful people in the play, even though they’re not people. We see that underneath something that looks hairy is something warm and very loving.”
Hall said when directing children’s plays, she’s careful not to talk down to children and not to “dummy things down. Children get it. They have a really good understanding of people.”
Sheryl DeVore is a freelance writer.
“James and the Giant Peach”
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When: Sept. 29-Oct. 2
Where: James Lumber Center for the Performing Arts, 19351 Washington St., Grayslake
Tickets: $6
Information: 847-543-2431; www.clcillinois.edu/