A spoonful of whimsy: Spokane Children’s Theatre ends 78th season with ‘Mary Poppins’

It’s not often you see a chimney sweep company, Evergreen Chimney Sweep, to be exact, sponsor a theatrical production, but when the show is “Mary Poppins,” it just makes sense.

Spokane Children’s Theatre’s “Mary Poppins” opens with Bert (Leland Hargrove), a man who does a little of this, a little of that, introducing audiences to the Banks family, who live on Cherry Tree Lane in London. Parents George (Evan Sperry) and Winifred Banks (Norah Spilker) have trouble caring for their often naughty children Jane (Sienna Miller-Thomas) and Michael (Henry Swanson), especially after their latest nanny Katie Nanna (Nora Flanagan) quits.

Cook and maid Mrs. Brill (Zen Cheney) and house boy Robertson Ay (Tobias Beeghly) feel like they live in a madhouse, while Jane and Michael set about writing an advertisement for their new nanny. George has other ideas about who should mind the children next and rips up their paper and throws it into the fireplace.

Just as suddenly as the pieces of paper disappear, Mary Poppins (Darby Shuster) arrives with the advertisement the children wrote, now back in perfect condition, and takes charge of the household.

While Poppins works to keep the children in line as she introduces them to the wonders of the world, George and Winifred deal with their own problems at work and at home.

The musical also stars Bella York, Anastasia Ingoldby, Kaya Murphy, Kiya Nixon, Robert Aronson, Sawyer Hahn, Kaya Koch, Emily Chartier, Emily Compogo, Emerson Hargrove, Matteus Brelia-Paulson, Isabelle Williams, Jasmine Rosenburg, Jenalee Hernandez, Sophia Winings, Lauren Jensen, Piper Allendorf, Addison Freeman, Charlotte Campbell, Elinora Ginn, Hope Galster, Jayvion Hernandez, Madison Sperry, Ramona Murphy and Skye Bludau.

The show, which runs from Friday to June 8, is directed by Michael Barfield, music directed by Melissa Gren and choreographed by Natalie Krusenstjerna.

“Mary Poppins” features music and lyrics by Richad M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, additional music and lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, and a book by Julian Fellowes. It’s based on the “Mary Poppins” books by P.L. Travers and the 1964 Disney film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.

Spokane Children’s Theatre Executive Director Tanya Brownlee reached out to Barfield, who has spent a number of years directing children’s theater shows and school shows, and asked if he would be interested in directing “Mary Poppins.”

Barfield had seen the 1964 film and watched Spokane Civic Theatre’s production of the musical in 2018, but that’s about as far as his connection to “Mary Poppins” goes. Even still, he was up to the challenge of “finding (his) way into the story after the fact rather than before the fact.”

“I approached it not so much from a perspective of ‘I love this stuff. What can I do to elevate it?’ but rather ‘How can I think outside the box and show it in a way that’s never been seen before?’ ”

After starting rehearsals, Barfield deliberately chose not to rewatch the film or seek out recordings of other productions of the show, relying solely on the source material and working to find different ways to tell the iconic story.

The stage adaptation differs from the film in some ways anyway, so Barfield felt he had a natural go-ahead, and the support from his creative team, to break the mold of how the characters might look or behave.

When it came to auditions then, Barfield ultimately chose actors who were most up to try different things.

“I went with the most versatile actors that I could find that I think could take direction and do it all,” he said.

Though Spokane Children’s Theatre productions often feature at least a few adults in addition to the child actors, this production features all young performers, ages 8 to 18.

With so many beloved songs, including “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Jolly Holiday,” Barfield said he was most intimidated to set “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” to stage, but with how seamlessly the song came together, he believes it will be a standout moment of the show. He also praises the performers for the tap work they put in for “Step in Time.”

“ ‘Supercal’ is our most ambitious in terms of every character on the stage doing the choreo and then ‘Step in Time’ is not as many kids, but it’s the most ambitious choreo and steps and legitimate tap that we’ve pulled off,” he said. “Both of those, when I watch, I feel proud of the kids for doing something really, really hard.”

Barfield said his overall vision involved realizing that “Mary Poppins” is a story of whimsy, playfulness, suspension of disbelief and make believe. When working with choreographer Krusenstjerna, Barfield told her not to feel tied to the production handbook which details choreography that can be, and is typically, paired with each song.

“Think of different fun ways to tighten things up,” he said. “Part of the choreo is not only thematically resonant but also practically resonant for us. Not just to play into the whimsy, but the more playful you are, the less stressed out and burnt out the dancers.”

Barfield’s whimsical vision also extended to the costumes, and he worked with costume designer Neva White on ways to “camp it up.” “Mary Poppins,” he said, is very grounded in 1910s Edwardian London but then breaks away from that realism and into a world where nannies fly and statues come to life.

“Once you have all kid actors and you have a 15-year-old playing a parent, you already have to suspend your disbelief and open up the possibilities,” he said. “There’s going to be a lot more color and sparkles and razzmatazz in the costumes.”

Though excited to bring as many playful elements to the show as he can, Barfield is also aware of the limitations the Spokane Children’s Theatre stage presents. The theater, for example, doesn’t have the rigging necessary to facilitate some of the “magical moments” the show is known for, like flying scenes.

But Barfield approached the production with the mindset of working with the theater, not against it.

“From the get go, my thought process was ‘How can we use our limitations to enhance our creativity and make something really special?’ ” he said.

Barfield also has a fun way to handle the show’s many set changes – from the streets and rooftops of London to the Banks children’s bedroom to a city park and more. Rather than try to hide the set changes by closing a curtain each time, Barfield has a crew of chimney sweeps that facilitates scene changes while also interacting with the audience.

“We’re trying to embrace people being able to see the seams of our production and make that part of the narrative that we’re trying to tell,” he said. “The sweeps are putting on a show for the audience and bringing them into this world.”

With many young performers naturally eager to be playful on stage, Barfield said a lot of fun character moments came from him getting out of the way and letting them try silly things. If an adlib or physical choice worked, it made its way into the show.

Barfield took a similar “Let them be” approach to the show’s more serious moments featuring the Banks family, going from distant at the beginning of the show to reconnected thanks to Poppins and her magic by the end, saying he feels the more out of their head an actor is, the better.

“Having these conversations and discussing and intellectualizing ‘Why is your character changing?’ tends to lead more towards intellectual and mental work that doesn’t come through as well as working on physicality and living in the moment,” he said.

“Mary Poppins” is the final show of Spokane Children’s Theatre’s 78th season. Barfield said the opportunity to be part of such a milestone is a great honor that he hopes he lives up to. He also hopes this production will give aspiring performers the nudge they need to take to the stage.

“I really hope that a lot of kids and families come see it,” he said. “My hope is that when they see the young cast and what they’re able to accomplish, it’s inspiring to them to try theater themselves or encourage young people to try auditioning for a show sometime in the future. I like to say ‘It’s a show for kids, by kids.’ ”