By Katrina Dawn
Bluffdale Arts Advisory Board has brought much of the community together through their production of The Scarlet Pimpernelplaying in South Hill Middle School in Riverton, Utah. Based on the classic novel written by Baroness Orczy, The Scarlet Pimpernelfollows Sir Percy Blakeney (Jonathan Cooper) and his wife Marguerite St. Just (Emma Tolman Cooper) in the height of the French Revolution. Unbeknownst to anyone, Blakeney and his group of friends create the league of the Scarlet Pimpernel; they secretly travel from their homes in England to France in order to best the French Republic and save the innocent condemned to “Madame Guillotine”. Meanwhile, Citizen Chauvelin (Andy Nielsen) has traveled to England and to Marguerite, in hopes of attaining her help in uncovering the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
As mentioned above, The Scarlet Pimpernel has a community working together as a whole. The cast consists of all ages from toddlers to young at heart; there are multiple families participating in this production including the leads Jonathan and Emma Cooper: What better way to have a couple in love than to have an actual couple? Unlike other productions, the involvement doesn’t stop there. Bluffdale Arts also includes a 23-piece orchestra directed by Shaun Davis, swords designed and constructed by Ben Garner with Alliance Metal Works, stage combat by Shayne Hiatt, and wax works done by Linda Raddatz.
Each character within this production of The Scarlet Pimpernel is unique with their own personalities. J Cooper makes the transition from English fop to serious Pimpernel seamlessly: there are elements, such as period slang, that are always present but clearly overexaggerated for the image of the dandy Percival puts on. Within Percy’s band of men, Elton (Nate Hallett) and Ozzy (Colby Sims) stand out as the most outlandish of the lot.
Nielsen’s Chauvelin is both ruthless and human. Chauvelin is still infatuated with Marguerite, and his political and emotional need for her is clear, but his determination for justice and serving the Republic of France is greater. On the flip side, E Cooper’s Marguerite has a real distaste for Chauvelin’s ways. In their scenes together, the opposing objectives create an intriguing tête-à-tête.
The hard work of all involved in this production is clear. The directing team of Eric Peterson, Kelsha Peterson,and Laura Garner should be pleased with what they have accomplished. It should be noted that the orchestra can obscure the view of the stage, those with smaller children should sit either further back or to the left of the stage for best visibility.
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a good choice for a family evening, whether for entertainment or a teaching moment in doing what is right against all odds.
Bluffdale Arts Association presents The Scarlet Pimpernel. Book and Lyrics by Nan Knighton, Music by Frank Wildhorn.
South Hills Middle School, 13508 4000 W, Riverton, Ut 84065
March 28-30, 2019 7:30 PM, March 30 1:00 PM
Tickets: $8-10
Bluffdale Arts Advisory Board Facebook page
The Scarlet Pimpernel Facebook event
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