In the Green

‘In the Green’ a modern retelling of the Hildegard von Bingen story, is at the PNC Arts Annex this weekend. A forceful cast with a strong message, brings the deep and bold tale to life. One of the stars of the show ALLIE HAINES met with me to talk about the play….and the interview went something like this!

JS: Thanks for meeting with me to talk about this undertaking at PNC! Tell me about ‘In the Green!’

AH: It’s an enigma really. It’s a trip inward. You meet some very strong women faced with some deep traumatic experiences. But rather than searching somewhere around them, the search within themselves for strength and answers. It’s a fantastic musical by Grace McLean! And we are premiering in this region.

JS: So I understand it focuses on Saint Hildegard’s story. So it’s a religious tale? Or….

AH: Not really…no. It’s a spiritual journey. It’s a journey to healing and it’s a relevant tale even today. It focuses on women in a patriarchal world, finding their voice. Their inner-peace.

JS: And it takes place in the medieval time frame? 

AH: I think it is devoid of time. It’s really beyond the typical why, what and when of musical retellings. I don’t feel this show spoon feeds any particular emotion…rather it lets you unwind your own insights through it’s widely arrayed songs and visual lessons.

JS: So, I know a bit about the Catholic religion. I understand the plight of Saint Hildegard (viewed as the founder of scientific natural history) and her mentor of sorts, Jutta von Sponheim. Are they the focus of the show itself.

AH: Yes, and no. I mean many know of the story and the Hildegard and Jutta…their bond as those who truly sought a community of  women who were musical, artistic and free to express themselves. Along this journey, each has to find a way to deal with their own personal trauma. (PSA-there is reference to sexual assault in the show.) You see this healing through music and puppetry. It’s beautiful. It’s unique. It’s timeless.

JS: And you have a great cast to work with…and a new director?

AH: Adelyn Helms, Danielle Ruddy, Melissa Hall and Rachel Hertenstein are the other 4 women who make up the 5 woman cast. They are so strong and we have forged a sisterhood that has been the core energy of this piece. They are amazing! As for our director, Garret Young, he knocked it out of the park. Interestingly, he was the ‘male’ on set, and everyday he listened to us as we explained how these things feel to us as women. He would encourage us to go with those feelings.

JS: That’s what a great director does!! And this is no easy piece to direct….

AH: No, not at all. This is the kind of show that lends itself to personal insight and reflection. It may be one of the most important pieces we have done at TheaterLab. The feel is collaborative and intimate. It’s cutting-edge and yet, relatable.

JS: I am so intrigued by this!! I love when theater gets ‘artsy.’ Y’ know?

AH: Yes. Exactly. We poured our time and energy into this production. More-so, we poured our hearts and our souls into it as well. It’s really an important piece.

JS: I just love talking to you Allie! Y’know to this day, whenever we talk about La Cage people still say ‘the girl that played Jacqueline stole the show!’ It kind of makes me mad….BUT, it shows you have a range! And you are truly a gift to Dayton’s theater community!

AH: Awww….thanks Josh! Can’t wait to work in a play with you again soon! Now, get your tickets to ‘In The Green!’

JS: Got ’em!

***The Director’s Note About ‘In the Green’ follows below. 

For tickets and more information got to https://www.daytonlive.org/events/in-the-green/

Showtimes at the Arts Annex are:

Friday 1/20 at 8pm.

Saturday 1/21 at 2pm and 8pm. 

 

Director’s note: In late Fall of 2020, I became aware of a curious new musical. It was written by and starred Grace McLean, who delivered a jaw-dropping performance in Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 just a few years prior. It recounted a story about a woman who locked herself away because the world became a place where she could no longer thrive and grow. The traumas that were visited upon Jutta von Sponheim by the world of men grew too much to bear, and she was no longer safe in the world outside. The only possible answer to her problems was isolation.

Jutta’s hard-nosed piety serves as the perfect obstacle to our central character, Hildegard von Bingen, as she seeks to unpack her own trauma while being locked away against her will for 30 years. History remembers Hildegard fondly as a patron saint of music, literature, and medicine in the Catholic tradition. Even in her fractured mental state, we see her natural curiosity about connecting in harmony with the world around her, despite being trapped inside a sparse prison cell. The central action of the play becomes thus: what happens when an unstoppable force, divinely attuned to the natural world, meets an immovable object in one Jutta von Sponheim?

We cannot know what these two visionary women actually discussed or endured during their years locked away together, but McLean has imagined a world that is both wildly fantastical and blisteringly real. Our characters explore and celebrate the power of the divine feminine apart from patriarchal society. Their delicate harmonies are juxtaposed with primal, guttural grunts as the women confront the harsh realities of their pain.

This play serves as an important reminder of the healing power of connection, which remains as important as ever in our world today. Throughout our characters’ healing conversations, I hope audiences can gain some perspective about their own difficult situations. After all, as Hildegard von Bingen herself once wrote:

“We cannot live in a world that is not our own, in a world that is interpreted for us by others. An interpreted world is not a home. Part of the terror is to take back our own listening, to use our own voice, to see our own light.”

No matter where you are on your own journey, even if you are terrified of the monumental task set out before you, I hope you feel emboldened to seek out your own light.