Bay Street Theater's next production is Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird," adapted for the stage by Aaron Sorkin, an Academy Award and Emmy Award winner, and directed by Stephen Hamilton. It will open next Thursday and run through Nov. 29.
Set in Maycomb, Ala., in the 1930s, "To Kill a Mockingbird" centers on Atticus Finch, an attorney called upon to defend Tom Robinson, a Black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and is widely considered a classic of modern American literature.
Sorkin's adaptation did not have a smooth path to Broadway, due to a lawsuit from Lee's estate asserting that it was unacceptably different from the novel. The suit was settled, however, after nine months.
Among the structural changes, the trial is introduced early on and it returns at intervals. (In the book, the trial doesn't begin until the halfway point.) According to Jesse Green's 2018 review in The New York Times, intercut with courtroom scenes is "information and characters the novel frontloaded, but just on a need-to-know basis." Also, the narrative is split among Finch's daughter, Scout; his son, Jem, and their friend Dill.
In addition, Sorkin expands the roles of the two main Black characters -- Calpurnia, Atticus's housekeeper, and Robinson, the defendant, giving them more opportunities to speak up about racial injustice than they have in the novel.
" 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is one of those rare works of literature that generations of readers have carried with them," said Scott Schwartz, the theater's artistic director. "Aaron Sorkin's adaptation gives audiences the opportunity to experience this remarkable story in an entirely new way, brought to life by actors in the shared experience of the theater. That journey from the page to the stage is at the heart of what makes this production so exciting for us."
In addition to performances for the general public, the production is part of Literature Live!, Bay Street's educational program that brings professionally produced works of classic literature to middle and high school students at no charge, connecting the works they study in the classroom with the immediacy of live performance.
Hamilton noted the continued relevance of the story's themes. "There has never been a better time in this nation's history for a re-examination of Harper Lee's 'Mockingbird,' an essential chapter in the American cultural narrative. And from Aaron Sorkin's point of view, the conversation about the nature of evil, and the limits of individual morality is as pressing today -- perhaps more so -- than they were in 1960."
The co-founder of Bay Street Theater in 1991 with Emma Walton Hamilton and Sybil Christopher, Stephen Hamilton was its executive director for 17 years, overseeing the development and production of over 50 plays. They included Jon Robin Baitz's adaptation of "Hedda Gabler," which went on to Broadway, and Sandy Wilson's "The Boy Friend," which was directed by Julie Andrews. He also produced new work by Baitz, Paula Vogel, Lanford Wilson, Cynthia Ozick, Terrence McNally, Marsha Norman, and Joe Pintauro, among others.
As a director, his credits include Arthur Miller's "All My Sons," with Alec Baldwin and Laurie Metcalf, at Guild Hall's John Drew Theater, and the world premiere of Ira Lewis's "Gross Points," starring Baldwin, at Bay Street. He also helmed the theater's two previous Literature Live! productions, "Fahrenheit 451" and "A Streetcar Named Desire."
Hamilton's acting credits range from Off Broadway to regional theater, film, and television, at Lincoln Center Theater, Circle in the Square, the Actors Studio, Soho Repertory Theater, and Ensemble Studio Theatre.
The play's 12-member cast features six Bay Street regulars and six new faces. J. Stephen Brantley, who plays Atticus Finch, appeared in last year's production of "Fahrenheit 451" and in "Of Mice and Men" in 2015. Matthew Conlon (Judge Taylor), who also starred in "Fahrenheit 451," made his Bay Street debut in Joe Pintauro's "Men's Lives," the theater's first production.
Joe Pallister, who played Bob Ewell in the theater's 2014 production of "To Kill a Mockingbird," returns as Sheriff Heck Tate. His other Bay Street credits include "The Crucible," "Of Mice and Men," "The Diary of Anne Frank," and "A Raisin in the Sun."
Erin Margaret Pettigrew (Calpurnia) has performed in "Macbeth" and "A Raisin in the Sun" at Bay Street. Other stage roles include Rosaura in "Life Is a Dream" at Baltimore Center Stage and June in "It's Not a Trip It's a Journey" at Roundhouse Theatre in Bethesda, Md.
Hope Hamilton is no stranger to Bay Street, and not just because she is Stephen's daughter. She made her professional stage debut there in 2021 as Sir Percival in "Camelot" and played Pippin in "The Great American Mousical" in 2022. She has also appeared in "Hitler's Tasters" at Guild Hall and "Eco, the Musical" at the Southampton Arts Center.
Sag Harbor's Matthew Schiavoni, who appeared in "Frankenstein Follies" at Bay Street, has also performed in "Ripcord" at the Hampton Theatre Company, "Our Town" at Marvel Theater in Carlinville, Ill., and "Stupid F**king Bird" at Main Street Studios in Fredonia, N.Y.
Newcomers to Bay Street are Kendra Foster McBride (Scout Finch); Ryan W. Schaefer (Jem Finch); Judah J.A. Fabre (Tom Robinson); Mitchell Bolen Cetuk (Bob Ewell); Kirk Koczanowski (Mr. Cunningham, Link Deas, Boo Radley), and Michael Santora (Horace Gilmer, Dr. Reynolds).
Public performances will be held on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. There will be no show on Nov. 26. Tickets for public performances are $44.99 to $65.09. The theater's lobby bar opens an hour before showtime.
School groups interested in attending a performance, starting as early as Monday, can call 631-725-0818 ext. 107, or email Bethany Dellapolla at [email protected].
