BENTON — High school students still read it. TV movie channels still show it. And community theaters still present it.
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, has become an American classic. The book, published in 1960, received a Pulitzer Prize that same year. The 1962 film adaptation of the book was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three, including a Best Actor Oscar for Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch and Best Adapted Screenplay for Horton Foote.
The Royal Players and Everett Buick GMC will present To Kill a Mockingbird, dramatized by Christopher Sergel, Thursday through April 26, and again April 30 through May 3, at the Royal Theatre, 111 S. Market St. in Benton.
Performances will be at 7 p.m. on Thursdays through Saturdays and at 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets — $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $5 for students — are available online at theroyalplayers.com. For reservations, call (501) 315-5483. Large groups are encouraged to reserve for the Thursday-night performances, if possible.
To Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of the young Scout Finch, who lives with her father, Atticus, an attorney, and her older brother, Jem, in Maycomb, Alabama, in 1935. When Tom Robinson, a black man, is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman, Atticus represents Robinson and puts his own family in danger.
“It’s pretty popular on the community-theater circuit,” said Frank O. Butler of Little Rock, director of the play, explaining that the local production more closely follows the book than the movie. “It has a lot of name recognition,” he said.
“It’s still very timely. It’s about discrimination. It’s about treating people equally, about having mutual respect for each other,” Butler said.
“Even though [the play is] set in 1935 Alabama, the message conveyed in To Kill a Mockingbird still resonates today — that in order to truly understand a person, you have to put yourself in their shoes for a while,” Butler said. “The lesson that you shouldn’t judge people strictly by their color is still fighting to be heard in the streets of Ferguson, Missouri. The fight to not be persecuted because you’re different was recently taken to the Capitol steps of Indiana and here in Arkansas. As Atticus strives in the 20th century to make changes to people’s perceptions of other people, we continue to strive in the 21st.
“There’s a reason why To Kill a Mockingbird is still a viable classic, in the literary and film curriculums. It shines a ray of hope on the notions that people can look to their neighbors for help, whoever they may be, and that even though understanding each other may not solve all the problems of the world, knowledge in that understanding will, at least, equip them with the tools to try.”
Harold Dean of North Little Rock plays Atticus Finch. Dean is a clinical social worker at the Cancer Institute at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock.
“I am so excited to have the opportunity to play Atticus,” Dean said. “I have been waiting for this for a long time. It is a dream role.
“I am originally from Alabama, so it has a special meaning for me. When I learned when the production dates were, I saw that it conflicted with a workshop that I could have attended for my work. But I opted to audition for the role of Atticus. I thought I might not ever have the opportunity again.”
Dean has appeared with several community-theater troupes throughout central Arkansas.
Emily Broach of Benton, the 11-year-old daughter of Tomisha Broach, plays Scout Finch. Emily is a student at Caldwell Elementary School in Benton and has been in several productions with the Royal Players.
“I’m excited to be playing Scout,” Emily said. “It’s a great opportunity to do a more serious production. I’ve had a lot of lines to learn, but I’m OK with it.”
Matthew Glover of Benton, the 15-year-old son of Mark and Melissa Glover, plays Jem Finch. Matthew attends Benton Junior High School and has appeared in several local productions as well.
“I had never read the book before this,” Matthew said of To Kill a Mockingbird. “I read it and thought, ‘This is the best book ever.’”
Matthew’s mother, Melissa, plays Jean Louise, the adult Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird, and is the narrator of the play.
The father-son team of Jeremy and Jack Clay of Sheridan appear in the play as well. Jeremy Clay, who teaches drama at Bryant High School, plays the despicable Bob Ewell. Jack, who is a sixth-grader at Sheridan Middle School, plays Dill, a childhood friend of Scout and Jem.
Paul Johnston of Benton plays the dual role of Nathan and Boo Radley. Johnston played Constable Warren in the Royal Players’ production of Our Town.
Cassie Lovell of Benton, who recently appeared as Zenetta in the Royal Players’ production of The Music Man, plays Mayella Ewell.
Terry Terrell Goins Jr. of Bryant plays Tom Robinson. Goins is a graduate of Bryant High School and appeared onstage as Pepe in the school’s production of Westside Story. This is the first time Goins has appeared with the Royal Players.
Other characters are as follows:
• Heck Tate, played by Tim Sopel of Benton;
• Calpurnia, played by Y. Machelle Smith-Flint of Little Rock;
• Maudie Atkinson, played by Donna Johnston of Benton;
• Stephanie Crawford, played by Tracy Courage of North Little Rock;
• Mrs. Dubose, played by Susan Dill of Benton;
• Reverend Sykes, played by Aaron Calvin of Benton;
• Judge Taylor, played by Jim Troillett of Benton;
• Mr. Gilmer, played by Randall Earnest of Benton;
• Helen Robinson, played by Jaketa A. McClure of Benton;
• Walter Cunningham, played by Daniel Lieblong of Alexander; and
• The clerk, played by Tom Windham of Benton.