The National Players, the oldest classical tour company in America, comes to the Columbia Theatre for one night only to perform John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 7:30 p.m.
“The National Players travel to 38 different states and perform for a variety of audiences and have for about 64 years,” said Clay Hooper, the associate artistic director of the National Players. “They are based out of the Olney Theatre Center in Maryland.”
The National Players will be performing in Hammond as part of their 2011-12 season: Tour 63. Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” and Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew” are the two works being presented on this tour.
“It’s a book by Steinbeck written back in the time of depression when migrant farmhand workers travelled across the West to go looking for jobs,” said Hooper.
In “Of Mice and Men,” Lennie Small, a large and learning disabled man depends on George Milton, a small and clever man, for leadership and safety. Lennie and George share a dream of owning their own farm.
Lennie, however, does not know his strength and his love of petting soft things leads the pair to negative consequences.
“They get pummeled, and it forces George to make a difficult decision about Lennie,” said Hooper.
Mat Leonard, who plays Lennie, has participated in many performances. Some of his latest roles include Meathead in “Fallujah” (Kennedy Center/ACTF), Stanley Kowalski in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” Joe Pitt in “Angels in America: Millennium Approaches” and St. Peter in “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.” Leonard recently graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Boston University.
Michael Pettey, who plays George, is returning to the National Players after playing Agate in “Waiting for Lefty” at the 49th St. Theatre in New York City. He last played Dogberry in “Much ado About Nothing” on the National Players’ Tour 61. Pettey earned a B. F. A. in Acting from the University of Central Florida.
The National Players’ version of “Of Mice and Men” will be different from other performances of this piece in the past.
“It’s not as realistic and naturalistic as in the novel,” said Hooper. “It’s much more theatrical. You’re aware that the actors are acting, and it makes you more aware of the content of the performance. It’s transparently theatrical. It’s a very sparse, very dark production that hits home with its psychological impact.”
Tickets for the highly anticipated performance are on sale at the Columbia Theatre Box Office, which can be reached at 985-549-4371, or on their website at www.columbiatheatre.org.
For additional information on the National Players and their upcoming performances, go to www.nationalplayers.org.