When choosing plays for The Augusta Players’ “girl power” season, Scott Seidl knew “The Color Purple” would be an explosive opener.
What the director didn’t expect was for the show to “wreck” him every night since the first rehearsal.
“I’ve done this for 50 years. I’ve never been affected this deeply by anything, and I’ve done a lot of shows, in a lot of places, at a lot of different levels. This is remarkable in the biggest sense of the word,” said Seidl, of “The Color Purple” which will be performed Oct. 3-5 at the Imperial Theatre. For ticket informatio, go here.
The musical stage version is based on Alice Walker’s novel that received a 1983 Pulitzer Prize. It has also been transformed into two motion pictures including the 1985 Oscar-nominated film with Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey.
With the powerful story line and musical score, the play already packed a punch, but Augusta adds the magical ingredient.
“This is the right cast at the right time because I don’t think it would be what it’s going to be if it was not for this configuration of people,” said Shantelle Wheeler, who plays Celie.
Seidl echoed Wheeler.
“The story is powerful, but it’s the right people at the right time at the right combination and in the right place in their life to do it,” he said.
For this show, Seidl isn’t doing as much directing as he is “editing.” The actors have the lines, the emotions, the essence; he’s there to tweak things and ensure they convey those feelings to the audience.
“The Color Purple” has not only impacted Seidl, but Wheeler as well.
“It mirrors my life a little bit. With my own history, it’s very resonant,” she said.
Portraying Celie even in rehearsals has brought healing to her, she said.
While many directors and performers say a show is not to be missed, Seidl emphasized it even more.
“This show is the kind of show that if for some reason you don’t get here, you’re going to regret it; you’re going to regret missing this show,” he said.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years. She’s won multiple Georgia Press Association awards and is the recipient of the 2018 Greater Augusta Arts Council’s media award. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
