The heart of Little Women: director and lead actress share their insights

Lipscomb’s theater department brought Little Women to the stage. Director Beki Baker shared her behind-the-scenes knowledge and passion for the production.

The decision to produce Little Women comes from a place of love for Baker. “I read Little Women when I was young, and so I’ve always loved the story,” the director shared. “I was actually going to direct it in 2020. It was going to be the fall 2020 musical, and of course, we all know what happened that year with the pandemic and things. So it got put on the back burner, so finally, five years later, the right opportunity came up to do it.”

Behind the scenes, Little Women is a team effort. A student crew manages stage operations, set and lighting design and costume production. Baker also casts understudies and swings—performers who memorize multiple roles and must be ready to step in at a moment’s notice. Baker shared that the biggest challenge is the timing. “I think that the biggest challenge is probably the short amount of time to put the show together. We innovated a creative solution where the cast was working on the music before we even began rehearsals.”

While the production process comes with challenges, the cast also brings their own connections to the story. Téa Doherty, who plays Jo March, says that she’s had a love for Little Women since she was a kid. “I just remember watching the Little Women movie with my sister and seeing ourselves as Amy and Jo.” Doherty also hopes to be an inspiration to her audience. “I think the most rewarding thing is knowing that the audience has been affected by what you do and that they’re changed by the story.”  Doherty said, “I am able to show them there are different ways to be a girl than just this idea of feminine.”

As the production comes together, Baker and Doherty find connections to the story’s characters. For Doherty it’s her character Jo March. “She’s a lot like me in a lot of ways,” Doherty said. “I’m a lot like her: very stubborn, headstrong, and got her head in the clouds a lot of the time.”  Baker believes she is a mixture of Jo and Meg March. “I think that I’m probably really a blend between Joe and Meg. Meg represents the more romantic, domesticated side of womanhood, and Jo represents the career-driven, passionate, sort of buck-societal-norms side. Just as a working mom and a working professional, you know, I’m trying to be a little bit in both worlds.”

Little Women was shown in Lipscomb’s Shamblin Theater from April 4th through the 13th, and was sold out or close to it each performance.

Featured image courtesy of Lipscomb Theater.