The heart of ‘Little Women’: director, lead actress share their insights

Lipscomb’s Department of Theatre 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,” Baker said. “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. 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,” Baker said. “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 said, adding that she 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. 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.

“She’s a lot like me in a lot of ways,” her said. “I’m a lot like her: very stubborn, headstrong and got her head in the clouds a lot of the time.” 

Baker sees herself in two characters.

“I think that I’m probably really a blend between Jo and Meg,” Baker said. “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 Theatre from April 4-13 and was sold out or close to it each performance.

Featured image courtesy of Lipscomb Theatre.