April 27, 2016 at 1:53 p.m.
Complex character in Nicolet Players' 'Outside Mullingar' a welcome challenge for Schwartz
Complex character in Nicolet Players' 'Outside Mullingar' a welcome challenge for Schwartz
For Anna Schwartz, acting on the Nicolet College Theatre stage is right up there near the top.
"I just love it," said Schwartz, who is currently rehearsing for "Outside Mullingar," her tenth production as a member of the Nicolet Players.
"When you're up on the stage, you're working with the other actors to create this whole new world, this whole new reality. Playing pretend as a grown-up is great fun and is something that really suits me."
The play, a romantic off-kilter comedy, is set in rural Ireland and tells the tale of the neighboring Muldoon and Reilly families who are in a hot dispute over a sliver of land that has their very farms hanging in the balance.
Schwartz plays Rosemary Muldoon, the rather determined and strong-willed daughter with her own agenda.
"She's definitely one of the more complicated characters I've ever played," Schwartz said. "There are many different sides to her. She can be very tough and confrontational, which is not like me at all. It's definitely a challenge, but I've been waiting a long time to play a character like this with so much depth."
If anyone is up to the task, it's Schwartz, said Nicolet College Theatre Director Jim Nuttall.
"It's one thing for an actor to hit their marks and recite their lines and another entirely to understand the emotion of the character and to really bring that character to life," Nuttall said. "Anna gets it. She understands how to put together all of the subtleties to really make a character come alive."
Another challenge for Schwartz is the changing nature of Rosemary as the play unfolds. For years, even decades, Rosemary has had fond affection for her neighbor Anthony Reilly, and he the same. But the rivalry between the two feuding families has kept them apart.
It is only when they reach their early 40s, as they portray in the play, do the two realize you only get one life and no one lives forever.
Other cast members include Dan Brekke, who plays love interest Anthony, Mark Batell as Anthony's father Tony Reilly, and Lisa Johnson as mother Aoife Muldoon.
Of the dozens who auditioned for the play, Nuttall picked these four because of one thing: chemistry.
"Without a doubt, the chemistry between people is one of the most important things I look for," he said. "They have to click and they have to know how to listen and feed off each other to build their characters. This cast knows how to do that."
Even with nine previous plays under her belt and countless hours of rehearsal time with the cast members of Outside Mullingar, Schwartz said she still expects a healthy level of nervousness as she waits backstage on opening night.
"I remember my first play and I was incredibly nervous," she said. "My heart was just pounding, my hands were shaking. It's not that intense anymore. I've come to realize that it's perfectly natural to have some level of nervousness before a play."
How does she handle the jitters today just before the lights come up and she takes to the stage?
"You really just have to talk yourself into it," she said. "Tell yourself, 'You can do this.' What else are you going to do, turn around and run out the door?"
Performances of "Outside Mullingar" in the Nicolet College Theatre are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 6 and 7, and Thursday through Saturday, May 12 to 14. Sunday performances May 8 and 15 are at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $7 for students and seniors and $9 for the general public and can be ordered online at nicoletlive.com or by calling (715) 365-4646.
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