Bright Life Players present play with timeless message

The Bright Life Players 2020 will present “Another Chance — The Story of Jonah the Prophet,” an original musical written by former Orrville resident Denny Miller.

Proceeds from the production will go to OHuddle, a student mentorship program that serves more than 400 students in Wayne County.

“This play gives us a great chance to witness to people about a timeless message people need to hear,” director Margaret Leatherman said. “And we’re thrilled to be able to help a wonderful organization like OHuddle.”

The play is based on the biblical story of Jonah and the whale, in which Jonah is sent by God to prophesy the destruction of Nineveh but tries to escape the divine mission.

Jonah or Jonas, in the Hebrew Bible, is a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the eighth century BCE. He is the central figure of the Book of Jonah, in which he is called upon by God to travel to Nineveh and warn its residents of impending divine wrath. Instead, Jonah boards a ship to Tarshish. Caught in a storm, he orders the ship’s crew to cast him overboard, whereupon he is swallowed by a giant fish.

Three days later after Jonah agrees to go to Nineveh, the fish vomits him out onto the shore. Jonah successfully convinces the entire city of Nineveh to repent but waits outside the city in expectation of its destruction. God shields Jonah from the sun with a plant but later sends a worm to cause it to wither. When Jonah complains of the bitter heat, God rebukes him.

Miller has adapted this story for the local stage. Miller was previously the drama director at Orrville High School and formed the Orrville Community Theater 14 years ago.

“This one is kinda special,” Miller said. “It’s been three years in the making.”

The inspiration Miller drew from might seem a little unlikely at first. Miller said he was listening to the music of the ‘60s group, The Turtles, when it struck him. “Every song, I could somehow connect to the Jonah story,” he said.

In his first score of the musical, Miller used The Turtles’ songs, but when he investigated the copyright and licensing requirements for using the songs, he soon found out this was too costly.

“I realized that if I wanted to continue with the story, I’d just have to write it myself.”

So Miller began writing. “I put pen to paper, and God just led me,” he said. “It definitely was inspired by God.”

When he was ready, Miller called on his connections from the area theater and put together a reading at his house. “It got positive feedback; we even added a couple songs,” he said.

The next step for Miller was to get it on the stage.

“Bright Life Players said they would do it as their big spring production, and the pieces just fell into place,” Miller said.

Miller said he believes that in recent years there has been more of a call for faith-based contemporary theater.

“This is another chance to get out God’s message. It is timeless, and people need to hear it,” he said. “Jonah wasn’t convinced God knew what he was doing and questioned him. This sometimes happens to us because we’re all human, right?”

Auditions for the production started in December. The cast comprises 22 actors. Triway junior Austin Wile plays Jonah.

“Austin is very talented,” Leatherman said. “He has acted in the drama program at Triway, and this is his third show with Bright Life Players.”

Shannon Swinehart plays the shipmaster, and John Wood, Kyle Sindlinger and Jonathan Carpenter play sailors.

Melody Kirby tackled the job of designing and assembling the whale. The final prop was made of papier-mache by students at Wooster Christian School.

Costumes and choreography are done by Lorimae Reynolds, along with help from Nancy Kearney and Samantha Hurst.

Ron Leatherman and Joe Villigas manage the lighting for the show.

Leatherman said, “We have a very dedicated group of people. We’re so excited to be the first production company to put this on.”

Show times are Friday, July 17 and 24 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, July 18 and 25 at 7 p.m.; and Sunday, July 19 and 26 at 2:30 p.m. at the First Church of God at 1953 Akron Road in Wooster.

Tickets are $10 for adults, $7 for youth (12 and under) and $30 for a family four-pack.

Due to social distancing guidelines, seating capacity will be limited. In order to guarantee your seat, it is strongly recommended you preorder your ticket. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the website at www.brightlifeplayers.org or call 330-465-6430.