THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 7, 1996 TAG: 9606070453
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY JENNIFER MCMENAMIN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MANTEO LENGTH: 100 lines
Charles Reber attended his first production of The Lost Colony in 1948 when he was 5 years old. He was wrapped in blankets and sat under a mist of bug repellent, sprayed over the audience with a huge fog machine just before showtime.
The storyline of America's longest-running outdoor drama hasn't changed much over the years, but Reber has.
When the 53-year-old Nags Head native arrived Wednedsay at the Waterside Theatre on Roanoke Island for the 56th year of the colorful production, he was wearing a light-weight running suit, black Nikes and a black hat.
Reber, whose mother played a fishnet mender in the original production, said Wednesday night's show was the best yet.
And he should know.
Reber has seen the performance at least one or two times every year since he was 5.
``It's a big 10,'' he said with a wink, moments after the final scene of the Dare County Night production. ``It was real moving and real exciting. I believe they're going to get a real good showing.''
Told from Waterside Theatre, an amphitheatre built on the spot where 117 men, women and children set foot more than 400 years ago, The Lost Colony traces the hardships and eventual disappearance of the first English settlement in the New World in 1587.
The Lost Colony has attracted more than 3 million visitors, bringing more than $122 million into Dare County as one of the top visitor attractions.
Dare Night is considered the firstpreview production, and county residents get in with proof of residence and non-perishable food donations. Another preview was held Thursday night, and tonight the season formally gets under way, with Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. planning to be in the audience.
Dare County onlookers - many of whom have seen dozens of performances - agreed that the scenery and the cast's garments have become more lavish.
``The costumes are more colorful and there's more scenery,'' said Doris Schultz, a Buxton resident who has seen the play a couple of times. ``And the queen's dress looks extra beautiful.''
``It's more elaborate. Looks more like England,'' said Reber, who compared the Plymouth and London scenes to photographs he's seen of Great Britian.
The show's director of 11 years, Fred Chappell, said this was the artistic and production staffs' intent.
``For the past six years, we've really covered the costumes to get them up to snuff. This year, we took another look at the scenic elements. It's like a huge, living organism. You can never coast.''
Concentrating on the queen's garden scene, Chappell hoped to weave a magical web around the light-hearted party, using the ambience of A Midsummer Night's Dream as inspiration.
William Ivey Long, the production designer, secured a piece of cloth used in a ceremony for Prince Charles as a backdrop to the queen's throne.
Research was done on the characters' costumes - to the point that even the queen's undergarments are from the proper period and the high collar of her dress was based on grid designs of actual clothing worn by Queen Elizabeth.
The result was an enchanting garden party illuminated by torches, sparklers and candle-lit lanterns, drawing cries of ``Awesome!'' from children in the audience. Huge red banners emblazoned with gold lions surrounded the throne. And the queen herself - clad in a golden-beaded black velvet gown with a huge black butterfly whisk collar - simply exuded majesty.
``It's a pretty heavy costume,'' said Lisa Bridge of Manteo, who wears the gown as the first new Queen Elizabeth I in a decade. ``But now that I get to sit down a lot on my beautiful throne, it's not as bad.''
Next year's improvement project will be the Native American props, Chappell said. ``I've already heard some crew members talking about going to some museum or another to research that,'' he said with a chuckle.
Some things, though, remain the same throughout the years, Reber said. Babies still cry when the Indians attack. The Indians get even. Audience members are wowed by the boat - which holds the Guinness Book of World Records title for the largest prop in the world. And everyone anxiously awaits Old Tom ``because he stays the same.''
But to Brendan Medlin, who plays John Borden for the fourth straight season, it's more than props and characters that remain unchanged.
``The thread of the show,'' he said. ``It's still the heart and soul of the community with the spirit of the ghosts that walk around here.'' ILLUSTRATION: History comes alive - entertainingly
DREW C. WILSON
The Virginian-Pilot
The first dance scene of The Lost Colony drama, above, opens with
Chief Uppowac atop a totem pole being worshiped by his tribe. Later
in the production, right, Indians present a gift of sod to the newly
arrived colonists. This season marks the 56th production of the
drama, which will run through Aug. 23 at the Waterside Theatre on
Roanoke Island.
LOST COLONY INFORMATION
WHERE: Waterside Theatre at Fort Raleigh on Roanoke Island.
WHEN: Nightly except Saturdays through Aug. 23 at 8:30 p.m.
COST: $14 for adults and $7 for children 11 and under; senior
citizens (over 65) and groups of 20 people or more are eligible for
discounts. Sundays are special nights for children; admission is
$3.50.
BOX OFFICE: The box office is open Sunday through Friday from 10
a.m. to 10 p.m. The office closes early on Saturdays at 6 p.m.
Tickets are usually available through the day of the performance
except for holiday shows. Visitors, however, are encouraged to call
in advance to reserve tickets on a credit card.
The theater is handicap accessible. by CNB