From left: Melva Michaelian as Wilbur and Deanna Congo as Charlotte in the Pleasant View Players upcoming production of “Charlotte’s Web.” Performances are March 20-22 at the First Congregational Church in East Longmeadow.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo
EAST LONGMEADOW — “Charlotte’s Web” is more than a children’s story, especially when brought to life by the Pleasant View Players, a theater group whose company brings a lifetime of experiences to the familiar tale.
With all but one of the actors in their 60s, 70s and 80s, it’s a lot of lived experience, even if some of this season’s players are new to treading the boards.
“Someone said to me that you sound like the theater version of the Young@Heart Chorus,” joked director Fred Sokol about the age range of his actors during an interview about the group’s upcoming performance.
The Pleasant View Players will present the theatrical version or E. B. White’s “Charlotte’s Web,” adapted by Joseph Robinette, March 20-22 at the First Congregational Church, 7 Somers Road, East Longmeadow. Performances take place at 7 p.m. on March 20 and at 3 p.m. on March 21 and 22. Admission is $5 per person.
The beloved tale of a pig and the wise spider who befriends him and saves him from the butcher, sacrificing her life in the process, is the third work to be presented by the Pleasant View Players. The group’s first production was “Don Quixoite,” performed at the East Longmeadow Senior Center in May of 2024, followed by a production of “Back Story” at the First Congregational Church in the spring of 2025.
Sokol said the inspiration for choosing “Charlotte’s Web” as the group’s third play came from an unexpected source.
“I heard my wife reading the story version to my two granddaughters and thought, that’s wonderful,” Sokol said, adding listening to the classic tale inspired him to look for a theater adaptation of the story.
His search resulted not only in a theatrical adaptation, but also a review of a Washington, D.C., semi-professional theater group that had mounted the play to rave reviews.
“The review said, ‘This is a children’s show, but it clearly appeals to audiences of all ages,’” Sokol shared, adding he immediately saw the play as a way to expand the group’s audience base.
“I wrote in the playbill that people from 3 to 103 will appreciate it,” Sokol said.
But any play is only as good as its cast, and Sokol had certain actors in mind for his lead characters, Charlotte the spider and Wilbur the pig. Deanna Congo, at 40-something the youngest member of the troupe, was Sokol’s choice for Charlotte. She may be familiar to audiences, having appeared in both “Don Quixote” and “Back Story” with the players.
For Wilbur, Sokol tapped Melva Michaelian, another veteran of the Pleasant View Players’ three productions and a former student of his when Sokol was a professor at Asnuntuck Community College in Enfield.
Michaelian said Sokol called her last summer to say he had an idea for the next production that he wanted to discuss with her.
“We met at Starbucks and he said I have an idea, but I want you to be one of the leads,” Michaelian said. He then pitched her playing the part of Wilbur.
“I asked, ‘Why did you think of me when you were thinking of the pig?’” Michaelian shared. Sokol sent her the script, which she read, then called her son, an actor, for advice and support.
“I said, ‘I don’t know if I should do this,’” Michaelian shared. “He said, ‘Don’t think of it as a play about a pig, think of it as playing emotions.’”
Sokol said from the beginning he saw “Charolette’s Web” as two plays in one, with one focusing on the emotional friendship between Wilbur and Charlotte that is “poignant and touching” and the other on the comedy between the two goofy families who at different points own Wilbur, the Arables and the Zuckermans.
George Newman, who portrays John Arable, heard of the Arable clan and father to Fern, the young girl who saves the runt, Wilbur, said this was his second play with Sokol, though he and the director have a long history, going back to when Newman, a carpenter, assisted with set construction for Sokol at Asnuntuck. Newman also appeared in “Back Story,” and admitted doing the monologues in that production was a different experience than learning how to react to other actors during scenes.
“It’s a little bit more of a challenge,” Newman joked, adding he’s been drawing from both his own life experiences, and from memories of his own dad, to develop the character of John Arable.
“A part of it reminded me of my father, the kind of story we have, how he would respond and not respond to the kids, and I try to incorporate that,” Newman said.
Mary Ellen Lowney, who plays Martha Arable, is also a returning thespian, having played a role in last year’s “Back Story.” At first Lowney said, she was reluctant to take a role in “Charlotte’s Web.”
“Aren’t we too old to do a children’s play?” Lowney said she asked Sokol when he pitched the part of Martha to her. Now she said she’s working hard on her lines and has invited her two grandsons, who live in East Longmeadow, to see the play.
“This is fun,” Lowney said of working on “Charlotte’s Web.”
This is also the second play for Peter Benjaman, who is cast in the role of Homer Zuckerman, Fern’s uncle and Wilbur’s temporary savior. Friends with Sokol for decades, the acting bug struck when he watched the Pleasant View Players production of “Don Quixote.”
“I said if you do something else, I’d like to be involved,” Benjamin shared. “Back Story” was his first play.
Karen Dardanelli, who portrays the wisecracking Templeton the Rat in the production, is a newcomer to the Pleasant Valley Players, though she too knew Sokol from his time at Asnuntuck. Dardanelli said Sokol approached her about playing the part of Templeton.
“I love my character; I love the physicality of it. There’s all different levels to it,” Dardanelli said. Recently retired, she’s also enjoying the chance to meet new people.
Beth Wadden is returning to the Pleasant View Players after a hiatus for health reasons. Previously in the production of “Don Quixote,” she’s playing a number of small parts in “Charlotte’s Web,” including a journalist, a photographer, a fairgoer and a spectator.
“These little parts are fun, very fun,” Wadden said.
“I was a reading teacher and I love ‘Charlotte’s Web,’” Wadden continued. “I really think that there is something in the story for every age group. It’s not just a children’s story, It’s very touching.”
