Healing On Stage -- Virginia Tech, Tragedy, and Theatre

The cast of How To Eat Like A Child pose at a local ice cream parlor.

Though nearly three days have passed since the shooting spree that left thirty-three Virginia Tech students dead and dozens more wounded, the international news media still crowd this quiet South-Western Virginia town. The presence of inquisitive reporters, intrusive cameras, and incessant media speculation do little to help speed the healing process. Life can not return to normal in Blacksburg, not for months - perhaps years; but the process of grieving, healing, and moving on has already begun. Within the media spotlight or in the dignity of anonymity, the New River Valley is trying to climb back to its feet.

Sadly, the process will not be an easy one. Today's publication of the spree-shooter's manifesto highlights the enormity of the task before this mountain community. Based, at least in part, upon the contents of the shooter's statements, police authorities have requested that "[local] schools... remain closed for the remainder of the week." The ensuing snow-day-like-scramble for child-care amidst clear and warm April sunshine serves as an unwelcome reminder of events which will not soon be forgotten.

Yet in some ways the community is moving on. Restaurants are once again opening their doors and seating patrons. Offices and businesses return to work, and on Thursday evening, a local theatre group will open its spring season with How To Eat Like A Child, a comical play on the innocence and eccentricities of youth. Though the light hearted antics of How To Eat might seem surreal against the backdrop of horror this week as brought to Virginia Tech, the musical is already lifting spirits.

Parents of the show's 20 child-actors and actresses point to the regimen of practice and the sense of purpose and community as a source of strength and comfort in recent days. Joe Trice, producer for How To Eat Like A Child hopes to bring that same strength and comfort to the rest of his community in the coming weeks. You're all this community has Trice said, addressing the show's cast and crew. We need this show. The community needs this show.

Neither Trice nor the cast could have anticipated the challenges and expectations the show would face when production began several months ago. Certainly the task and responsibility of helping to rebuild in the wake of the April 16 shootings is both profound and daunting. The cast, however, remains enthusiastic. The announcement of the local school closings came at the end of a long dress rehearsal; and despite the grim reasons, the cast's response was filled with childhood exuberance. For a moment at least, these twenty children forgot the fears and terrors of the past week and celebrated a day off from school, a moment with friends, and a job well done.

If they can share that with their neighbors, perhaps the community can begin to heal.

How To Eat Like A Child opens Thursday at 7:00 pm. Tickets and showtimes are available at www.trisoul.com

Even if you've grown up and lost your effervescence, it doesn't mean you can't have fun. It just means you need lessons

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