Centerstage with: Rorem, Shields of ACU's 'Little Women'

You are:

∎ Layla Rorem: A sophomore musical theater major from Plano

∎ Caleb Shields: A junior directing theater major from Colorado City.

We've seen you before in: She was in the ensemble and an understudy in last season's musical "The Light in the Piazza," then was Andrina, a mersister, in last fall's homecoming musical "The Little Mermaid." Shields was an ensemble member of "The Little Mermaid," his first stage role at ACU. "Little Women" will be his first speaking part since he was in high school, he said. He was the understudy for Grimsby, Prince Eric's manservant in "Little Mermaid."

Roles in "Little Women":

∎ Rorem: She is Jo (short for Josephine, a name that she does not like), one of the four March sisters and the most spirited. "She is a contradiction," Rorem said. "She talks about, 'I have to change the world. I am going to be the change. I am going to tell all these stories and the world is going to be shaken by me.' But as soon as things begin changing in her own life with her family and with her friends, she is like, 'No, I want to go back. It want to go back in time. It can't all change.' She is so change-resistant with her relationships. She can't change anything around her. She likes it just the way it is. That contradiction is pulling her every which way." Is Rorem anything like Jo? "I always related to Jo," she said, laughing. "She can't be put in a box. People are trying to put her in boxes and she decides she can't, so she can't be anything. I think in my life, I've given up if I don't fit specifically what people tell me to." ACU has allowed her to be herself, first "a child of God and beyond that, I am Layla. And that is so many things," she said. "There are so many moments when Marmee looks Jo straight in the eyes and says, 'You are Jo.' That's been a really good reminder for me every rehearsal."

∎ Shields: He is Laurie, the next door neighbor who befriends Jo but in the story marries another of the sisters. "He is a very special character. He is someone who doesn't fit the mold, especially for this time period," Shields said. "He has such a warm, giving heart and a child-like notion of how the world should be. But unlike Jo, in the end he is more resigned to some of the expectations laid on him. He definitely is not a normal man of that era, and he struggles with that. He wonders why that can't be and can't fit, especially, his grandfather's expectation. But he does not want to." Even with a time jump in this show, he still is unlike other men of the day.

What you've learned in your role:

∎ Rorem: "First, Rorem said she was familiar with "Little Women" coming in. Her mother, she said, read the stories as she was learning to become a mother. "She modeled her motherhood after Marmee," she said. "I grew up with all the adaptations." Then, when she was 16, she played Jo in a high school performance." Though the adaptions are different, she has one line that she repeats: "Mr. Brooks is behaving dreadfully and Meg likes it." "I think a big theme in this process has been trust. Trusting myself and my fellow actors and our lovely director, Dawne. Everyone in their role has been so loving and bold with their choices. I've been letting myself exhale and live moment to moment, and enjoy that. Stop psychoanalyzing every moment and making sure it's perfect. Trust the other people that they know what they're doing and have fun, and I know what I'm doing and God has given me these tools for a reason. Find balance in that."

∎ Shields: Shields also is familiar with the story. This is a lesson Dawne has been nailing into me: I am not one thing." ACU theater has not pigeon-holed him, he said. He wants to direct but "every single rehearsal Dawne has been reminding me that I am just as much an actor as I am a director. And to trust my instincts. I can jump on the multiple facets of who I am in my art and craft." Since it has been awhile since he had a speaking role, Shields has had to bone up on things such as projection.

What the audience will get out of this production:

∎ Rorem: Rorem said what 's most different about this adaptation is Act 2, adding more detail to Meg becoming a mother. "A lot of adaptations don't talk a lot about Meg after she gets married," Rorem said. There is more with Jo and Laurie. "And it ends before a lot of things happen in the book," she said. For example, Laurie and Amy don't get married on stage. There is not a lot of closure, she said. So, audiences will get a familiar story delivered differently. It also provides more historical context. "We touch a little bit more on the politics of the Civil War," she said. And gender roles. "It's not the warm, cozy 'Little Women.'" Still, audiences will see the hope and love and familial bond. What it means to love and appreciate other people. The end is still very hopeful."

∎ Shields: Audiences will walk out thinking, 'Wow, I don't think I've seen 'Little Women' done that way.' There are some loose ends that don't get tied. Anyone who knows the story of 'Little Women' knows we just don't get there in our play. It does leave audiences with a bitter sweetness. It definitely does have that hope. When I get to the end of the show, I always have this feeling of, everything has changed. That is something that can be hard and not everyone enjoys. In the end, it's a story about being OK with change and looking forward. Sometimes, you can't really see what's going to happen next but having that hope in the end is really helpful."

What's next for you:

∎ Rorem: She already has landed roles in "Almost, Maine," a spring student-directed show at ACU. She will have a tech role, maybe props, in "Godspell," she said.

∎ Shields: He likely will work the box office for "Godspell," but has another project in the works. He is directing a psychological thriller that he hopes to land in the April ACU FilmFest, he said. It's called "The Method," and is about an actor taking method acting - when an actor becomes emotionally deep into a character - too far. In this case, the character is a killer.

Greg Jaklewicz is editor of the Abilene Reporter-News and general columnist. If you appreciate locally driven news, you can support local journalists with a digital subscription to ReporterNews.com. 

If You Go

What: "Little Women," directed by Dawne Meeks

When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday

Where: Fulks Theatre, Williams Performing Arts Center, Abilene Christian University campus

Tickets: $25. There is a Feb. 18 dinner show. Call 325-674-2787 or go to acu.edu/theater for tickets or information.

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Centerstage with: Rorem, Shields of ACU's 'Little Women'