Distant Thunder
2001 · Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site
Distant Thunder began, as so many of Ken Bradbury's shows did, with a letter. Writing to his collaborator Robert L. Crowe, Ken sketched an idea for "an evening of montage — snippets, short scenes, dramatizing the various New Salem characters." Rather than march an audience through one all-encompassing plot, he imagined a show built around the personalities of the people who lived in New Salem, Illinois, during Lincoln's time — with Lincoln himself "just a part, but not the major part." It would be, in his words, "a history show without all the usual encumbrances," reaching for the universal themes of frontier life: the hardships faced, the ordinary work of raising a family and making a living, and the larger currents moving through the young nation.
What grew from that letter was an original musical of New Salem, peopled by Thomas Reep, the Rutledge family, preachers and storekeepers, mule men and mentors — the whole living village that surrounded the young Abraham Lincoln. The townsfolk open the show caught mid-motion, "caught in time," each frozen in the act of doing something important before the music releases them into their stories. Throughout, Bradbury's original songs carry the dramatic weight, from the haunting "Song of the Rain" to the rousing "Talisman" number and the children's anthem "Be What You Wanna Be."
The production ran two summer seasons at Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site, opening in 2001 and returning in 2002, with a studio recording made of the score. The journals and cast notes that survive from the rehearsal process show a director deep in the craft — chasing a third harmony part late into a recording session, coaxing pace into a long stretch of dialogue, and reminding his actors again and again to "be DOING SOMETHING IMPORTANT."
Songs
A complete song list was not preserved in the available papers, but the rehearsal notes and journals name several numbers from the score:
- Song of the Rain
- Be What You Wanna Be
- Talisman
- Buckskin Mary (song)
Cast
- Thomas Reep — Don Schneider
- Abraham Lincoln — Matt Snodgrass
- James Rutledge — Brad Barnes
- Rev. Allen, Preacher, Ensemble — Nathan Carls
- Mule Man, George Warburton, Ensemble — David Edwards
- Sam Hill, Denton Offutt, Majors, Ensemble — Dan McLaughlin
- Harrison, Peter Cartwright, Guthrie White, Ensemble — Bill Bauser
- Jack Armstrong, Rev. Johnson, Ensemble — Eric Thomas
- Uncle Jimmy, Mentor Graham, Herndon, Ensemble — Tom Pickett
- Singing Boy, Green, Hound, Young Ferguson, Pudge, Ensemble — Travis Deaver
- Mrs. Rutledge, Marie, Ensemble — Phyllis Hoover
- Mrs. Barnett, Ensemble — Linda Schneider
- Mrs. Berry, Ensemble — Stephanie Smith-Jarratt
- Sophie, Ensemble — Parker Carls
- Sadie, Ensemble — Carrie Carls
- Mrs. H. Onstott, Ensemble — Jodi Heitbrink
- Margaret, Dam Woman, Felicity — Kristy Beauchamp
- Mary McNeely Spears, Ensemble — Sylvia Burke
- Mrs. Wilson, Mrs. Roil Clary, Mrs. Onstott, Ensemble — Sandra Carls
- Hannah Armstrong, Ensemble — Leona Edwards
- Stella, Hound, Ellie, Ensemble — Mandy Bergschneider
- Alexis, Pup, Ensemble — Eleanor Braasch
- Young Buckskin Mary, Willa, Pup, Stella — Carly Joehl
- Libby, Pup, Ellie, Ensemble — Madeline Braasch
- Ellie, Pup, Stella, Ensemble — Logan Joehl
- Duffy, Young Onstott, Ensemble — Joe Cates
- Ensemble, Swing — Darin Harms
- Ensemble, Swing — Jackie Clinton
Production Notes
- Written by: Ken Bradbury and Robert L. Crowe
- Director & Orchestrations: Ken Bradbury
- Vocal Direction: Bill Bauser, Jr.
- Production Coordinator: Brenda Joehl
- Costume Builder: Susan Braasch
- Wigs: Diane Hoots
- Venue: Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site
- Seasons: Summer 2001 (closing August 26, 2001) and a return engagement in Summer 2002
A CD recording was produced of the show's songs. The second season met an unexpected setback when cast member Don Schneider broke his ankle in a parachute-landing accident, requiring adjustments to the staging.