I am so excited to be at Huntington University, directing an all-American classic such as Thornton Wilder’s Our Town. This show has such a pivotal theme, one that has been my personal mantra over the past decade, and even more so over the past five years--and that is to live for Christ by not being so blindsided by spending our time in things that bring personal glory, but by being intentional in the every moment. To be present where you are, when you are there, and to slow down and take in the conversations and people with you.
In 2016, I lost my father to cancer. It was a hard experience, losing your first parent, and in that we ended up moving so that we could purchase a home that would allow my mom to live with us. In 2019, I found out that I had a bad mitral valve and it would need surgery. I ended up having open heart surgery to repair the valve in February of 2020 and came home one week before everything shut down for COVID-19. In April 2021, my youngest sister died of a heroin overdose and then in June 2021, my eldest sister died of cancer. In September 2021, I had the second half of my thyroid removed and lost the last of my singing voice, thus ending my career as a musical theatre performer. In August of this year, my niece (my eldest sister’s daughter) committed suicide, leaving behind two daughters under the age of 5. It’s been a hard few years for my family. Yet, the promise we cling to is that all this suffering produces a hope and joy we’d never know otherwise. That in the darkest of moments, we have each other. I think about the line in Act 3, where Emily screams at her mom, “Just look at me!” Isn’t that what we all want in this lifetime? For those we love to see us and love us for who we are and where we are at...
Friends, tomorrow is never guaranteed. We have no idea when the Lord will call us home. I hope that you will find this production as a reminder to open your eyes and see those who are in it, while they are there, before it’s too late. To love, regardless of agreement, and to be present in their today. Because who knows if you get tomorrow.
Mary Beth Frank
Director, Our Town
