She was born to play this role. What else could actress Kat Baylor possibly think when she has identified with Anne Shirley ever since she was a youngster — and ever since a grade-school friend told her she was just like the chatty, over-the-top character?
“My friend and I were reading ‘Anne of Green Gables’ at the time,” Baylor said of the fifth-grade memory. “And finally she turned to me and said, ‘Oh my gosh — you are Anne. You never stop talking.”
Baylor laughed at the memory — especially since one of her recent dramatic portrayals was the non-speaking Helen Keller in “The Miracle Worker” a year ago. She’s hoping her portrayal of the classic orphan character will leave this weekend’s audiences talking when the local Passion for Acting Theatre Company presents the dinner theater production of “Anne of Green Gables” Friday through Sunday at Willow Leaves of Hope.
The stage play is based on Lucy Maud Montgomery’s 1908 heartwarming novel about an 11-year-old girl who comes to live on an ancestral farm called Green Gables in a small Canadian town with two aging siblings.
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Director and mom Connie Kiviniemi-Baylor admires her daughter’s stage talent. But she hardly considered the actress an automatic pick for the huge, lead role.
“I just wanted to make sure she could really pull it off,” Kiviniemi-Baylor said.
But Baylor is a person who jumped in at the last minute recently during Cummins Inc.’s 100th anniversary when extra Columbus architectural tour guides were needed — and she built an easy rapport with bus loads of visitors.
The director, though, distributes praise among all her cast, including some acting newcomers, who put together the show in a speedy four weeks — including a period when construction work at Willow Leaves meant that rehearsal was moved into the outdoor heat. The cast hardly broke a sweat, according to Kiviniemi-Baylor.
“I’ve had an absolutely amazing group to work with,” she said.
Not to mention a creative one. When Baylor needed the trademark red pigtails to play Anne, she went shopping online — and found the perfect wig on Amazon that fit just right. But there’s more to the look than just the hair.
“I’ve worked on the makeup to get the freckles just right,” Baylor said.
Underneath the hair and makeup is a timeless message that motivated Kiviniemi-Baylor to want to do the show.
“No matter what your past or your background is,” the director said, “it doesn’t dictate your future. Some people sometimes can get caught in a victim mode, while others are filled with a resilience, no matter what trauma they’ve gone through in their lives — and still make a success of themselves.
“And I think that’s what Anne does.”
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What: Passion for Acting Theatre Company presents the dinner theater production of "Anne of Green Gables." It details the life of a bright, young orphan with a vivid imagination sent by mistake to live with a farm family (expecting a male youngster) living on a Canadian spread called Green Gables.
When: 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Willow Leaves of Hope, 326 Jackson St. in Hope.
Tickets: $26 includes a full meal and dessert and the show.
Principal cast: Anne Shirley — Kat Baylor; Marilla Cuthbert — Julia "Mendy" Fisher-Blair; Mathew Cuthbert — Jason Bowser; Rachel Lynde — Jessica Brown; Station Master and Mr. Spencer — Gregory Andis; Mrs. Blewitt and Mrs. Barry — Marcia Boardman; Diana Barry — Michaela Fuller; Mr. Phillips — Stephan Planalp; Miss Stacy — Faith Boardman; Ruby Gillis — Ally Parker; Josie Pye — Rachel Hoke; Moody MacPherson — Alex Baylor; Charlie Sloan — Seth Boardman; Gilbert Blythe — Austin Bailey.
Information and reservations: 812-546-0640.
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