Gettysburg Community Theatre reaches for the stars in “Silent Sky”

As the sweltering dog days of summer — which ancient astronomers attributed to the rising of the “dog star,” Sirius — begin to wane, Gettysburg Community Theatre is stepping back more than a hundred years to celebrate the true story of Henrietta Swan Leavitt (1868-1921), a starry-eyed American pioneer who revolutionized modern astronomy’s understanding of the Cosmos.

Her story, written by feminist playwright Lauren Gunderson as historical fiction, was first commissioned by and premiered at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, Calif., in 2011. Numerous productions of “Silent Sky” have since won Festival, Thespie, Pulsar, and Wilde Awards as well as more than a dozen Halo nominations celebrating high school theater.

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Entering GCT’s intimate space feels like stepping into another place and time. The black walls and simple set furnished with a piano, three desks, a homey armchair and an upstage platform with a decorative railing will become nearly a half dozen locales that skip past manual scene changes. 

Nicely directed at GCT by Karen Land assisted by Buff Wills, Henrietta’s story begins near the turn of the 20th century. Humans are the “computers” of the day, and it is common for female mathematicians to perform the most tedious work in analyzing data.

And from the moment Land’s well-cast actors step onto stage, their apt period costumes, reciprocal energy, excellent comic timing, smooth pace and unique characterizations draw the audience into another world — untouched by artificial intelligence — driven by human passion and connection. 

As the lights rise, Henrietta (played by Ana Rosenbrien) and her sister Margaret (GCT Musical Director Carrie Conklin) banter affectionately outside their father’s church in rural Wisconsin.

Glowing with excitement, Henrietta confides that she has been offered a dream job at the Harvard College Observatory working for esteemed astronomer Dr. Edward Pickering. Margaret has just become engaged and will follow the conventional path for a minister’s daughter. 

Henrietta arrives at Cambridge and is met by a handsome apprentice (Gabriel Cook as Peter) who reveals that she will not be allowed to touch the Great Refractor telescope that she is so excited about but will simply log the stars photographed by men in the department. Peter lets it slip that the female mathematicians at Harvard are referred to as “Pickering’s harem” (Henrietta’s reaction is a riot) and that the first female Pickering hired had been his housekeeper.

Understanding that she can expect low pay and no scientific recognition but driven by a passion to know “exactly where we are” in the universe, Henrietta dives deep into her assigned work and bonds with accomplished “computers” Annette Perkins as Williamena and Sara Bollinger as Annie to form a sisterhood.

Memorably, Williamena comments that Henrietta and her female peers at Harvard are only the “dirt from which mighty oaks grow” with cagy good humor. And on much of her own time, Henrietta searches for patterns in the universe through an almost decade-long study of photos of the changes in Cepheid (blinking) stars. 

Act 1 covers a lot of territory in Henrietta’s personal and professional life — her familial relationships, the challenges she faces working in a male-dominated field, and her brush with romance (Henrietta and Peter’s dance near the act’s end creates a striking visual composition). 

Although the work the “computers’” performed in 20th century astronomy was tedious, there is nothing tedious about GCT’s performance of “Silent Sky.” 

As Henrietta, Rosenbrien delivers an animated and charming performance, and she handles using a script onstage (at least on Opening Night) so gracefully that it becomes part of her character. 

Conklin’s lovely vocal and piano performances are spot on with Margaret’s music talent highlighting the playwright’s use of the correlation between music and math as a metaphor for discovering patterns. And the sisterly love and sibling tension Conklin shares with Rosenbrien as Henrietta feel genuine through play’s end.

As Pete, Cook adeptly shows a range of emotions — from his shy and endearing infatuation with Henrietta to his growing admiration for her scientific insight and faltering misogyny. His run-ins with Williamena and Annie draw many of the show’s best laughs.

Williamena — the maid that Pickering hired as his first female “computer” who’s achieved significant accomplishments — is clever and kind as enacted by Perkins. Her quick tongue and deliberate timing jump on every opportunity for a humorous comeback.

As the Head of Photometry, Bollinger as Annie is softer than she first appears under a tough boss exterior. A suffragette who is the first to wear pants and who protests for women’s right to vote, she shares a rock-solid relationship with Williamena. Bollinger is equally adept at delivering comic quips, and Annie and Williamena are full of surprises as they reveal the depth of their characters in Act 2.

Winning lights designed by Nicholas Ryan, particularly in the scenes depicting the stars in the night sky, also stand out. 

Chock full of humor, passion, some sad moments and some fine acting, GCT’s engaging performance of “Silent Sky” should inspire everyone — laymen and geeks alike — to look to the night sky and wonder, “Who are we, why are we, where are we?” 

“Silent Sky” continues through August 24 at Gettysburg Community Theatre, 49 York Street. Performances are 2 p.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. General admission is $20 ($22.95 with fees). To purchase tickets and for more information, visit gettysburgcommunitytheatre.org.

Photo by Linda Toki.

Other credits include Cory Metcalf (Stage Manager), Gabriel Cook (Sound Designer), Vanessa Rice (Props), Cookie Driscoll (Lights), Michael Connelly and Cory Metcalf (Sound).

patti restivo
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Patti Restivo is an actor, director and writer who's been active in the theater community for more than 30 years. She has devoted much of her creative energy in the last decade to writing feature stories and show reviews for the Baltimore Sun Media Group, where she won MDDC Press Association Awards for business, feature story non-profile, religion and arts/entertainment reporting. A regular reviewer in the past at theaters performing on the outskirts of Baltimore, Annapolis, and D.C., she recently moved to Gettysburg where she enjoys exploring the arts and history of her new hometown.

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