We are sorry Rev. Redmond did not find "Reefer Madness the Musical" appropriate for community theater. BLT has been moving away from community theater type productions for the last 5 years. Choosing instead to do the best live theater possible.

It is not BLT's intention to upset its audience. This show is a musical satire of the 1938 cult classic Reefer Madness. A copy of the 1938 original may be seen on BLT's website. www.burienlittletheatre.org.

"Reefer Madness the Musical" opened in Los Angeles in 1998. A film version was made for TV in 2005. The show has been produced by local theater groups in several cities, including Toronto, Seattle, Philadelphia, Charleston, Sacramento, London and Burien. The 2008 production at Washington DC's Studio Theater won 2 Helen Hayes Awards (directing and outstanding Resident Production). It is a show that has been performed in many cites to substantial critical acclaim.

To set the stage correctly for the 1938 film, one must keep in mind that Mr. Hurst had just purchased a group of paper mills for his newspapers and saw hemp, a bi-product of marijuana as a significant competitor to his paper mills. Additionally, Professor DuPont had developed and was just getting ready to market polyester. DuPont saw hemp fabric as a threat to polyester. Hurst and DuPont joined forces to make marijuana illegal, thereby protecting their business positions. To do so, they used fear tactics that continue even today. "Reefer Madness the Musical" looks at those tactics and in "Truth," the song at the end of the play, asks the question do the ends justify the means? Is it enough to play on people's fears to get what we want?

Looking at the political landscape today, these questions are just as valid as they were in 1998 when the script and score were written.

BLT knew this script might not be for everyone. It is for that reason that on BLT's website and in its advertising for "Reefer Madness the Musical," BLT states, "It contains adult humor, religious parody, and drug use, as well as suggested violence and sexual explicitness. It therefore may be inappropriate for younger audiences."

In Burien there is another theater group that produces children's shows and they do a good job. So, BLT does not see a reason to compete with them.

Not all theater can be light comedies, nor would we want that. Much of the role of theater is to entertain, but it also should get us to think, to experience worlds we may not know exist, or to see the world in a new light. Rev. Redmond says, "Anything not positive is not truth." I think that by just looking around us we can see that much of the world is not positive. Many in the world live brutal lives touched by war, famine, natural disasters, unemployment and the cruel nature of those around us. Whether it is "shock and awe," bank foreclosures or domestic violence there is much in the world that could be better. Denying these things exist does not help.

Rev. Redmond did not see "Reefer Madness the Musical" as having a positive message. Yet, it is a story of redemption. Jimmy and May overcome the odds and are redeemed. There is excess, but that was part of the propaganda film at the heart of the show. We all know one puff of marijuana, like one sip of wine does not an addict make. However, there is a line were abuse takes over.

The fact Rev. Redmond saw many parts of her story on stage, is a complement to the writers, who were able to find that universality of substance abuse and capture it in less than two hours.

I take heart from the fact Rev. Redmond says, "We do not need to scare people into being less than they are." That is in fact the very theme of the production and one the director Steve Cooper as able to tap into and bring to life. The whole idea of the propaganda films, articles and commercials of the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's 80's, 90's, 00', and now the 10's is to scare people into being less. Whether it is substance abuse, evolution, psychology or gay marriage, fear is the message. And being less was the result.

Let me, as the artistic director of Burien Little Theatre, apologize to Rev. Redmond because she did not fully enjoy this show. Hopefully, she found the production values were high, but the message was not to her liking. (In other words the show was done well, but it was not a topic she liked.) However, in selecting plays there is always the risk that someone will not like the choice.

In the 5 years I have been volunteering with Burien Little Theatre, there has yet to be a show that someone did not complain about. Yet the audiences continue to grow, quality of the performances continues to improve, and BLT gets more financial support. I take this to mean that over all Burien Little Theatre is heading in the right direction. That is, the shows it is producing are causing people to think. Maybe, but hopefully not very often, some audience members are pushed passed their comfort level on one show, but not on the others.

"Reefer Madness the Musical" has, for the most part been well received with one sell out so far, and some have decided to support Burien Little Theatre through financial donations after seeing the production. With the help of people like Rev. Redmond, who are willing to support Burien Little Theatre by voicing their concerns with a show, together with those who let BLT know they like the shows being produced, BLT can find a path that serves the needs of the most people and offends the fewest. All comments are as important to us. We take all the comments into consideration as we look at the 2011-12 season.

If you, like Rev. Redmond, are looking for lighter shows, not darker shows, I would suggest you skip "Zombie." It is a very dark show, done late night for Halloween. It is an attempt to see if there is a market in Burien for late night shows and shows that may not be totally suitable to BLT's main stage. I will say the script is riveting, the best I have read in 5 years. It closely follows a Joyce Carroll Oats novella of the same name. It is about a psychopath who tries to fill his emptiness by making a zombie out of children. I can assure you this show will take you places not usually visited.

However, the Christmas show, "Martha, Josie and the Chinese Elvis," is a very uplifting and positive show, with slightly twisted but lovable characters. "Clean House," too, is an uplifting show about love, but is does explore a marriage that does not work, while it looks at love from many angles.

Please come see "Reefer Madness the Musical" and judge for yourself. Consider "Zombie" if you want to look inside the mind of a serial killer in a way that is rarely possible.

Thank you Rev. Redmond. BLT is always looking for feedback. Please let us know what you think. Send an email to feedback@burienlittletheatre.org.

Eric Dickman
Artistic Director
Burien Little Theatre