S.D. Junior Theatre Makes ‘Charlie Brown’ Not Such a Good Man

Shows inspired by comic strips are, by their nature, susceptible to a flirtation with cuteness. And while that, by itself, is not the worst of crimes, it is sobering to consider that a show that begins in cuteness is but a short fall from preciousness.

The San Diego Junior Theatre saved their last production, “L’il Abner,” from such a fate by delivering that musical’s caricatures with a charming, unaffected naturalness. Unfortunately they are not as successful with their current offering, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” playing through March 13 at the Casa del Prado Theatre.

Though just a scant decade or so from the age of the characters they are supposed to be playing, these teen-age actors could not be further in spirit from the original Peanuts gang. Despite a handful of appealing performances, they seem on the whole as overwhelmed by the cute remarks the script expects them to make as they are by the upper register of the musical score.

It takes special skill to keep Charlie Brown, as the Everyman/straight man who can do nothing right, as the heart of the play. After all, he does get a lot of competition from the far more charismatic cast of characters who bedevil him: the supremely confident Lucy, dapper Snoopy, philosophical Linus and tomboyish Peppermint Patty.

Aaron McFarland, unfortunately, plays Charlie Brown as too self-consciously cute to establish any sense of reality for the character. Which leaves the appealing Tanya Vogan as Lucy, Kylie Grant as Peppermint Patty, Chrissy Windham as Snoopy, and David Kamotoy as the deftly dancing Linus to take their turns weaving in and out of the spotlight.

This creates an inequity of focus, that Marjorie Hull’s shapeless direction exacerbates. As if this were not enough, insufficient attention is paid to simple projection and Scott Viets’ usical direction, which fares well enough with a strong voice like Grant’s, fails to compensate for the inadequacies of the whole.

The bright, primary colors of the uncredited set are enhanced by Mibs Somerville’s equally vibrant costumes--the matching socks are an especially nice touch. Lois Miller did a nice job with the lighting and the original choreography by Don and Bonnie Ward is nicely tailored to the cast’s hoofing skills.

One of the keys to Charlie Brown’s appeal is that while he seems to be doing everything wrong, once you get to know him, you like him for getting the fundamental things right--like just being the best he can be. If only this hapless production could have done the same.

Performances are at 7 p.m. Fridays with 2 p.m. matinees Saturday-Sunday through March 13 at the Casa del Prado Theatre in Balboa Park, San Diego.