A ‘Peanuts’ Gallery : Onstage: A teen-ager directs ‘You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown’ starring children. What began in chaos ends in entertainment.

In observation of her daughter Jennifer’s ninth birthday, Felice Melworm of Reseda took the child and 17 of her friends to the West End Playhouse in Van Nuys on a recent Saturday afternoon.

There, under the direction of 17-year-old Lisa Sludikoff, a showcase production of the play “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” was being presented by two first-time producers, 22-year-old Don Gibble and actress Mariette Hartley.

For almost half an hour before the 3:30 p.m. curtain, the curly haired gaggle of little girls flitted about the lobby, barely able to contain their high spirits.

Yet the minute the houselights were dimmed and the stage lights went up, all wiggling and giggling stopped, and 18 pairs of eyes watched spellbound as the “Peanuts” characters went exuberantly about their show business.

“The girls were totally engrossed in the play from beginning to end,” the mother of the birthday girl said.

The bewitching was a testimonial to the delicious dialogue of Clark Gesner, who based his script on the characters created by cartoonist Charles Schulz, and the hard work and creativity of the young cast and a novice staff.

“The only thing I had ever produced before,” quipped Hartley, “was two children.”

The production, which continues weekends through July 21, had begun as a teen-ager’s dream that got a tremendous boost by Hartley’s participation.

“I wanted to direct ‘Charlie Brown’ with children, even though it has been traditionally done with adults, and Don was interested in the idea and offered to help me produce it,” said Sludikoff, a Birmingham High School senior.

Gibble also agreed to put up half the needed money, and he and Sludikoff were looking for the other half of the total production cost, which initially was estimated at $4,000 but has risen to about $6,000.

Both Gibble and Sludikoff knew Hartley because Hartley’s 12-year-old daughter, Justine Boyriven, takes dance and drama classes at the Paradise Dance Studio where Gibble and Sludikoff were production assistants and Gibble was a drama coach.

At a meeting in Hartley’s Encino home early in January, the young pair suggested that she help finance the production.

“When they approached me with the idea, I asked a lot of questions about the budget and other practical things, but I knew I wanted to make it work,” Hartley said.

She remembers getting her start in just such a young people’s production in Westport, Conn., and wanted to help others have that kind of experience.

Hartley’s daughter and several other cast members were chosen without audition because Sludikoff and Gibble knew their work.

Auditions for the rest of the 11-member ensemble were held at Sludikoff’s Encino home. Children’s agents throughout Los Angeles, hearing that Hartley was involved, sent some of their best.

Among those cast were 11-year-old Brian Fessenden of Reseda, who played Gavroche in the Shubert Theatre production of “Les Miserables,” and 12-year-old Julie Redmond of Claremont, who played Baby June in the San Gabriel Civic Light Opera version of “Gypsy.”

Brian, like other cast members from the Valley, is giving up his weekends and evenings for a few months to be in the play. For Julie, the two-hour round trip from Claremont to rehearsals and performances has been an additional time commitment--as it is for her mother, Marsha Redmond, who does the driving.

“We made the decision to do the play for a number of reasons, and Mariette’s involvement was a major one,” Marsha Redmond said. “We admire her, and we thought there was a good chance that important people in the industry might come to see the play because she was producing it.”

Once the cast was in place, rehearsals started at Sludikoff’s home. Sludikoff’s inexperience quickly became apparent.

Although she had spent much of her young life in classes and workshops preparing for this directorial debut, she said the demands were quick and many.

“I had actually directed a scene from ‘Annie’ when I was a 9-year-old at Wilbur Avenue School in Tarzana,” she said, “and I have been an assistant director at Paradise Dance Studio, but I had never directed a full play. And because this one is a musical, it’s even more complicated.”

In addition to finding a musical director who could work with the youngsters on their vocal pieces, Sludikoff had to assemble a production staff, choreograph the dances and direct the show.

“It was pretty overwhelming at times,” she said, “and I had to learn a lot fast.”

One thing she learned is that it’s hard to control 11 rambunctious kids, even if they are professional actors.

“There was a lot of horsing around at times, and at one point, a large window in my house was broken,” Sludikoff said. “I know now that I should have established control and demanded more discipline right from the beginning.”

Lisa’s mother, Ann, objected strenuously to the rowdiness and expressed herself forcefully.

The situation became so uncomfortable after several weeks that some parents were upset by the seeming chaos of the rehearsals and thought seriously about taking their children out of the play.

“Lisa was having a difficult time, and she was caught in the middle between her mother’s concern about the house, and some other things, and the parents’ concerns about the production,” one parent said.

Hartley had been working on the last days of the now-canceled television show “WIOU” and was only peripherally aware of what was going on. Once she was briefed on the situation, by Gibble and some of the parents, she stepped in.

“The production still needed a lot of work, and it needed a strong hand at that point,” Gibble said. “Mariette offered to move the rehearsals to her house, which we did, and she tried to give Lisa some directorial assistance, which was not always well-received.”

“I could see that Lisa could use some help, and I tried to give her as much support as I could without taking the production away from her,” Hartley said. “She was the one who initiated the production, and she deserved her chance. I just wanted to help.”

The actors’ parents were delighted.

“I think everyone was excited when Mariette offered to participate more actively and give the production the benefit of her experience,” said Patty Raschke of Calabasas, whose 11-year-old daughter, Stina, plays Peppermint Patty.

Nevertheless, Sludikoff was feeling somewhat overwhelmed.

“At that point, I was getting advice from my parents, the actors’ parents and Mariette, and the music director, but I knew I needed to keep a clear vision of the play, my vision of the play,” Lisa said. “I tried to listen to everyone, but I was the one with the final responsibility, and I wanted to do my job.”

Rehearsals went on with Hartley trying to assist without undermining Sludikoff, Sludikoff trying to maintain her directorial balance, and the parents still uncertain about the play.

As opening day neared, some of the parents were still concerned that the production had been negatively affected by the inexperience of the young director and by the confrontations between the producers and the director’s mother, who championed Sludikoff’s rights and energetically pointed out the real or imagined wrongs done her.

Sometimes, the parents said, the rehearsals, which moved to the Van Nuys theater in May, were punctuated by heated confrontations between various adults in the lobby.

Noreen Delgin of Agoura Hills said she had to laugh at the “Peanuts”-like observation of her 12-year-old son, Jared, who plays Schroeder.

He reminded her that, when he was cast, he was told that all the young actors would have to get along with one another or they would be excused from the play. But the problem was not with the youngsters, who were getting along fine, but with the adults.

“There were times when Jared would come home and say he didn’t know if it was going to work,” his mother said. “But toward the end, he, and all the kids, were really high on the production.”

For Sludikoff, it had been a tough several months and a lot of lessons learned. But although she feels “very old right now,” she is looking forward to the play’s run and already thinking about her next directorial effort.

Gibble also said it’s been rough at times and a learning experience for all. But he said he is so enthused by working with the young actors that he too is looking forward to the play’s run and to working again with the same cast.

For Hartley, who originally agreed only to be a financial backer, it has been an exercise in emotional tightrope-walking. But, she said, “the experience did make me realize that I like working with young people and that I think I do have a contribution to make as a director in some future time.”

In spite of all the administrative turbulence, the play is well-attended and often sold out, according to Gibble.

As for the birthday girl and her 17 nearest and dearest, they couldn’t have cared less about administrative wrangling.

For them, the Saturday performance was an afternoon with Lucy, Charlie and the “Peanuts” gang, and something like magic.

“You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” plays at 3:30 p.m. Saturdays and 1 p.m. Sundays through July 21 at the West End Playhouse, 7446 Van Nuys Blvd., Van Nuys. All tickets are $5. For information and reservations, call (818) 999-4415.

Reilly is a regular contributor to Valley Calendar.