Since 1933, Barter Theatre has been providing entertainment for families across the region. Over time, family units left their seats in the audience to take their place together on the stage to be a part of the performance. That legacy has continued over the decades – proving that Barter Theatre keeps it in the family.
Several families have performed alongside each other in shows over the years. Three of those families are currently making memories together in Barter’s holiday show Miracle on 34th Street.
One of those families is the Campos family – Sean, Ashley, and Max – whose Barter journey together began 18 years ago.
“In 2005, Sean and I drove five hours to Barter’s local auditions hoping to be cast in the following season’s Thoroughly Modern Millie. We were, and are, grateful to have made our artistic home here ever since!” Ashley said. “Sean and I were engaged to be married when we auditioned, then we wed two weeks before Millie began rehearsals. The Barter Inn became our first home!”
Sean is a long-time member of the resident acting company and frequently serves as fight choreographer. Ashley serves as resident dance and intimacy choreographer, a costume designer, and is a resident actor. Max is the Newsboy and part of the youth ensemble in Miracle on 34th Street.
“Sean and I met working in theater and have lived our lives telling stories together. We joke that Max’s stage debut was back when I was pregnant with him for 2013’s Good Ol’ Girls, but to actually experience the whole process together from auditions, through rehearsals and tech, an exciting opening night through now has been incredibly special!” Ashley said. “Max’s first trip to the theater was when he was ten days old to visit daddy at tech for Man of La Mancha, so our theaters, rehearsal halls, and production spaces are like home to him.”
Miracle on 34th Street is their first and only show so far where all three members are sharing the stage together.
“Sean and I have been in many shows together, but we’ve only occasionally played opposite each other. Some favorites are Velma Kelly and Billy Flynn in Chicago, Rooster and Lily in Annie and Babette and Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast. Miracle on 34th Street is our first show onstage together with Max,” Ashley explained.
The Campos family said that Barter helps keep it in the family in terms of entertainment – and it is such a special gift.
“The Barter Players’ productions have given Max a sense of belonging, that this is a place he and other young audience members are welcomed. We watch most all the Gilliam and Smith Theatre productions together as well, and the stories that Barter tells have opened up many wonderful discussions for our family,” Ashley said. “We are grateful for the opportunity to practice empathy on a daily basis.”
The Smith family also enjoys the opportunity to share the stage, on and off, with each other for Miracle on 34th Street – with father Dishon being the music director and his son Henry being part of the cast.
“My first contract was playing keys in the pit for ‘Kiss me Kate’ in 2013. I jobbed in for several shows in the pit before I became the associate music director in 2018 and then resident music director in 2019,” Dishon said. “But my family wasn’t involved before I was.”
This is the first show the Smith family has been a part of together at Barter, and they couldn’t be happier.
“I love taking my kids to see live theatre. Watching their reactions and seeing how the story meets them where they are,” Dishon added. “We love going to all the shows we can together.”
Former resident acting company member Seana Hollingsworth auditioned in 2003 and performed in the 2004-2007 seasons at Barter. Now, her children have taken the stage in Miracle on 34th Street, following in her footsteps in the footlights.
“My husband and I have worked together on over a dozen shows at Barter. This is our children’s (Benen and Alice) first show, so we haven’t been in any productions with them,” Seana said. “My husband was hired in 2003 as musical director and served as such through 2007.”
As far as favorite shows at Barter, Seana said it’s a tie between I’ll Never Be Hungry Again (Catherine Bush) and The Last 5 Years (Jason Robert Brown).
“I did both of these with my husband as the musical director, and he was on stage for I’ll Never Be Hungry Again,” Seana said. “Theatre provides a robust and safe trajectory into understanding another perspective, either because you are inhabiting that role or are observing that character from the audience. It instills empathy and curiosity in a way that is hard to mimic in any other setting. It also requires vulnerability and trust – whether as a member of the creative team or as an audience member.
“It also allows our children to experience first-hand the magic that drew us to theatre and music, giving us a shared experience despite having not performed in shows all together (yet). Finally, it has allowed us, as parents, to see our children thrive and blossom into brave, sensitive story tellers.”
Barter continues its legacy of keeping it in the family in ways that many can’t even imagine, until they see it unfold as the curtain rises on new opportunities and generations.
“There are always shows that our entire family can enjoy together as audience members. And this year we had the added bonus of being in the audience while our kids did a show that we premiered here 18 years ago,” Seana added. “Understanding that we left Abingdon and our jobs at Barter in pursuit of having children and now our children are more at home than we could have dreamed (both on that stage and with their Barter Theatre family) is such sweet serendipity. I can’t overstate how much my time as a resident company member at Barter meant to me. The impact of moving back to Abingdon four years ago, watching Barter flourish under Katy Brown’s leadership, and being welcomed home by so many people we love has been a gift I will never understand how to repay. I’m so very fortunate.”
