One bullet can hit a lot of targets: New WCT drama explores the aftermath of tragedy: How do we move on?

Daniel Main, left, and Tabitha Hodges rehearse a scene during “The Bottle Tree,” while director John Hardaway looks on.

Touching on the complex issue of gun violence, Washington County Theatre will present its newest offering, “The Bottle Tree,” by Beth Kander, on March 9 and 10 at 7:30 p.m. and on March 10 and 11 at 2:00 p.m. The Washington County Community Foundation is sponsoring this premiere community theatre production of the brand-new play.
As with other horrific events in America’s history, the Columbine High School shootings in April of ‘99 brought new awareness of the dangers that firearms can, when misused, pose in our society. Last month’s shootings at Marshall County High School in Kentucky brought the issue closer to home. Law enforcement professionals, spiritual leaders, parents, teachers, mental health experts, and others have searched for answers as to why shootings take place and looked for ways to prevent them. And every school child is now familiar with the special lockdown drills that regularly take place, so that if the unthinkable happens, fewer people might get hurt.
But “The Bottle Tree” isn’t a play that focuses on whether it’s right or wrong to own a gun, and audiences aren’t shown what led up to the shootings that provide the backdrop of the story. Instead, the play explores the lives of those still affected in complex ways, years later, by the crimes committed by a loved family member.
The main character, Alley Mason (Tabitha Hodges), is the shooter’s sister, who says she’s “haunted” by the past. We first meet her as a miserable 15-year-old, closed-off from communication with her therapist, Dr. Berlin (Daniel Main). Later, Alley appears as a 25-year-old professional who helps others cope with tragedies similar to her family’s ordeal. “One bullet can hit a lot of targets,” adult Alley comments to documentary filmmaker Rae (Miranda Smith).
Hodges said that “The Bottle Tree” is about dealing with long-lasting grief, no matter what the cause, and that everyone can relate to the story.
“Any tragedy that affects a whole community – everybody kind of has to move on, but there are still people who have to live with it. People continue to live in the shadow of shootings long after the news coverage stops,” she explained.
Directed by John Hardaway, the play gets its name from the African tradition observed in the Deep South of the “bottle tree,” explained this way by Nancy Bishop (www.berkshirefinearts.com): “A bottle tree is a means of warding off haunts, fairies, and danger by placing empty bottles on tree branches in the belief that evil spirits inhabit the bottles and the sunlight will dispose of them.” From time to time during “The Bottle Tree,” different characters handle the multicolored bottles on the set’s “bottle tree” owned by Alley’s Great Aunt Myrna (Sally Bledsoe), thereby setting free the spirits that have been haunting them.
Rounding out the cast are Jane Naugle (Rhoda Mason), Harrison Nicholson (Joseph Flores), Jacob Dufour (Rick), and Rachel Casey (Monica). Miranda Smith is the assistant director, and Wesley Bledsoe is the stage manager.
Performance rights for “The Bottle Tree” are handled exclusively by Steele Spring Stage Rights (www.stagerights.com).

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