A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR:
I was first introduced to Tuck Everlasting back in 2016, when the show had its brief but impactful run on Broadway. I had heard the Original Cast Recording, and I loved the music within it. Then, the show fell off my radar as my teenage brain fixated on various other shows. Then, when taking students to the 2024 Nebraska State Thespian Festival, the mainstage musical was a production of Tuck. I couldn't remember the last time I had been so moved by a theater piece. My students felt the same, as all of us were in tears by the end, and couldn't stop talking about it for weeks on end. At that point, I knew I had to do a production of this breathtaking show. I'm honored to be presenting that to you all now.
Tuck Everlasting is a light and wholesome musical that tackles serious and existential themes without letting the tone become too dramatic or overwhelming. Often, the emotion that I feel when watching this show is melancholy. The world is viewed from the perspective of the main character, an adventurous and imaginative young girl who sees even the simplest things in life as magical. The atmosphere of this show has always stood out to me and makes me feel comfortable and warm as if I am being immersed into a childhood story. I love how the themes in the music of Tuck Everlasting are reccurring throughout the show. The sets and costumes add to the whimsical and fantasy-like tone of the show, despite being set in a small town in New Hampshire.
One of the main themes of Tuck Everlasting is learning how to let go of your childhood and live your life to the fullest, while still appreciating the wonderful things in your past. I personally connect to this theme as I am still in my young adulthood, and I find myself connecting to the past quite often. Like our main character, Winnie Foster, I had lost my father in 2020, and I find myself wishing to go back and change many things or factors in the situation. However, I know that it isn't possible, and I know that what he would want is if I continued to live my life authentically and to the absolute fullest.
The goal is for our audience to be deeply moved and inspired by the messages in this show, particulary with the world in which we live in now. As the Tucks would say, "You don't need to live forever, you just have to live."
Thank you, and welcome to Treegap.
Sincerely,
Jasmine Nelson
Northwest Drama Director, 2024-2025
Artistic Director for Tuck Everlasting
