Local actor makes directing debut with Macon Little Theatre's 'Second Samuel'

Beloved piano teacher Miss Gertrude is dead.

Her small south Georgia town is coming together to mourn, and so begins the premise of Macon Little Theatre's production of "Second Samuel," which opens tonight and runs through Feb. 14.

"They are preparing for the funeral and you're getting to learn who these characters are and then you find out this deep, dark secret about Miss Gertrude that just throws this entire community into absolute chaos," said Bryson Holloway, who is making his directorial debut with the production.

The show is narrated by B-Flat -- so named by Miss Gertrude for his inability to carry a tune. There is some comedy but also some tender moments, he said.

"We find through B-Flat and his friend US, who is a big, tall black guy -- the only black guy in this community we get to see ... different thoughts, different opinions, different ideas," Holloway said. "Ultimately, this is a message about acceptance and community and doing the right thing."

Holloway said he approached Macon Little Theatre last season about doing the show as it's one of his favorites.

"I did this production of 'Second Samuel' when I was a junior in high school and I played the lead role of B-Flat and fell in love with this show," he said.

He was planning to audition, but was contacted a week before tryouts about directing.

"I've never done anything like this before but it's been a blast and I hope there will be many more opportunities in the future to direct," Holloway said.

He made his acting debut at age 9 when he played John Darling in Macon Little Theatre's 1996 production of "Peter Pan." He's gone on to act in 37 other shows.

"I was sitting with my wife one night and said, 'It's 2016 and it's been exactly 20 years since I did my first production,' " Holloway said. "So I started out doing theater here on the stage as an actor and now I'm directing my first show at this theater. This kind of brings everything full circle for me."

The show's cast of 11 is comprised of characters who are all relatable to people we know, he said.

"Our cast is excellent. Everyone who's on the stage has been involved in community theater in the area," Holloway said. A lot of these people perform regularly with Theatre Macon downtown. So this is wonderful; it really shows the collaboration of people in this community -- coming together to support all of the community theaters in Macon and central Georgia."

The show runs not quite two hours and also will feature live gospel country music.

"The tagline for this show, which to me sums it up in a nutshell, is 'Laugh, be moved but don't leave unchanged,' " Holloway said. "It's fun; it's a comedy but people will certainly learn a lesson."

"Second Samuel"

When: 8 p.m. Feb. 5-6 and Feb. 10-13; 2:30 p.m. Feb. 7 and Feb. 14

Where: Macon Little Theatre, 4220 Forsyth Road

Cost: $20 adults; $15 seniors; $10 for students ages 5-23

Information: 478-477-3342; www.maconlittletheatre.org

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 5:35 PM with the headline "Local actor makes directing debut with Macon Little Theatre's 'Second Samuel' ."