Powerful moments transform us, open our eyes, force us to take U-turns. Brett A. Bernardini remembers his.
In theater.
It happened 15 years ago, when he decided to direct a “deaf” production of the musical “Oliver!” Half of the cast was hearing impaired and half was not. The entire production was done in American Sign Language, and the entire six-week production was sold out.
During the third week of shows, a mother and teenaged daughter waited for him in the lobby. This was their second time seeing the production, and they had tickets to see it three more times.
“She wanted me to know that her 14-year-old daughter had been deaf since birth and, in her words ‘…this musical is the very first time that my daughter has ever heard a musical,’” Bernardini recalled. “‘Your production has inspired her to become an actress and make a difference in other peoples’ lives, as you have in hers.’”
That moment has stuck with Bernardini, who is Theatre Harrisburg’s new executive and artistic director, succeeding Samuel Kuba, who retired in August. The fact that theater is in every breath he takes is pretty surprising considering that he had plans to be a concert pianist. As a child, he played piano and the French horn, sang, painted, created.
But no theater until he recognized his own limitations.
“In college, I learned quickly that while I was a capable and excellent musician, I did not possess that something extraordinary that was needed to achieve my dream,” Bernardini said.
Theater became important to him only later, while working as an educator. He saw it was an opportunity for students who had no self-esteem or felt they had no voice to suddenly be heard and seen.
“For me, theater quickly became a vehicle for sharing thoughts, challenging ideas and a means by which to examine the world around us that was visceral, intense and entertaining at the same time,” he said.
Those powerful moments sealed the deal. Bernardini became the founding artistic director and CEO of The Spirit of Broadway Theater in Norwich, Conn., from which he retired last December. Under his leadership, the theater became internationally recognized for its production of new musicals. He’s personally directed more than 300 productions at that theater and others, and, in 2008, created the Connecticut High School Music Theater Awards.
After 17 years, Bernardini made the decision to leave. He had achieved everything he could do creatively, had re-configured the theater space twice and enlarged its technical capacities. He had lost his mother three years before and realized how incredibly short life was. It was time, he believed, to do something else.
That “something else” was Theatre Harrisburg. Bernardini had never been to Harrisburg except to just drive past when he was an undergraduate at Shenandoah College and Conservatory of Music in Virginia. He arrived for the interview and explored. He found the city beautiful, especially the river, the bridges, the hills, the historic architecture, the diversity.
“For someone like me who has grown up in Minneapolis and worked in New York City, diversity is what makes a city beautiful, alive and exciting,” he said. “In Harrisburg, the richness of the local diversity seems to be more of a challenge and not the exceptional asset it could be. The diversity of Harrisburg is something that should be celebrated and embraced.”
He found out something else—few residents knew of Harrisburg’s exceptional arts offerings. While exploring the city, he stopped people on the street, telling them he’s from out-of-state and that he’s looking for some theater, dance or museums. The responses consisted of, “We have movie theaters at the mall,” or “There’s a science museum for kids, but I don’t know what else.”
“Clearly, there is some significant work to be done in engaging the city with the dynamic arts opportunities that are already here,” Bernardini said.
So, what is Bernardini really like? Well, he’s a foodie, loves to cook and entertain, loves to read real books (although he’s reading one on his iPad right now), loves to kayak, swim, hike, travel. He is 6-foot-2, 220 pounds, Italian, intimidating to some, yet compassionate and gentle. He likes working with talented actors as a collaborator and will push them to emotional places to find truth and give them accolades when earned.
Bernardini, who has taken residence in Midtown, is mum about Theatre Harrisburg’s plans for the future, but notes it’s at a critical crossroads not only due to its age but because it has been eclipsed by other younger, energized and edgy organizations throughout the region. It must decide, he said, what the future path will be.
“I have always lived my life according to the Zen koan ‘Leap and the net will appear,’” Bernardini muses. “Here I am.”
To learn more about Theatre Harrisburg, including its 2015-16 schedule, visit www.theatreharrisburg.com.
