Sonoma Arts Live stretches with ‘Daddy Long Legs’

Making a short two-weekend run at Sonoma Arts Live is the musical “Daddy Long Legs,” based on the 1912 novel of the same name by Jean Webster. The delightful show from the Tony-Award winning director of “Les Misérables began Thursday at the Sonoma Community Center followed by performances Thursday-Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees through March 8.

The musical made its premier a bit south of Sonoma, in Ventura County in 2007. Since then, the show has premiered around the world and won several awards and accolades as well as fans in two people involved in the Sonoma Arts Live production.

Both Director Michael Ross and actress Madison Genovese had seen “Daddy Long Legs” productions in the past and wanted to bring it to Sonoma. This month, the two are finally getting their chance.

“Daddy Long Legs” is the story of orphan Jerusha Abbott and her mysterious benefactor, a man she dubs “Daddy Long Legs,” based on seeing his elongated shadow. The benefactor agrees to send Jerusha to college under the condition that she send him a letter once a month describing her new life outside the orphanage, a letter to which he will never respond back. This intimate production has only two actors - Jerusha and the benefactor.

“I’ve known Michael Ross for about five years and we had talked about wanting to do “Daddy Long Legs” for the last several years,” Genovese said. “It’s a really sweet story and we connected on the fact that this story was the perfect story for around Valentine’s Day.”

Genovese plays the orphan, Jerusha, a part she played three years ago at Main Stage West. The 28-year-old Emeryville actress has been acting since the age of 10 and most recently played Sibella in the hit show “The Gentlemen’s Guide to Love and Murder” at Sprekels Performing Arts Center. Her regional credits include Miss Honey in “Matilda” (The Public Theatre), Cinderella in “Into The Woods” (Lucky Penny) and many others. This is her first production with Sonoma Arts Live.

Ross was instrumental in getting “Daddy Long Legs” worked into the spring season at Sonoma Arts Live. He has worked with the theater company for several years directing “My Fair Lady,” “Hello, Dolly!” and “Gypsy,” to name a few. He also works as a freelance director for Sprekels, 6th Street Playhouse and Lucky Penny Productions.

“Sonoma Arts Live is a lovely, intimate space,” Ross said of producing the musical at this particular company. “Jeursha is just this lovely, smart, young woman who is given a break in her life and she takes advantage of that break in a very good and positive way. I hope that’s what people will take away from it; we’re given so many opportunities we often pass over for whatever reason but she’s in a position to take advantage of this opportunity and make the most of it.”

The musical is a story of transformation, both for Jerusha who finds herself in her new life outside the orphanage as well as Daddy Long Legs who starts as an awkward man who goes on to become enchanted with Jerusha through her writing and getting to know her.

“What I love most about Jerusha is that she’s so empathetic; she cares about everyone and the world around her so much more than she cares about herself so the opportunity that has been given to her is something she’s looking forward to helping others with,” Genovese said. “The character Daddy Long Legs sends her to college to become a writer and she wants to use her writing skills to be able to help fund the orphanage she grew up in. It’s really about watching her become this wonderful person in this time period when women didn’t have a lot of rights.”

Playing the role of the mysterious benefactor is Sonoma Arts Live newcomer Mischa Stephens whose recent credits include Tateh in “Ragtime” (Berkeley Playhouse), Jean Valjean in “Les Miserables” (Tri-Valley Rep & SBMT) and Jesus in “Jesus Christ Superstar” (West Valley Light Opera).

“This intimate show allows the audience to be a part of the love story and watch it unfold as deep love does, slowly and yet in a moment,” said SAL executive director Jaime Love. “We’re lucky to have two such accomplished actors bringing it to life on our stage.”