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03/01/2017 07:30 AMIn First Church’s upcoming production of Twelve Angry Jurors, Guilford actor David Bell needs to summon all of his powers of persuasion not only to play a role made famous by Henry Fonda, but to help the production hold a mirror to today’s world where the questions of injustice, cultural misunderstanding, and personal prejudices are more relevant than ever.
That’s a pretty tall order, but David’s the right man for the job. Fans of First Church productions will remember David as the town beggar, Reb Nachum, in the church’s 2015 musical performances of Fiddler on the Roof. For the role of Juror Number 8, David channels a “quiet, calm” presence, says co-director Liza Catino. Essentially, his is the voice of reason.
“His is a very important role,” says Catino. “He’s the lone juror that holds out. It’s Juror Number 8 who questions the fact that all the other jurors know that the boy is guilty. So it’s 11 to one, right at the beginning. He’s the one that prods and asks questions and makes the other jurors recognize they are supposed to base their decision on ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’”
Catino and co-director Bill Speed have taken the opportunity to meld men and women into their production’s jury, but have otherwise stuck to the classic screenplay of Twelve Angry Men, written by Reginald Rose. The play first aired as a 1950s TV drama before being turned into the 1957 movie starring Fonda. The jury decides the fate of a youth accused of murder.
“The relevance to today’s world is so clear, with issues like Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter,” says Catino. “It also talks about ‘them’ or ‘the others’ without naming any specific traits. So it leaves the audience to fill in the blanks. It could racial, ethnic, religious; it could be anything.”
Every other year, Guilford First Congregational Church mounts a full-scale live production, transforming the sanctuary into a fully functioning theater and inviting the public to take in performances featuring a cast of quality actors. This year’s ensemble cast is peppered with Guilford actors (including quite a few recognizable faces from the Page’s Hardware and Appliance Co. crew) and others who came to town specifically to audition for one of the 12 seats at the jurors’ table. First Church’s production of Twelve Angry Jurors will deliver four performances between Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, March 10, 11, and 12.
While the acting is riveting and the story is a classic, David says he hopes Twelve Angry Jurors will help audiences recognize “the relevance of this play for right now. If for no other reason, people should come and see it for that.
“What I like about it is not only the timeliness of it, but also that it points out that we all bring our assumptions. No matter how enlightened you think you are, everyone has assumptions,” says David.
“There are assumptions that are going on right now—about different cultures, about the kind of world we’re living in right now, about living in a time of fear, about ‘the other’ and ‘them,’” he adds. “And this kid on trial is definitely a ‘them.’”
Even the “good guy” character of Juror Number 8—in the movie, Fonda is symbolically dressed in white—makes assumptions, says David.
“He takes an almost instant dislike to Juror Number 3,” says David, “and he has a strange presumption of innocence—he believes the kid is innocent right away, and willing to fight for that. What’s that about? Why is he so invested in protecting this kid?”
A professional musician, David’s work in the music world includes a recent role as director of Music Ministry for Prospect Congregational Church (2014-’15) as well as being a pit player for several area theater companies (including the Ivoryton Playhouse, the Whitney players, and many others). He currently serves as accompanist for student vocal tutorials at Yale School of Drama and also for classes at Neighborhood Music School. Working as an accompanist has given David some important gifts as an actor.
“Accompanying someone is definitely a learned skill. It’s definitely something that you have to work at,” says David. “You have to always be listening and you have to be adjusting to what the other person’s doing.”
In Twelve Angry Jurors, the actors have only a sparse set to work with—basically, a room with a window, a door and a table—but the intricacies and flow of the discussion taking place over the 80-minute play (with one intermission) require impeccable timing and is a testament to the craft of acting.
“It’s a difficult script,” says Catino. “The actors have to interrupt each other and step on lines—it’s like a conversation. Nobody has names, and you only learn about each of them as the play progresses. The tensions grow and dissipate, get high again and dissipate...and all of the actors are on stage, the entire time. So they are working really hard.”
A Guilford resident since 1991, David has been acting in community theater for many years. While this his only his second time with a First Church production, he says there’s something very special about these bi-annual shows.
“My connection with this began two years ago they were doing Fiddler on the Roof, and they needed some extra bodies on the stage, and Liza called me and said, ‘Would you like to join us?’” says David, humbly. “I played Nachum the beggar, and it was so much fun. We have a lot of fun. We enjoy each other’s company. We want to do a good show for people.”
David took a year and half hiatus from acting, but when he learned of auditions for actors to join First Church’s production of Twelve Angry Jurors, he knew it was time to get back on stage.
“I was ready to do something, and this seemed like a good, meaty play to dig into,” David says.
While he is thrilled to be playing such a key role, David says the actor in him, always looking to stretch, was hoping to be cast in another part.
“I’m always the nice guy,” says David, who has a background that includes studies for a Master of Divinity with Andover Newton Theological School. “But I actually wanted to play Juror Number 3!”
Juror Number 3 quickly shows her true colors as a forceful, intolerant bully with her own set of opinions and biases, further colored and complicated by a personal family issue.
At a recent rehearsal, the cast was clicking on all cylinders and it was also clear the famous role of Juror Number 8 certainly suits David.
“I love acting; I love playing anyone but myself. He’s the pivotal role and people listen to him, which is not like me at all, in real life,” David says, laughing. “And I am really enjoying working with this cast. We’re all finding there are a lot of cool moments in this play, like when (Juror Number 10) really sees himself, for the first time. It really is relevant to today.”
Guilford First Congregational Church presents Twelve Angry Jurors with performances on Friday, March 10 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, March 11 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 12 at 2 p.m. All performances in the church sanctuary, 110 Broad Street. A free-will donation of $10 per person is suggested. For more information, call 203-458-9701.