Amélie Director’s Note

How do you go from tumbling through darkness to floating through thin air? How do you even know the difference, when "falling feels like flying"? (Tysen, Messé). In our current world, it can sometimes feel like we are perpetually falling, as the world as we know it vanishes from view. When the world around you will not stop moving, and yet you are paralyzed. How do you stop the world for just long enough to take in the moment surrounding you? 

It may not be in our own control whether we crash through the air or soar through the stars. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that this is out of our hands – especially when we are on our own. The difference may just be in who is there to lift us up. Who is there to catch us, hold us, and stop time for even the briefest of seconds. When someone takes our hand, we no longer feel the fear of  "Oh shoot, I'm falling," but we may just realize, "Wait – I get to fly." 

The team that has put together this show embodies every bit of these feelings for me. To us, Amélie is our way of stopping time, of flying together. Through Amélie, we have found a way to make the mundane magical and the impossible possible. Much like the realities surrounding us, this story deals with many topics that are difficult to approach and discuss, and throughout this process, we have held and supported each other in ways that have been dearly missed through these times of solitude. 

Amélie, at its core, is a story about kindness and connection. When Amélie finds her community – those who care about her beyond any limits –, she fosters an extraordinary experience of love and wonder, even in a world that may seem to be defined by separation. This show reminds us of the magic that perhaps everyday sentiments –  respect, generosity, celebration – bring to our lives. As you watch this show, think about the memory that always makes you smile (even if you don't know why). Remember that feeling of ordinary enchantment we used to know as children – that sparkle that is just waiting to be found. 

Amélie will invite you into a world of dreams and fantasies. But through the simple acts of kindness and care shown by Amélie and the community surrounding her, you just might find that this world is not so far away. When we meet each other halfway, perhaps this magical world is not as far from reality as we might think.