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Matilda – Director’s Note & Bio

Thank you so much for being here and supporting this wonderful cast and crew of Matilda.

As a child, Roald Dahl was my favorite author. That, paired with the release of the Danny DeVito directed movie in 1996, gave the story of Matilda a very special place in my heart. Years later, I watched the Tony performance and instantly fell in love with the music. The next summer I had the privilege of watching one of my former children’s theatre kids play the part of Bruce on Broadway and I knew I wanted to direct it someday.

The timing of this opportunity seemed right, in a way, as I’ve seen us all wrestling with so many of the main themes of the show in recent years: being a light in darkness, overcoming pasts, forgiveness, the power of knowledge, kindness and compassion over cruelty, and standing up for what is right “even if you’re little.”

This whole production was guided by these words from people who I consider to be very Matilda-like in our own world:

“If you want to make a difference, the next time you see someone being cruel to another human being, take it personally. Take it personally because it is personal.” – Brené Brown

“Nothing is more important than empathy for another human being’s suffering. Nothing. Not a career, not wealth, not intelligence, certainly not status. We have to feel for one another if we’re going to survive with dignity.” – Audrey Hepburn

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” – Fred Rogers

“The artist’s task is to save the soul of mankind; and anything less is a dithering while Rome burns.” – Terence McKenna

“When you tear out a man’s tongue, you are not proving him a liar, you’re only telling the world that you fear what he might say.” – George R.R. Martin

“Forcing me to stand now I said, ‘Mr. Preacher man, should we love thy neighbor? The laws of the land or the heart, what’s greater?’” – Kendrick Lamar

“The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.” – James Baldwin

“Never ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” – John Lewis

“So, never be afraid. Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion, against injustice and lying and greed. If you, not just you in this room tonight, but in all the thousands of other rooms like this one about the world today and tomorrow and next week, will do this, not as a class or classes, but as individuals, men and women, you will change the earth.” – William Faulkner

Thank you again for supporting this wonderful group of local talent.

DIRECTOR'S BIO

Darian A. Leatherman spends her days cuddling and pampering pups at her sustainable salon, The Green Groom, in Wichita. In her earlier life, she attended Missouri State University, earning a B.F.A. in Acting. After graduating, she returned to her roots in Wichita and worked to establish a solid base of relationships with local theatre organizations in the areas of direction, performance, production stage management, hair/make-up and costume design. She is a former Production Stage Manager at MTYP (Music Theatre for Young People) and the Crown Uptown Theatre. She also served as the Office Manager and Event Coordinator for Wichita Grand Opera. Her favorite theatrical credits include: costumer (Hamlet - Wichita Center for Performing Arts), sound designer (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Signature Theatre), prosthetics assistant/make-up designer (Shrek: The Musical – Crown Uptown Theatre), Elizabeth Proctor (The Crucible – Guild Hall players), Yitzhak (Hedwig and the Angry Inch – DZ Productions), Francine/Lena (Clybourne Park - Center for the Arts), Mrs. Muller (Doubt - Wichita Community Theatre), Portia (Julius Caesar - Wichita Shakespeare Company), choreographer (Godspell, Into the Woods, Urinetown, and ...Spelling Bee, Chicago – Newton High School), and director (Spring Awakening and the Midwest Premiere of Heathers: The Musical - DZ Productions, the World Premiere of f*sh -Guinea Pig Lab Theatre, The Mountaintop - Guild Hall Players, and Good People - Wichita Community Theatre). Thank you for coming and supporting live, local theatre.