Interview: Mackenzie Messick and Steven Reddington of STATE FAIR

By: Mar. 23, 2017
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This month, I was able to chat on the phone with two leads from Agape Players' STATE FAIR: Mackenzie Messick and Steven Reddington. The pair plays siblings, Margy and Wayne Frake, but interestingly enough have been acting for film more recently. Mackenzie's past projects include "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay" and "The Fifth Wave" while Steven has done work on TV's "Devious Maids" and "Halt and Catch Fire." Mackenzie has deep roots in theatre and dance while Steven has not done a musical in 10 years. Talk about the makings of a great sibling duo on stage! Find out more about the show and their transition back to the stage below.

JCA: Let's talk about the show. Can you give our readers a little bit more insight on the plot of the show?

MM: The show is about the Frake family going to the state fair. The mom is looking for her recipes to win prizes and the father brings a hog to win. Steven and I play brother [Wayne] and sister [Margy], and our characters are looking for love, looking for an adventure.

SR: Yeah, the story is really based around the Frake family attending the Iowa State Fair. The father, Abel, brings his prized hog "Blue Boy" to compete in the grand sweepstakes, while the mother competes in pickles and mincemeat. Both Wayne and Margy have significant others that aren't able to attend the fair, and both characters find romance unexpectedly. Wayne meets a performer named Emily, and Margy meets a reporter named Pat....and the drama unfolds.

JCA: We have all heard of "The Sound of Music" and "South Pacific" but tell me about how STATE FAIR still falls into the same family of Rodgers and Hammerstein's shows.

MM: The classic Rodgers and Hammerstein music and harmonies are recognized in this music like when you are listening to "Cinderella" or "Oklahoma." It feels very traditional and, of course, the big, cheesy, musical theatre dance numbers.

JCA: Tell me about working with Kathy Winchell as the director of the show. She's clearly a community theatre connoisseur. What is that like?

SR: This is my first experience working with Kathy and one of the things that really stands out to me is how much she cares about putting on a truly excellent production. She is really great at what she does. The amount of time she thinks about rehearsal and what we are doing is unbelievable. In fact, I just got a call from her to talk about a scene that we're going to be running in rehearsal tonight. I've discovered so many new things about my character with her, and because of her. As actors, she challenges us and trusts us but I love that she doesn't micromanage or give us "line reads." She allows us to make choices and discover things for ourselves. It's been an honor to work with her.

MM: She's a real actor's director because she's an actor herself and her son [referring to Ben Winchell] obviously is too. She's good at working with an ensemble and incorporating them in a way that is motivated and just great storytelling. We had already started running through the entire show a month before we open.

JCA: What type of character development goes into these types of characters that are just totally unrelatable? Or is this something that is super relatable for either of you?

MM: I'm still working on it during rehearsals. Finding the humanity in Margy is my biggest objective about this process. She's independent, but independence in the 1940's is quite different than independence is now. So I've been trying to find that relatability between the two very different cultures and lifestyles.

SR: There are definitely certain aspects of my character that I have drawn from my real life. And other aspects that I have very little experience with personally. Honestly, It's been quite a while since I've had to develop a "complete" character...so I've had to re-learn what that looks like. Recently, I've done more work in commercials and television than theater. In commercials, you're on screen for 30 seconds and you may be saying one or two lines... you don't always have to develop a full and complete character. It's not like I am unfamiliar with the character development process but theater and film are two very different mediums. My character has changed so much since I was first cast in the show and I love it. Wayne has become a bit more awkward and "adorkable." It's such a cool thing to develop and discover. Other cast members have really helped me find new things as well. In fact, the other day Mackenzie made a suggestion, we tried it, and then worked off of it. It's really great to play around and try new things.

JCA: How is like working Agape Players?

MM: It is so great because everyone cares about putting out excellent work, so the entire cast feels that motivation and drive to work together to create something incredible.

SR: I'm very impressed with the fact that even though it's technically not a "professional" show, it definitely feels professional.

STATE FAIR takes over the Infinite Energy Theater in Duluth, GA, for three performances April 1-2, 2017. Tickets are on sale here. For more information about Agape Players please visit agapeplayers.org. Make sure to follow Mackenzie with the handle @mackenziemess_ and follow Steven at @sjreddington.



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