William Dunsmuir 
July 27, 1996 
William D. Dunsmuir Of Pennsauken, N.j., Died Saturday At Home.

Andrew Gorto 
July 25, 1996 
Andrew Frances Gorto, 77, Of Parrish Street, Dallas, Died Thursday In The 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

By BOB NOCEK Times Leader Staff Writer
 Sunday, July 28, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1E 





Winnie the Pooh's adventures might be classic children's stories, but
Bloomsburg Theater Ensemble's "The House at Pooh Corner" is intended to be fun
for the entire family. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We want the whole family to join us, and they'll have a lot to talk about
afterwards," said director Laurie McCants. "The kids will enjoy it on one
level, and the adults will enjoy it on a whole other level." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "The House at Pooh Corner" opens at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Alvina Krause
Theater on Center Street in Bloomsburg. The show runs through Aug. 18, with
performances at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and at 3 p.m. Sunday.
Beginning Aug. 6, matinees will be at 1 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and
Thursdays. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The show is a co-production of BTE and Bloomsburg University, the first
such cooperation between the two. The school is funding much of the
production, and university students are helping build sets and make costumes.
The cast is made up of BTE members, university students and children from the
area. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's terrific," said Karen Anselm, head of the university theater
department. "We ordinarily have a nice relationship with them, but rarely is
it so hands-on, and rarely do students get to be in the production." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The cast features guest artist Peter Brown as Pooh, and Ensemble members
James Goode as Piglet, Tom Byrn as Tigger, and Sharon Pabst as Kanga. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 University students appearing are John Bednarik as Eeyore, Melissa Anne
Blizzard as Late Rabbit, and Melanie Coakley as Early Rabbit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A pair of area boys will play Christopher Robin in alternating performances
-- Christopher Bickford of Bloomsburg and Christopher Cannon of Danville. Ray
Orley of Bloomsburg will play Owl, Kate O'Malley and Charlotte Sachetti will
appear as Roo, and Robert Gainer of Lewisburg will play Rabbit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The cast also includes 16 local children as Rabbit's friends and relations. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They've become critics of sorts throughout rehearsal, helping McCants
prepare a show that will naturally draw a young audience. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's very helpful, because you can gauge what's going to play for a young
audience because of having the kids in the show," McCants said. "We had a very
nice discussion the other day about what makes Pooh stories lovable and funny.
And the kids had a lot to say about it." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Based on the original A.A. Milne book and adapted for the stage by Bettye
Knapp, "The House at Pooh Corner," is the story of young Christopher Robin
being sent away to school, and how his stuffed animal friends -- Pooh and the
rest -- plot to save him by running away to the South Pole. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Because the story happens in the forest, where Christopher Robin takes his
stuffed animals, BTE has created a set that features a working waterfall, a
running stream and live trees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We've created a fantasy land," McCants said. "There's a real forest on
stage. In the original books, Christopher Robin takes his animals to an
enchanted place in the forest, and that's what we've created on stage." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As for costumes, the stuffed animal characters created by recent Bloomsburg
University graduate Megan Gantt will resemble stuffed animals. They won't be
large Disney-like characters with huge heads, but rather characters that make
it clear they're not human but can still reveal the actor inside. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They're all stuffed animals that Christopher Robin endowed with
personalities, and their personalities are more human than animals," McCants
said. "So It's really important to us that the actors not be obscured. It's
much simpler ... you can see the human underneath." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The humanness of the Pooh stories might be why they appeal to adults,
despite being geared toward a much younger audience. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 McCants hopes that comes across even more strongly in their production. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "One of the things that the Pooh books do so well is to appeal to children
and adults," McCants said. "The level of humor is about this little society
created by Pooh and his fellow stuffed animals. And that society, in a way, is
a parody of adult society. And the adults get a kick out of watching a child's
point of view of adult interaction." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

`house At Pooh Corner' Has Room For The Family