From Scene-Stealer to Scene-Setter

You expect to see Derek Manson on stage, stealing scenes as easily as he takes his next breath. Just like he did in a myriad of roles in SCR’s 2024-25 season-opening production of Little Shop of Horrors.

But on the Theatre for Young Audiences and Families production of The Incredible Book Eating Boy, book by Madhuri Shekar, music by Christian Magby, lyrics by Christian Albright and based on the best-selling book by Oliver Jeffers, the only thing Manson is stealing is advice.

Manson is the assistant director for The Incredible Book Eating Boy, a position that takes him off-stage and gives him a front-row seat to steal advice from director H. Adam Harris. And Manson is making off with enough lessons and advice to fill a bank vault.  

“I’m in the room basically trying to absorb everything I possibly can from witnessing his expertise, which is … “

Which is where Manson endured a rare loss for words. Rare, from an actor known for his scene-stealing, laugh-producing roles in Little Shop of Horrors and Tiger Style!, where Manson’s wry expressions and ability to go from over-the-top to subtly funny at the flip of a switch sent audiences cascading into laughter. His roles in Theatre for Young Audiences and Families productions of You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, Jane of the Jungle and James and the Giant Peach brought Manson’s comedic gifts to new generations.

But it was another valuable experience that brought the words back to him. It was the last time he and Harris worked together—on SCR’s production of Snow White, where Manson played Dwarf Four in the two-person adaptation. Harris said that Manson was the only person he thought about for that role and Manson never forgot how Harris helped bring out—then elevate—his natural comedic talents.

“He’s a brilliant theatrical mind. I knew this from working with him as an actor,” Manson said. “I saw The Incredible Book Eating Boy in Atlanta and when I saw it on SCR’s schedule, I said, ‘I definitely want to be in the room.’ It’s not like I saw myself in it at all. I saw it as an opportunity to be in the room with him watching him do what he does, which is just brilliant work.

“… Even though I have directed in L.A. and Sierra Madre, there is more that I want to glean from people who do it very well and H. is one of those people. I recognized it during Snow White, being one of his actors. The intensity and the energy and the commitment to craft he brings to the room, his graciousness, his ability to listen, his decisiveness creates an energy in a room where you can’t help but bring the best part of yourself and the most disciplined part of yourself as an artist.”

Here, Manson is playing a new role. He’s taking copious notes, from both rehearsals and performances, “being a good learner and a good observer,” and assisting the director in whatever he needs support with to move the production forward. With Harris’ blessing and urgings, he’s working on adding comedic touches to various parts of an already-funny musical.

“You want to keep working until you perfected something. You want to bring specificity and humor and a clarity to it that you know children will take to,” he said. “You’re working to create a seminal moment for a young audience member. What we really want to do is be cognizant of giving our young audiences an exceptional theatrical experience they will remember forever.”

The last time Manson directed was a decade ago, in Sierra Madre, where he helmed Einstein is a Dummy, written by the same duo—Karen Zacarias and Deborah Wicks LaPuma—who wrote Jane of the Jungle. The lessons Manson took from that: learning to trust his instincts, using those instincts to bring the one piece of direction that takes an actor to the next level and bringing a clear vision and communicating that vision to the room, are being amplified and refined merely being in the room with Harris and the talented cast of The Incredible Book Eating Boy.

What did Manson learn from directing that production a decade ago?

“The simplest answer is I loved doing it. Guiding the entire production, the story from start to finish,” he said. “I knew I’d want to do this again 10 years later with this project. I knew being at H.’s side would be first and foremost, a terrific learning experience, allowing me to witness again, a role model in H. that I hope to emulate if I ever get to do this again.”