Society clutches the innocence of the child tightly like a soft security blanket as if with one hand dragging the blanket behind them they will possess the strength to face the world. However, this nursery rhyme image finds itself a stranger in Charlayne Woodard’s Pretty Fire where a child’s innocence serves only to intensify the cruelty of a black woman’s childhood.

A challenge now emerges: How does a director transfer childhood innocence to the page and, ultimately, the stage? Woodard in her autobiographical play captures five experiences from her childhood in a storytelling form of the monologue-five experiences intended to be played by one African-American actress.

Pretty Fire opens this Friday night at the Xavier Hall Theater, yet five actresses will take the stage in place of one. Director Gregory Horton’s adaptation has each actress taking one of the five monologues of the play, allowing for increased student involvement. In addition to altering the casting of the play, Horton has opted to run the show with two separate casts. Each cast will perform two shows, with Cast A performing opening weekend, Sept. 29-30, and Cast B closing out the show’s run the second weekend.

Horton introduces his imaginative adaptation in an opening scene featuring all five actresses on stage simultaneously in a successful attempt to present the five as one being. In a playground setting, the five experiences of Charlayne Woodard rhythmically participate in little-girl clapping games and jump-rope jingles. The women take the stage to a girlish version of Nelly’s “Country Grammar,” which resounds with the student presence in the auditorium. When the five actresses appear on stage, the unifying red-plaid costuming scheme makes it’s subtle presence known. Another Horton creation of “Five Little Monkeys” removes the actresses until there is one and Woodard’s play begins.

Heidi Waltz of Cast A begins by depicting Woodard’s birth through the timeless African tradition of storytelling. As Waltz’s voice projects the characteristic sound of an African, the central controversy of Saint Louis University Theater Company’s production takes the stage. Waltz is a Caucasian woman, not the black actress Woodard intended to cast.

Horton addresses this pending controversy by returning to the history of the stage. “Black actors often play white roles and now a white actor plays a black role,” said Horton.

In Shakespeare’s time, Romeo would have wooed a y-chromosome carrying Juliet from the balcony, yet the audience would have seen a boy and a girl falling in love. Similarly, the white actress in SLU Theater’s production of Pretty Fire successfully depicts a young, black girl’s childhood. The first cast has two white women and three black women representing Woodard’s character. What Horton presents is an opportunity for theater patrons to think, which is not an inaccurate performance of an artist’s work.

Waltz’s performance as a proud and happy grandfather, the storyteller, only assists in supporting the validity of white actresses. Even if the play was performed exactly as the playwright had intended, a woman would still be depicting a man onstage. A masculine presence fills the stage along with the presence of a black woman.

The second monologue presents the challenges faced by a minority upon entering a school environment. While actress Jay Jones’ quiet voice left the audience straining to hear the story, her unusually accurate facial expressions and strong body language made up for the communication gap. In one of the play’s more serious moments, the child encounters her first experience with racism in the school yard. The words “run nigger, run” haunt her mind in a sing-songy voice. They prevent her from thinking of anything else until her mother shows how false a label can be through a name game.

Actress Amy Pennell carries the third monologue on the historic melody of “Dixie.” The storyteller travels to Savannah, Ga., where Grandma lives. Pennell manages to execute the task of a child portraying a grandmother with dramatic brilliance. While the homey account of a summer at grandma’s seems pleasant at first, this portion of the play takes a dark turn when the KKK makes its appearance. Upon seeing the burning cross, the ignorant child screams, “pretty fire” as the flashing red and orange stage lights fade into intermission.

The fourth monologue brings Rayna Raiford dancing to the stage as Aretha Franklin belting out “Respect.” This is an appropriate choice by Woodard to introduce a scene about an “almost rape.” As Rayna stands pinned against the simple yet effective set, it became impossible not to identify with her feelings of hopelessness against her attacker.

Upon entering the fifth monologue, the play has successfully discussed several real issues facing African-American women like Woodard. However, the power of the play lies in its fifth scene. As Talichia Noah walks onstage singing the old hymns of the South, the theater ceases to be a center for the performing arts. Her voice pours out like thick molasses, sending chills through the patrons that have fallen asleep. An undeniable divine presence had entered the auditorium, and God undoubtedly takes a seat in the theater. Woodard unites the five monologues with music in order to create the story of one woman’s far-from-innocent childhood.

Unfortunately, each performance is limited to one cast. It would be interesting to see how the casts compare to one another. If only there was enough time in life to take up permanent residence in the center seat, fifth row.

The show opens this Friday at the Xavier Hall Theater and runs until Saturday, Oct. 7 with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and one matinee performance Sunday, Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at the box office for $5 and $8. Call 977-3327 for reservations.