Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Thomas Becker's script book for his role as Atticus Finch.
After a long day at school, English teacher Thomas Becker was in his basement, fixing the family washing machine.
The appliance plays an important role in his busy household. Thomas and his wife, Amy, have five kids: two college students and three young children adopted from Haiti. With sports, dance classes and everyday life, that washer gets a workout.
He didn’t have a lot of time. He’d just gotten home from his job at Duchesne Academy and immediately was sucked into the family vortex: Kids were reading books and coloring to earn “technology time”; Amy and one of the older daughters were making dinner; Rags, the cuddly 13-year-old dachshund, was clamoring for attention.
Thomas, 51, needed to be at the Omaha Community Playhouse in about an hour to rehearse “To Kill a Mockingbird,” its season-opening play. He’s playing Atticus Finch, the lead character. And he was craving a short nap.
Despite a hectic life, for Thomas, theater is a necessary passion — especially his role as the Depression-era lawyer who defends a black man falsely accused of rape in a small Alabama town.
“He’s one of those characters you always aspire to be,” Thomas said. “Very few people are as straightforward and rational as he is. He’s a great father because he takes the time to explain things. I find myself wishing I could be that kind of dad.”
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