News & Events 2006-2007

Blair Academy Players Present One-Act Plays

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The Blair Academy Players will present two one-act plays by Christopher Durang, The Actor’s Nightmare and For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls, on May 17, 18 and 19 at 8:00 p.m. in the Wean Theatre of Armstrong-Hipkins Center for the Arts. General admission tickets are available at the door for $8 for adults and $5 for students; tickets may also be reserved by calling (908) 362-2023. The second one-act of the night, Southern Belle, contains adult language and situations and may not be suitable for children under 13.

Director Michele McMillan explains, “Christopher Durang, a North Jersey native, is a contemporary playwright known for his witty, satirical and often absurd and outrageous comedy. Often, the humor in his plays masks serious and critical commentary on religion, politics and culture. In 2006, Durang was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama for his play, Miss Witherspoon.”

She adds, The Actor’s Nightmare is exactly what the title suggests. George Spelvin (senior Griffin Randolph) unwittingly finds himself on stage minutes before the curtain rises. The problem is he thinks he’s an accountant, not an actor, and can’t seem to ascertain exactly what play is being performed! For the next 40 minutes, George clumsily and hilariously struggles through bits of well-known plays such as Noel Coward’s Private Lives; Hamlet; a play by Samuel Beckett; and, finally, the historical drama based on the life of Sir Thomas More, A Man for All Seasons. To make matters worse, he shares the stage with some of the most well-known and self-important stars of the 18th and 19th century British stage – Sarah Siddons (junior Taylor McKay), Dame Ellen Terry (freshman Lindsay Gilbert) and Sir Henry Irving (junior Michael Richards). Thank goodness for the stage manager, Meg (freshman Audrey Nass), who bails George out whenever she can manage.”

As for the second performance, McMillan notes, “After a 15-minute intermission, the talented student actors return to the stage for a second time, in For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls, a parody of Tennessee William’s classic play The Glass Menagerie. The one-act began to take shape when Durang, frustrated with character Laura’s sensitivity in the original play, asked, ‘How hard was typing class really?’ The answer is Southern Belle, a fierce comedy that finds mother Amanda Wingvalley (Taylor McKay) attempting to find a suitor for her hypochondriac son, Lawrence (Michael Richards), while putting pressure on her other son Tom (Griffin Randolph) to not abandon his family and his responsibilities. When the female caller Ginny (Audrey Nass) arrives for dinner, she is a ray of hope for Amanda and her pathetic brood.”

Junior Iris Johnson is the student director/dramaturge for this production.

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Updated 5/16/07

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