Arsenic and Old Lace


Memory does not really work in straight lines. If anything, you recall things in circles, returning to the present and then back around into the past.

Before I leave Perrott Hill, I must make mention of one of my greatest triumphs at P.H.S.: my production of Arsenic and Old Lace. This three act play was never written for children, so it was a bit ambitious, but I am proud of the way that my young cast rose to the challenge.

Just in case you do not know the plot, I will briefly sum it up for you. Two elderly sisters, Abby and Martha Brewster, magnificently played by Victoria Hume and Claire Morgan-Smith, live in an old house with their loony nephew, Teddy (Eoin Roe), who thinks that he is President Teddy Roosevelt. 

Abby and Martha are well known for their kindness and good deeds. At the start of the play, Abby is having tea with the vicar, the Reverend Harper (George Russell). Another nephew, Mortimer, is a drama critic and in love with the vicar’s daughter, Elaine. Adam Ogilvy was brilliant as Mortimer and Sarah Colinsky was great as his fiancée, Elaine. I always enjoyed Elaine’s line, “I love you, you dope!” 


Things really start going a bit mad in the Brewster home when we find out that one of the sisters’ “charities” is to poison lonely old men. Then the audience find out that Abby and Martha’s efforts at euthanasia rivalled by those of another nephew, Jonathan Brewster.

With his unsuccessful plastic surgery, Matthew Kind made a suitably menacing and maniacal multiple murderer, aided by his drunken sidekick, Dr Einstein. 


Robin Sanders is half-French, but he did a great German accent as the inebriated doctor. Despite the bumbling incompetence of the local police (Toby Fowlston, Alex Moore, Mark White), eventually Jonathan is recognized and arrested by the tough Lieutenant Rooney (Dennis Cuff).

Sometimes a play just “works”. The script is good, the cast bring out the best in each other and the audience is supportive. I am deeply grateful to the hard-working boys and girls who made Arsenic and Old Lace a theatrical triumph and one of the highlights of my teaching career. Here are a few more photos of the play.


 

    

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Educaring, 2

Image
Not so long ago, I wrote a post for my blog called Educaring . Please do not misunderstand me. I really do believe that teachers, youth workers, parents (and indeed anyone involved with young people) all have a duty to protect children and teenagers, to keep them safe. As I argued in my previous posting, I also believe that the task of protecting children is becoming more and more difficult - almost impossible, in fact. Yes, the Internet has a lot to do with it, I am sure, but there is another problem that is hardly ever discussed.  In a nutshell, anyone who genuinely cares about children finds it very hard to imagine how evil and how subtle child molesters and pedophiles really are. I think that is probably why many teachers and parents just do not know when a pedophile is "grooming" a child and why they often do not believe it, even when confronted with the unpleasant truth. Michael Green at Windlesham House School I knew Michael Green when I was teaching at Windlesh...
Read more

On the Cards, Part 1

Image
Getting our new Bulgarian residency cards from the Microwave Oven Woman Rejoice! Let's celebrate. Hallelujah! At long last, the Microwave Woman has given us our new Bulgarian residency cards (BRCs). As a special treat, just in case you do not know what a BRC looks like, here is my old one.  My dear wife suggested that I should "black out" certain bits, as there are lots of evil people out there on the Internet, all gathering my personal and financial details in order to swindle me or involve me in some dreadful scandal or some such nonsense. Of course, no one who reads my blog could ever do such a nasty thing!   Getting our new BRCs means that we can go ahead with our applications for our Russian visas. Then, maybe two or three weeks later, our passports will be returned to us, with new Russian visas stuck into them. The other good news is that the insurance agent in Dragoman did not lose my car registration document. When she had finished giving me my new car ...
Read more

A Eulogy for My Old Latin Teacher, Roger Terence Davies

Image
RTD, in his later years The great Mark O'Gorman, aka the One and Only Markoi, has asked me to say a few words about Roger Davies and so, of course, I must obey. For duty, duty must be done The rule applies to everyone Though painful though that duty be To shirk the task, oh fiddledee! A much younger RTD Roger Terence Davies, RTD, the Rather Tubby  Dinosaur or dinosaurus pinguior, was my favourite teacher at Lord Wandsworth College, otherwise known as LWC, or the London Water Closet, as I usually called it when I was a student here. RTD taught Latin and double Latin with him on a Friday was the highlight of my week. Not surprisingly, I went on from GCSE O Level Latin to do Latin A level and then Classics at Oxford. Since graduating, I have been a primary teacher in one or two places around the world. I think that it is no exaggeration for me to say that Roger had more influence upon the course of my life any other person. Caecilius is very much alive! ...
Read more