The Cappies are a type of award program for which teachers and students from teams attend one show from every school in the county to critique and praise the show that the school has selected to be judged. Before, during and after the show, teacher-mentors lead critic discussions that occur among students. Critics go home and write 300-400 word reviews for a deadline and submit their critiques to the Cappies’ website. During the spring, critics vote on the best shows, and come summertime, the top picks from the Cappies’ selections are invited to perform segments of their shows and receive their awards at the Kennedy Center. On Dec. 3, more than 80 Cappies came to view AHS’ production of “Arsenic and Old Lace”. Below is the first review released through the Cappies program.
“Two psychotic, grey-haired ladies, fatal window seats, lethal elderberry wine, grotesque plastic surgery, and unexpected battle cries up the staircase all come together in Annandale High School’s production of “Arsenic and Old Lace.” Joseph Kesselring’s play “Arsenic and Old Lace,” made up of dark, farcical comedy and whimsical characters was written in 1939, premiered in 1941 and ran on Broadway for three years. The play opens, set in the quaint, Brooklyn home of the elderly, seemingly innocent Brewster sisters.
The story revolves around theater critic Mortimer Brewster as he pieces together his family’s homicidal, eccentric and bizarre tendencies. Annandale High School carried out their rendition of this complex, quirky play with little difficulty. The cast and crew worked together in a poised and effective way throughout the play, despite a few hiccoughs in technicalities. Abby Brewster (Laura Hackfeld), Martha Brewster (Gwen Levey) and Mortimer Brewster (Max Talley) played the perfect, peculiar family. With their high-pitched voices, dazed mannerisms and dreamily musical giggles, Laura Hackfeld and Gwen Levey drew their victimized gentlemen into their poisonous, deadly trap. They properly presented the elderly Brewster sisters as not-all-there, lovable ladies.
Gwen’s gliding gait, coupled with Laura’s bobbing bounce provoked laughter from the audience at each movement. Max Talley’s portrayal of the conflicted nephew, with his facial and physical reactions to his aunt’s mentally corrupt doings were spot on and well timed. The complexities of each character did not stump these actors and actresses in their strides for a notable performance. Doctor Einstein (Steve Aderton), the submissive, plastic surgeon sidekick to the ominous criminal Jonathan Brewster (Cody Stewart), took the stage with his sinister motives and physical comedy. On each entrance, Steve Aderton magnified the eerie aura of his creepy character while somehow keeping with the dark comic genre. Teddy Brewster (Andy Riddle), the self-proclaimed “Theodore Roosevelt” and brother to Mortimer and Jonathan Brewster, provided constant, light-hearted comedy with his charges up the staircase and intermittent bugle-blowing. Each character had their own, unique accent and way of speaking adding variety and interest to the piece, although making it hard to understand lines at times.
Overall, the performances by these characters gave the show a light-heartedness compared to the heavy, darkness of its comedy. As the curtain parted, the audience let out a gasp of awe to the grand, brilliantly colored Victorian era Brewster household. The two flights of stairs, distinctly patterned wallpapers, numerous working doors and decked-out china cabinet created the appropriate living space for the unusual Brewster sisters. Throughout the show, the lighting dimmed in certain parts of the house to shift focus from one area to another. This technique was quite effective in adjusting the audience’s focus, but sometimes detracted from the action on stage. Telephone and doorbell sounds played accurately on cue, but at times stopped abruptly before the actor could respond. Annandale’s depiction of Kesselring’s complicated and erratic “Arsenic and Old Lace” was an accurate and charming rendering to enjoy.”
By Danika Saxon of Teens and Theatre Homeschool
AHS’s production of the play was also nominated for 16 Cappies Critics Choice Awards. To see the entire list, visit the full story.
