Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
February 8, 2007 issue
Lees-McRae Brings Noises Off to Banner Elk February 21 to 25
Story by Kathleen McFadden
Lees-McRae’s Department of Performing Arts will present the ribald comedy Noises Off in the Hayes Auditorium from Wednesday, February 21, through Saturday, February 24, at 7:30 p.m. and again on Sunday, February 25, at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $12 for adults and $5 for students and children. Purchase tickets by calling 828-898-8721 or buy them at the box office the evening or afternoon of the performance. Noises Off tickets are general seating rather than reserved, so arrive early to get your favorite spot in the theatre.
Often called the funniest farce ever written, Noises Off is a play within a play. It began life as a short one-act play entitled Exits and after several rewrites was first presented at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith, England in February 1982. The next month, the play opened at the Savoy Theatre and made its New York Broadway debut at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre in December 1983.
Noises Off opens with the dress/technical rehearsal of a play entitled Nothing On. The director is frantically trying to get the cast to make it through the final rehearsal before the show’s opening the next evening—no mean feat for this particular group of actors!
As the run continues, the cast takes the show on the road and performs in venues throughout Europe. But the cast becomes a bit bored with the repeated performances, and a number of odd relationships develop among the cast members. The director has affairs with several of the ladies in the cast, creating humorous confusion and contradiction. By the end of the show, total chaos ensues and the entire cast is overly anxious for the curtain to fall—literally!
Lees-McRae faculty member Steve Parrish directs the show. According to Parrish, “Noises Off has been a joy to direct. It has also been one of the most difficult shows I have done as well. I have an excellent and dedicated cast of which I am so proud. They have all worked very hard to create one of the funniest farces ever written.”
Parrish described the show as “a door-slamming, slapstick comedic farce that keeps everyone on their toes! The energy is fast-paced throughout as all of the cast runs up and down steps, in and out of doors, through windows, etc. creating some of the most hilarious bits of theatre ever produced.”
Set design presented its own set of challenges. Parrish said, “The set design for the show has been done by LMC senior Angel Sheffield. She has done an excellent job on a difficult and challenging production. The set must be completely turned around during each intermission as it takes place in the cottage during the first act, then backstage as the show is being performed in the second act, and is reversed once again to the cottage for the third act. We had to be quite creative with the set as the LMC stage is not equipped for the usual turntable set used for this production. Miss Sheffield came up with a superb design that accommodates all the needs of the play.”
Cast members for Noises Off include Brandon Samples as Lloyd, Jessica Grant as Dotty, Justin Hall as Garry/Roger, Angel Whigham as Brooke/Vicki, Glenn Snellgrose as Frederick/Philip, Kirsten Davis as Belinda/Flavia, Adrienne Bergeron as Poppy, Mason Weaver as Tim and Joe Godburn as Selsdon/Burglar.
The stage manager is Abigail Clark, and the assistant stage managers are Desiree Foley and Lee Jordan. The set designer is LMC senior Angel Sheffield, with lighting design by LMC faculty Danielle Baisden.
Parrish added, “I hope audiences, both young and old, will come and join in the hilarity of the cast and crew of Noises Off!”
Want To Go?
Dates: Wednesday, February 21, through Sunday, February 25
Times: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday/2:00 p.m. Sunday
Location: Hayes Auditorium, Lees-McRae College
Cost: $12 adults/$5 students and children