Tag Archives: comedy

Men and women needed for SOAP’s Odd Couple

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Oscar and Felix. The Odd Couple. Most TV buffs are familiar with the 1968 film and series about a slob and a fussbudget who get on each other’s nerves when reduced to sharing an apartment. Fewer people are aware there’s also an “Olive-and-Florence” version of the famous Neil Simon play.

The South Okanagan Amateur Players are scouting for actors of either gender to play the title duo in their spring theatrical production of The Odd Couple. Members of the public are encouraged to audition, regardless of previous stage experience.

“SOAP’s decision to produce the male or female version of the play will depend on who auditions,” says director Penelope Johnson. “Both scripts have their own appeal, with that trademark Neil Simon humour.” Johnson has directed three previous SOAP productions and last appeared onstage with SOAP in Neil Simon’s Rumors.

Oscar (or Olive) Madison keeps a slovenly apartment, relaxing with friends over beer, pretzels, and a game of poker — or in Olive’s case, a game of Trivial Pursuit with the gals. This laid-back lifestyle ends abruptly with the arrival of Felix (or Florence) Unger, newly separated, suicidal, and searching for a place to sob out the story of a marriage gone sour. Madison takes pity on Unger and offers room and board, but soon starts regretting it when Unger embarks on a series of home improvements, including Madison’s filthy habits.

Six other roles are also available in both genders. The male version requires four more men to play Oscar’s poker buddies. It also calls for two women to play the giggly Pigeon sisters, on a date gone awry with Felix and Oscar. The female version reverses the genders: four women play Olive’s girlfriends, and two men are required as the charmingly funny Spanish suitors Manolo and Jesus.

Auditions for The Odd Couple will be held on Thursday January 13 in Room 1, Sonora Centre in Osoyoos and on Friday January 14 at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre (34274 – 95th Street) in Oliver. Drop in from 7 – 9 p.m. either evening. Not convenient? Alternative audition times can be booked.  Hopefuls will be asked to read portions of the script with other actors, and to act out some simple stage movement. Production dates are tentatively booked for April 29-30 and May 6-7, but may be adjusted to accommodate schedules. Rehearsal schedule will be developed in consultation with actors and crew, two to three times per week.

For more information, to book an alternative audition time, or to volunteer for backstage work, telephone Penelope Johnson at 250-498-0183 or email SOAP@telus.net .

Rumors Delights Audiences

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The South Okanagan Amateur Players’ spring production of Rumors by Neil Simon earned good reviews and enthusiastic applause during its six night run April 15 – 17 (Oliver) and 22 – 24 (Osoyoos).  “Delivers on fast-paced laughs … (with) rapid style, good timing, and convincing antics” summed up the Osoyoos Times reviewer, “a delight to watch”.  Ted Osborne directed the production, with Christine Rothwell as stage manager.

Comments from the audience included “professional quality acting – as good as Vancouver”,  “gorgeous costumes”, ” lovely set”, “great dialogue delivery”, and most common: “hilarious – I couldn’t stop laughing”. 

Here are a selection of Rumors photos:

A bird’s eye view of the set, taken from the sound and lighting booth  in the Osoyoos MiniTheatre. The home of Charley Brock, the deputy mayor of New York.

(Photo credit: Penelope Johnson)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Diane Gludovatz and Paul Butler as Cookie and Ernie Cusack, a cooking show host and a psychiatrist.

(Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aimee Grice and Garth Robinson ham it up after curtain call in their roles as lawyers  Chris and Ken Gorman. Aimee’s character Chris spends most of the play dying for a cigarette to calm her frayed nerves.  

 (Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

 

 

 

 

The full cast:

Back: David Badger (Officer Welch), Patrick Turner (Glenn Cooper), Paul Butler (Ernie Cusack), Garth Robinson (Ken Gorman), Sera Lean (Officer Pudney)

Seated: Diane Gludovatz (Cookie Cusack), Jen Jensen (Cassie Cooper), Aimee Grice (Chris Gorman), Penelope Johnson (Claire Ganz) .

Fron: Paul Everest (Len Ganz)

 (Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

Rumors Delights Audiences

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The South Okanagan Amateur Players’ spring production of Rumors by Neil Simon earned good reviews and enthusiastic applause during its six night run April 15 – 17 (Oliver) and 22 – 24 (Osoyoos).  “Delivers on fast-paced laughs … (with) rapid style, good timing, and convincing antics” summed up the Osoyoos Times reviewer, “a delight to watch”.  Ted Osborne directed the production, with Christine Rothwell as stage manager.

Comments from the audience included “professional quality acting – as good as Vancouver”,  “gorgeous costumes”, ” lovely set”, “great dialogue delivery”, and most common: “hilarious – I couldn’t stop laughing”. 

Here are a selection of Rumors photos:

A bird’s eye view of the set, taken from the sound and lighting booth  in the Osoyoos MiniTheatre. The home of Charley Brock, the deputy mayor of New York.

(Photo credit: Penelope Johnson)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Diane Gludovatz and Paul Butler as Cookie and Ernie Cusack, a cooking show host and a psychiatrist.

(Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aimee Grice and Garth Robinson ham it up after curtain call in their roles as lawyers  Chris and Ken Gorman. Aimee’s character Chris spends most of the play dying for a cigarette to calm her frayed nerves.  

 (Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

 

 

 

 

The full cast:

Back: David Badger (Officer Welch), Patrick Turner (Glenn Cooper), Paul Butler (Ernie Cusack), Garth Robinson (Ken Gorman), Sera Lean (Officer Pudney)

Seated: Diane Gludovatz (Cookie Cusack), Jen Jensen (Cassie Cooper), Aimee Grice (Chris Gorman), Penelope Johnson (Claire Ganz) .

Fron: Paul Everest (Len Ganz)

 (Photo credit: Sylvia Badger)

Rumors Production Rescheduled in Osoyoos

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Due to a double-booking in Osoyoos, the South Okanagan Amateur Players are rescheduling their spring production of Rumors.  The comedy still opens in Oliver on April 15 – 17 at the Frank Venables Theatre at SOSS highschool. The Osoyoos dates are now April 22 – 24  at the OSS Minitheatre.

Anyone who purchased tickets for Osoyoos already (April 8 – 10) can do one of the following:

1. return them to place of purchase for a refund
2. see the play on the same evening of the later week, keep their ticket, but just write the new date on it (say, Thursday 8th changed to Thursday 22)
3. exchange the tickets at the vendor or the door for a different evening of the week (say, Thursday 8th to Friday 23rd).
or contact SOAP@telus.net or olivercac@gmail.com for assistance and information.

 

The plot: Four couples arrive at a New York residence to celebrate the 10th wedding anniversary of the deputy mayor of New York. They find the wife Myra missing along with the servants, and the host lying unconscious in an upstairs bedroom suffering from a superficial gunshot wound. The couples represent some of the most powerful institutions in the state: the legal, financial, and medical professions, the media, and politicians. So, how do they handle a potentially explosive, gossip-laden situation? By spreading rumors and lies, of course. Be prepared to laugh as things go from bad to farce.

After two months of rehearsals, the cast and production team are still cracking up laughing at the humour, which is a good sign that audiences can expect a very funny play. Who’s involved? Ted Osborne (Sound of Music, 2008) directs. A very capable newcomer to SOAP is assistant director and stage manager, Christine Rothwell. The ensemble cast includes several actors who’ve joined SOAP within the last two productions, Sand Mountain (2009) or Sound of Music (2008): Aimee Grice, Paul Everest, Patrick Turner, and David Badger.  We welcome back Sera Lean (All in the Timing, 2003) after a too-long hiatus from SOAP. And two newcomers to the stage join the troupe: Garth Robinson and Calgary snowbird Paul Butler. Rounding out the cast are longtime SOAPers Penelope Johnson, Diane Gludovatz, and Jen Jensen.

 

Rumor Has It

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Paul Butler, a visiting snowbird from Alberta, is taking the plunge. Not off the diving board or hurtling from a ski jump, but something almost as daring. An early retiree from the forest product industry with no previous acting experience, Butler is taking centre stage in his first theatrical production. He joins the cast of Rumors by Neil Simon, a comic farce presented by the South Okanagan Amateur Players (SOAP). The same playwright also penned the comedy classics California Suite and The Odd Couple.

“My wife and I saw all the posters around town advertising the audition, and I thought, why not?” The production runs Thursday April 8 to Saturday April 10 at the OSS Minitheatre (Osoyoos), and Thursday April 15 to Saturday April 17 at the Venables Auditorium (Oliver). The dates suited the Butlers’ holiday in the Okanagan, and so, much to the surprise and amusement of his wife, Paul auditioned and won a role.

At left: Four desperate dinner guests play “Ones and Twos” to determine who will have to impersonate their unconscious host when the police arrive. The actors (left to right) are Garth Robinson, Paul Butler, Paul Everest, and Patrick Turner. Photo: Penelope Johnson

Butler plays “Ernie”, a psychoanalyst who is one of eight dinner guests invited to the tenth anniversary of the deputy mayor of New York. When the first couple comes on the scene, they discover the hostess is missing, the servants have disappeared, and their host is lying unconscious with a bullet hole through his ear. As guests continue to arrive, the attempted cover-up becomes more complicated and rumors run wild. When the police inevitably turn up, the socialites become desperate to maintain the facade, and the evening dissolves into deception and impersonation with hilarious results.

“It ends up like a case of the patients running the asylum,” chuckles Butler, taking his cue from his role as the shrink. At first, his character keeps a professional calm, but as the tension mounts, Ernie’s composure begins to crack and he joins in the frenzied physical comedy.

Butler admits rehearsals are a “big challenge”: learning stage right from stage left, how to stand and move in such a way as to remain visible to the audience, how to memorize lines, how to listen and react naturally to other characters. It’s a lot for a new actor to absorb. But director Ted Osborne gave him kudos at a recent rehearsal. After Butler delivered a particularly emotional speech, Osborne spontaneously jumped up to applaud: “That was fantastic! You absolutely nailed it! Keep it up!”

Judging by the nods and smiles from the rest of the cast, they agree: Butler’s daring plunge into acting has been worth it.

Tickets for Rumors are $15 adults and $12 seniors, and are on sale now at Your Dollar Store with More (Osoyoos) and Sundance Video (Oliver). The curtain rises at 8:00 p.m., all performances. For more information, contact 250-498-3597 or SOAP@telus.net

SOAP Auditions for Rumors comedy

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After a brief hiatus during the fall, the South Okanagan Amateur Players are back treading the boards this spring with a production of the comedy Rumors by Neil Simon. The prolific and award-winning playwright also penned The Odd Couple and California Suite.

rumors-auditions

Rumors is set at a posh dinner party to which several of New York’s socialites have been invited. When the first couple arrives, they discover that the hostess is missing along with the household staff, and that their host, the deputy mayor of New York City, has shot himself through the earlobe. Neither host nor hostess makes an onstage appearance during the entire play. As the evening progresses and more dinner guests arrive, wild rumours begin to circulate about their hosts’ marital problems. Comic complications arise when, given everyone’s upper class status, the couples decide they need to conceal the evening’s events from law enforcement and the media. As confusion and miscommunication mount, the evening spins off into classic farce culminating in an hilariously befuddled explanation to the police.

Director Ted Osborne, last at the helm of SOAP’s production of The Sound of Music, is looking for a cast of 10 adults. Four men and four women are needed to play the dinner guests, ranging in age from 30s to early 60s. Two smaller parts are available for the police officers arriving on the scene, one middle-age man and one younger woman. No previous theatrical experience is required.

Production dates are tentatively set for April 8-10 in Osoyoos and April 15-17 in Oliver. Actors must be available for a minimum of two rehearsals a week beginning in mid-January, but times and locations will be negotiated according to cast schedules. Closer to production, rehearsals may increase, as required, to three times per week.

Auditions are on Monday January 11 at the Osoyoos Art Gallery (upstairs) on 8713 Main St., and on Tuesday January 12 at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre, Studio Building, 34274 95th St., Oliver, just south of the Fire Hall. Both auditions run from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. No prepared monologue is necessary. Actors will be reading from the script. Drop-in auditions are welcome, but hopeful actors are encouraged to stay for as much of one evening as possible to work through a variety of roles with other actors.

For more information, or to arrange an alternate audition time, please contact director Ted Osborne. Volunteers who would like to assist backstage with construction, set painting, costumes, or crew, are asked to contact producer Jennifer Mapplebeck. Both can be reached by emailing SOAP@telus.net

SOAP Players hold Auditions for Sand Mountain

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sandmountain

 

 

 

 

 

 

The South Okanagan Amateur Players are holding auditions for their summer   production of the comedy Sand Mountain.

Auditions dates are Wednesday April 23 at the Sonora Centre in Osoyoos and Thursday April 24 at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre in Oliver, 7 – 9 p.m. each evening.

The play will be performed at Tinhorn Creek Winery Amphitheatre during the third week of July. Roles are available for men and women 20 – 60 years and for one or two children aged 8 – 13 years.

romulus linney

romulus linney

Sand Mountain is a pair of original Appalachian folk tales written by American playwright Romulus Linney. These humorous tales are set at a rustic cabin in the plateaus of Alabama. The characters are simple mountain folk full of practical wisdom. Each tale has different characters but are set at the same location, are meant to be performed together, and can be cast with the same actors or double cast. Both tales have a sweet unconventional charm and some good belly laughs. They have a decidedly cock-eyed view of the world and should leave audiences thinking – and smiling.

The first act is “Sand Mountain Matchmaking”.

A young widow-woman is keen to remarry but not so keen on her over-eager suitors. Each man is unsuitable for different reasons: too self-righteous, too old, too vain or too greedy. She is attracted to one younger suitor, but she is unsure of his intentions. She obtains advice from the local wise woman, who gives the young widow a piece of eyebrow-raising folk wisdom audiences are unlikely to ever forget. In this play, the largest part is for a young woman in her 20s. The male lead can be a little older. The wise woman, another large role, calls for a character actor who could potentially double as the narrator for the second act.

1564710 The second act is “Why the Lord Come to Sand Mountain”. Jesus and Saint Peter, dressed as poor Appalachian folk, decide to pay a visit to Sand Mountain. Saint Peter can’t wait to get down to the rich valley and hear the praises of God-fearing folks. The Lord has other ideas. He’s much more interested in meeting the young couple with fourteen children (all played as one child actor) who keep their mountain cabin in a foul state and drink moonshine. To Peter’s horror, the Lord declares he wants to bide a while, and Jesus spends the whole night swapping outrageous tall tales with his hosts. The tale ends with the Lord granting an unusual blessing on the household, with results both hilarious and touching. In this tale, the older men (possibly the suitors in the first play) play the larger roles. A female character actor takes the part of the narrator.

A prepared audition piece is welcome but not required. Cast hopefuls should come prepared to read and act out portions of the script with others. Bring yer drawl if yew got one. Newcomers are encouraged. Those unable to attend on the dates set for auditions are asked to call for an appointment.

Long-time SOAP members Penelope Johnson and Diane Gludovatz direct. They are also seeking backstage crew for sound technician, props, and set. For more information on auditions, call Penelope at 250-498-0183 or email SOAP@telus.net