Arsenic and Old Lace
Show Dates: October 8-10 & 15-17, 2021
Written by Joseph Kesselring
Directed by Kim Shafer
The play, a clever combination of the farcical and the macabre, centers on two elderly sisters who are famous in their Brooklyn neighborhood for their numerous acts of charity. Unfortunately, however, their charity includes poisoning lonely old men who come to their home looking for lodging. The two women are assisted in their crimes by their mentally challenged nephew who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt and who frequently blasts a bugle and yells “charge” as he bounds up the stairs. Matters get complicated when a second nephew, a theater critic, discovers the murders and a third nephew appears after having just escaped from a mental institution. In his adroit mixture of comedy and mayhem, Kesselring satirizes the charitable impulse as he pokes fun at the conventions of the theater.
Click here to download the Arsenic and Old Lace Program
ARSENIC AND OLD LACE CAST
The Rev. Dr. Harper: Terry Schoppenhorst
Teddy Brewster: Joey McLaughlin
Officer Brophy: June Chappelle
Office Klein: Dominick Garrison
Martha Brewster: Felicia Coulter
Elaine Harper: Rachel Bridges
Mortimer Brewster: AJ Gersch
Mr. Gibbs: Michael Coulter
Jonathan Brewster: Chris Proffitt
Dr. Einstein: Max Corlas
Officer O’Hara: Dennis Killen
Lieutenant Rooney: Christopher Boyster
Mr. Witherspoon: Michael Savage
IN THE NEWS
- REVIEW: Something old, yet new (Illinois Times, Dennis Thread)
- WICS – AJ Gersh
- Audiences of Springfield Theatre Centre’s ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ should expect the unexpected (State Journal Register – Janet Seitz)
- ‘Arsenic’ laced with Jacksonville ties (Jacksonville Journal Courier – Angela Bauer)
- WMAY – Kevin Hart
- WTAX – Joey McLaughlin