'Arsenic and Old Lace' set for New Castle Playhouse
NEW CASTLE – The dates for "Arsenic and Old Lace" at the New Castle Playhouse have changed due to a cast illness.
Show dates now will be March 31 and April 1, 2 and 13-16.
The beloved classic always has audiences laughing until they have tears in their eyes. The story of Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic who is in love with the girl next door, and his challenges dealing with his family which includes two spinster aunts, Abby and Martha, who are poisoning men and their brother Teddy is burying in the cellar, and their brother Jonathan, a sadistic gangster who looks like Boris Karloff and is plotting to kill Mortimer.
"Arsenic and Old Lace" doesn't sound like a comedy but is and it proves that the only thing more deadly than poison is family.
Director Paula Ferguson said, "It's a riot and Robert Whiting as Jonathan will bring the house down."
Whiting, veteran actor/director of Edinburg, is making his New Castle Playhouse debut as the Boris Karloff look alike, which is not a pretty sight.
"I wanted to play Jonathan because I get to yell a lot and be menacing, things I can't do in real life. I like being Jonathan and I am trying to find a way to make him more sympatric, but it's not easy," he said.
Whiting said the cast is wonderful and the two spinster sisters are particularly funny.
"I am so impressed with Paula (Ferguson) because she is so intense and so passionate. She's a great director who gets the most from everyone. She is phenomenal," he said.
In 2000, Whiting graduated from Mohawk High School where he first got interested in theater. His interest has continued and has acted and directed in a number of theaters in the area.
"There was time off from theater during COVID and I was interested in getting back on stage and I'm enjoying it," Whiting said.
Ferguson said she never considered doing "Arsenic and Old Lace," but when it was handed to her she is happy with the experience.
"It is always difficult to get men out for auditions and I needed nine was glad to get eight and complete the cast," she said.
To those who have seen the play before and the many who have seen the 1944 "Arsenic and Old Lace" movie that has run almost endlessly on television, you know the plot and how funny it is. For anyone who hasn't seen it, it's time to get there and have a lot of laughs. In the meantime pour yourself a glass of elderberry wine and enjoy because after you see this play it will never taste the same again.
Written by Joseph Otto Kesselring, who wrote many plays, but "Arsenic And Old Lace" is his only hit, and it is black comedy at its very best.
What: "Arsenic and Old Lace"
Where: New Castle Playhouse Annex 202 E. Long Ave., New Castle
When: 7:30 p.m. March 31, April 1, 13, 14 and 15 and 2 p.m. April 2 and 16.
Admission: All seats, $13.
For reservations, call (724) 654-3437 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Information: 724-654-3437; www.newcastleplayhouse.org online; email office@newcastleplayhouse.org
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: 'Arsenic and Old Lace' coming to New Castle Playhouse this week
