Comedy Explores Unresolved Family Issues During Thanksgiving Dinner

Energy, surprise, humor and resolution are found in the plot of “A Nice Family Gathering,” opening at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2 at the .

Written by Phil Olsen, the award-winning play “probably has two pages of thought-provoking stuff and 90 pages of humor to get there,” said Monte Engh of Ankeny, co-director with Becky Plager of Cambridge. Both are long-time community theater members.

“It’s a good play that has a good message at the end of it,” Engh said. “Like any family, this family takes a lot for granted."

Without giving too much away, Engh described the crux of the play as a family whose members get together for Thanksgiving 10 months after the father died, and there are some unresolved issues to deal with.

“As one line says, ‘He loves his family so much he just about told them',” Engh said.

At the gathering, the father surprises his son, Carl, by appearing to him. None of the other family members can see or hear him.

The father asks Carl for help in telling Mom how much her husband loved her. Mom is having a hard time dealing with her husband’s death and manifests the issue through forgetfulness and random thoughts, leaving the rest of the family mystified about her behavior.

The three main characters are played by Cory Ewing of Des Moines, who plays Carl; Kay Mueller of Boone, who plays Mom; and Rodney Tomlinson of Ankeny, who plays Dad.

Playing the lead role has been a great experience for Ewing, who said it is his first acting role since high school. “I think anyone like me who grew up with a community theater knows how you feel about acting at one,” he said. “Community theaters are kind of dying out, but I think it is important to keep community theaters active. Every community should have one.”

Mueller said she has been with the community theater for at least 10 years. Her role as Mom plays directly into her love of doing comedy, she said. During practice, she accentuates the Minnesota accent and the forgetfulness of the character.

“This is a comedy of a little different kind,” she said. “Because my character is forgetful, some of the lines, such as ‘I like jumbo shrimp,’ come out of nowhere, which makes it difficult to memorize my lines. Lines like that don’t give me any clue about what comes next, or link to the next line.”

Mueller’s experience and enthusiasm brought the character to life with a quick energy during play practice. The cast has been practicing four or five times a week for the last two months.

During Monday night’s practice, Plager and Engh sat in the audience seating, sometimes in the back row, and made notes to review with the cast. They suggested more energy in some scenes, different body placement in others, how to transition from one moment to the next, as well as the need to pick up the pace.

Although both directors have been with the community theater for more than 10 years, this is the first time either has directed a play, Plager said. There’s a lot of difference between being on stage and delivering lines, and being a director, she said.

“As a director you are responsible for everything, from seeing that the set is built, to decorating the set, to the nuances of what makes the play funny, the whole package,” Plager said.

She was particularly pleased with the Tuesday night rehearsal, which had her and Engh “laughing in their seats.”

“I think they (the cast) are ready,” Plager said. “They picked up the tempo last night, the lines came nicely and it worked well.”

Production details:

“A Nice Family Gathering,” by Phil Olsen

Duration: The play opens at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2 and runs three weekends, ending Dec.  18.

Showings: Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m.

Location: 1932 S.W. Third St.

Ticket cost: $15 for adults, $12 for senior citizens and $10 for students.