LEWIS LANE PLAYERS TO PERFORM AWARD WINNING “BLITHE SPIRIT”

Accidents do happen, but rarely as hilariously as the doozy in Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit, coming to “Theater 351” in the Havre de Grace Activity Center on Saturday, May 31.

The year is 1941.  Imagine Charles Condomine, author and widower of his late wife Elvira, remarried these past five years to the semi-stoic and proper Ruth.  Wanting to write a novel about a thoroughly fake charlatan of a medium, he invites Madame Arcati, a purported genuine medium, over to his house to hold a séance.  Of course, Charles doesn’t believe an ounce of her routine, nor does his wife Ruth or their dear friends and guests the Bradmans.  Truly, he has only invited Madame Arcati so he can secretly observe her methods and jargon as research for his book.  But as things often do in Coward’s plays, the séance goes horribly and hilariously wrong.  Charles gets more than he bargained for when Madame Arcati unknowingly and accidentally conjures up his first wife Elvira.  Only Charles can see and hear her, which leads to all sorts of comedic misunderstandings.  Now Charles must somehow navigate his new life with one living wife and one dead one who seems to want him all to herself.

As in his other classics Private Lives and Hay Fever, Coward demonstrates a unique comedic touch in Blithe Spirit.  How is one to write a story that centers around death without becoming melancholy and depressing?  Yet from the day this play first came out over 70 years ago, critics have agreed that Coward walks the tightrope brilliantly.  None of the characters are particularly sympathetic, and throughout the show the audience gets the feeling that they are all “stewing in their own juice,” to quote Madame Arcati.  The result is a story akin to some of television’s early situational comedies, where you can’t help but laugh at the extraordinary situations in which the characters find themselves, especially because they are of their own making.

The local production is being presented by the Lewis Lane Players, the adult troupe of the Havre de Grace Drama Guild.  In addition to Coward’s classic tale, you will have the chance to see more mysterious effects than the Lewis Lane Players have ever crammed onto their stage.  After all, if you are telling a tale with ghosts wandering around, you have to make a few things go “bump” in the night!

There are two shows, both on Saturday, May 31.  The first performance begins at 12:30 pm with the second at 5:30 pm.  This is a one day only event, so don’t miss out.  Tickets are $12 for adults or $10 for children and seniors (0-11 and 55+).  They can be purchased in the Parks & Recreation office at the Havre de Grace Activity Center (351 Lewis Lane, next to the Middle School) during normal business hours or online at www.hdgdramatroop.com.  Seating is limited, so get your tickets early.