Staples Players Radio Theatre Presents THE MARVELOUS MELLOW MELODRAMA OF THE MARRIAGE OF MISLAID MINOR

The Marvelous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor packs the large dose of silliness our souls need about now. This send-up of a traditional British melodrama is the first Players show to feature freshmen and sophomores only, with some upperclassmen assistant directing alongside directors David Roth and Kerry Long. The comedy airs for FREE this Friday, March 26th, at 7 pm EDT, via livestream at www.wwptfm.org.

"The script for this show fell in our laps-literally," says Kerry Long. "One morning, I had the idea that we might do a show featuring just freshman and sophomore, since we weren't afforded the same time we usually get with them during the fall show. David just happened to have been sent a script from Australian playwright Kristen Doherty, who is a member of a Facebook group David and I run for High School Theatre Teachers & Directors. The script features big, broad characters, tons of roles, and it's just plain funny!"

The directors have enjoyed working with the underclassmen and watching the upperclassmen assistant directors-Sophie Rossman (SHS '21), Sammy Webster (SHS '21), Lulu Dalzell (SHS '21), Kate Stephan (SHS '21), and Chloe Nevas (SHS '22)-mentor their young peers. Long adds, "Senior Jasper Burke did an astounding job helping the young actors with their British accents."

As Assistant Director, Kate Stephan attends rehearsal daily, helps to keep the process running smoothly, and facilitates communications between the actors and directors. "I run my own rehearsals from time to time and give notes to the actors," she says. "I'm also in charge of making sure the actors finish certain tasks such as character bios, which are in-depth character questions to help the actors really get to know the characters they are playing. I have had a great time with the underclassmen-getting to know their personalities and seeing all of them bring to life such amazing characters."

Quinn Mulvey (SHS '23) is having a blast playing Penelope Kerslake. "Penelope is totally outrageous," explains Mulvey. "Everything she says seems a little extra, a little ridiculous, a little exaggerated. It is fun to play a character who is supposed to be campy and try to really push it to the limit. It took a few readings to really get in touch with the tone of the show and allow myself to let go and be a little silly with it. Dialect is a large part of this show, so working on my accent and delivery has been an ongoing process to keep Penelope authentic."

Henry Carson (SHS '24) plays Major Kerslake, Penelope's father. "I love this role because I get to do so much with my voice for it, such as conveying his age and increasing sickness through the show," says Carson. "There's this great challenge of bringing his larger-than-life personality, while not losing him as a realistic character. I tried to really get an image of Major Kerslake in my head and envision his mannerisms as he reacted to these other characters he has to deal with all the time. The show is a great parody on the classic soap opera/melodrama format, with over-the-top twists and turns. Overall it's a great time with some hilarious characters."

The Kerslake's tough loving maid, Ms. Scrubber, is played by Sophia Betit (SHS' 23). "To play this role, I had to really practice switching my emotions very quickly-one scene screaming and fighting with anger, the next hysterically crying," says Betit. "The most challenging aspect was the Irish accent. I practiced every day for at least 20 minutes on Irish dialect warm-ups. I knew I would have to be really confident with the different signature sounds in order to make the accent sound natural." Betit expects "audiences will love this show because of how funny it is. Even when I am in rehearsal, I can't help but smile hard during every scene!"

DETAILS:

Staples Players Presents:

The Marvelous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor

By Kristen Doherty

Production Team

Directors........................................... David Roth, Kerry Long
Music Director............................................Don Rickenback
Audio Director................................................. Geno Heiter
Technical Director............................................. .Jeff Hauser
Assistant Technical Director...............................Alicia D'Anna
Graphic Designer...............................................Kerry Long

Performance Schedule

Friday, March 26, at 7 pm EDT

Tune in for FREE via livestream at www.wwptfm.org

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