This wildly popular comedic farce written by Joseph Kesselring revoles around two elderly sisters who are famous in their Brooklyn neighborhood for their numerous acts of charity but are as crazy as loons. Mix in a dollop of Teddy Roosevelt, a dash of Albert Einstein, and stir with an assortment of quirky characters and you get a lethal cocktail of murder, mayhem, and laughter. Come see what the N.Y. Times called "a play so funny you will never forget it."
Directed at Candlelight by Tom Teti, Arsenic and Old Lace features Susan Dewey and Susan Giddings as the sisters, Abby and Martha. Their nephews are played by David Polgar (Mortimer), Jim Rubright (Jonathan, the psychopathic nephew), and David Cashell (Teddy, the nephew who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt). The play also features Megan Pisors as Mortimer's fiancee Elaine; David Wills as Dr. Einstein, Jonathan's alcoholic plastic surgeon; Barry Gomolka as Rev. Harper and Mr. Witherspoon; Joe Francisco as Officer O'Hara; Jason Klemm and Vahan Berberian as Officers Brophy and Klein; and Ted Ford as Mr. Gibbs and Lieutenant Rooney. The set is by Envision Productions, with lighting design by Mark Clapp and costumes by Tony Oriente.
Arsenic and Old Lace was written in 1941. It perhaps became best known when it was made into a movie of the same name in 1944 starring Cary Grant and directed by Frank Capra.
Arsenic and Old Lace is made possible, in part, through support from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency committed to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts.
Arsenic and Old Lace runs Saturday May 7th through Sunday, June 19th. All tickets include dinner and show and are $59 for adults and $33 for children. Group rates are available for groups of 15 or more. Please call the box office for more information. Performances are Friday and Saturday evenings with doors opening at 6:00 pm and show at 8:00 pm, and Sunday afternoons when doors open at 1:00 pm with a 3:00 pm show. A Thursday evening performance is available June 9th (doors open at 6:00 pm, show at 8:00 pm), and a limited number of seats are available for the matinee June 15th (doors open at 11am with show at 1pm). For more information call 302-475-2313 or visit www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org.
Videos