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‘Miss Firecracker’ promises plenty of
laughs
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| KATHLEEN DURAND,
Herald News Staff Reporter |
March 07,
2003 |
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Herald
News Staff
| FALL
RIVER -- The Little Theater of Fall River Inc. will present Beth
Henley’s comedy "The Miss Firecracker Contest" March 13 through
March 16 in the Margaret L. Jackson Arts Center at Bristol Community
College. |
Written by the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of "Crimes
of the Heart," the two-act play takes place in Brookhaven, a small
Mississippi town, a few days before the Fourth of July. Carnelle
Scott is rehearsing furiously for the Miss Firecracker Contest,
hoping that a victory will salvage her tarnished reputation and
allow her to leave town in a blaze of glory.
With the
unexpected arrival of her former beauty queen cousin, Elain, and
Elain’s brother, Delmount -- recently released from a mental
institution -- Carnelle’s efforts are complicated. Carnelle has
always emulated her cousin, a former Miss Firecracker. She tries to
persevere with the help of friends, hoping to escape an unhappy past
and turn hopefully toward a better future.
Full of suspense,
conflict and hope and a cast of zany characters, the production is
directed by Joe Wallace, who directed Little Theatre’s "You Can’t
Take It with You," staged in 1999. Wallace was featured last year in
the title role of Little Theater’s production of William
Shakespeare’s "Hamlet." Patricia Taylor is the production’s stage
manager.
The production features Christina Wolfskehl, Karyn
Valcourt, Stacey L. Cabral, David Faria, Joseph Luca and Shandy
Monte. Wolfskehl, who plays Carnelle, and Cabral, who plays her
cousin, Elain, are both newcomers to Little Theater. They are the
two main characters, but with a cast of only six, everyone has a
substantial part.
"All six are very good in their roles,"
said Kathy Castro, who is assisting Wallace. "It’s a very cute show
set around a Miss Firecracker Contest."
Castro said Little
Theater is hoping for a good turnout. "Those who come will certainly
have a good time. It’s a very enjoyable play," she said.
"The
Miss Firecracker Contest" is a great cure for the winter doldrums,
said Castro. She encourages people to, "Come to BCC and spend a few
hours laughing."
Wallace said the play is very well written
but not very well known. "People will be pleasantly surprised," he
said. "We’ve got a great cast. They’re all doing very well. I really
do recommend that people come and see it."
He said it’s rare
as a director to have a cast as experienced as this one. "They all
get along. Everybody is equal and they are having great fun," he
said. "I get energized when I come to rehearsals."
Wallace
also directs a high school theater group in Cranston, R.I. He is
studying for a master’s degree in theater and English at Rhode
Island College. In Little Theater productions he played Judge
Danforth in "The Crucible" and Stanley Kowalski in "A Streetcar
Named Desire."
Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday, March
13, through Saturday, March 15, and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 16. Tickets
are $12, with discounts available for students, seniors and groups
of 20 or more.
For reservations or more information, call
the Little Theater box office at 508-675-1852 or visit
www.littletheatre.net.
Kathleen Durand may be reached at
kdurand@heraldnews.com.
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| ©The
Herald News 2003 |
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