Sunday, October 21, 2007

SOS - Arsenic, Old Lace and a centerfold

This Sunday Soap Opera involves theater and errr... a certain type of magazine. Please go visit other Soap Operas at Brillig and Walking Kateastrophe's.

I was in many theatrical productions throughout middle and high school. A favorite role was as one of the murderous spinsters in Arsenic and Old Lace. Every year the senior class at my high school put on a production in the fall and that year it was this classic from the 1940's. This particular play was a terrific choice since it allowed the football team to put in a collective cameo during the curtain call as the "victims" from the basement.

In one scene my "nephew" goes to lift up a bench seat to find a "body" inside the bench. The guy in the bench was dumped in there during an earlier scene and had to lay in there until the lights went down because of how the set was constructed. Normally the nephew would open the bench and peer down very closely into the open space then stand by the bench for me to join him. I was also to peer in closely and comment that he wasn't one of the homeless men we had "helped" (by murdering).

During the Saturday night performance, the nephew goes to the bench, lifts up the seat and sticks his head into it. Then he bolted across the stage, completely changing how the scene had been blocked. I tottered over (remember I was playing an old woman and had spent a week of rehearsals walking with marbles in my shoes so I would learn the swollen foot shuffle) and lifted the seat. I stuck my head into the open space expecting to see the kid who was playing a murdered man.

Instead I was staring at the largest set of breasts I had seen in my nearly 18 years. Someone had handed the kid a nudie magazine and he held up the centerfold for both the nephew and me to stick our noses up against.

I, in turn, loudly dropped the seat and tottered (still remembered to totter!) to the nephew on the other side of the stage and we barely got through the rest of the scene in which I explain that wasn't one of the men I had "helped" and I didn't know how he got there.

Meanwhile the kid I was dating at the time (aka homeroom guy), who was also best friends with the actor playing the nephew, was backstage running the light board and laughing his head off.

13 comments:

Heather said...

What a pro you were to keep the scene going without reacting!

Anonymous said...

Hahahahahaha!! Sorry, I couldn't help it!! Great one. :D

Madam Crunchypants said...

I'm very impressed that you didn't just start giggling on the spot!!

tripleZmom said...

Wow, I SO miss high school theater. That is hysterical - and I too am impressed with your ability to continue the scene.

Jen said...

Theater pranks can be hysterical. That was a good one, indeed. And I love Arsenic and Old Lace!

Brillig said...

HAHAHAHAHAHA. Oh. Mygosh. i would have completely lost it. That is hilarious!!! And I LOVE that you remembered to toddle. hahaha. What an awesome story!

Fourier Analyst said...

Oh how much fun was that! In college we would do our best to trip each other up during performances with whatever off-stage antics or props we could that would not be visible to the audience. The ones who could continue without cracking a smile or dropping a line were considered the "most professional" and awarded a mock Oscar at the end of term party! Hmmm, might have some future SOS tales there...

Alex Elliot said...

I'm impressed that you went through such lengths to achieve the old lady shuffle!

painted maypole said...

ahhh... the on stage joke... I have lots of these stories. We did a show where Godzilla appeared in every scene... often in a drawer or in a purse, but sometimes just hanging out on the counter for now apparent reason.

By the way... LOVED my mail this weekend! Thanks!!! (and isn't their multistory shark tank incredible?!?)

Kateastrophe said...

HAHAHA. This is so something that would have happened during our high school plays. I'm so happy you shared!

FENICLE said...

I think we all had a homeroom guy back in high school :)

Goofball said...

haha aren't those jokes wonderful memories? Awesome

Unknown said...

OH. MY. WORD!

bwaa haa haa!