Quote of the Day:  Work hard, do the best you can, don’t ever lose faith in yourself and take no notice of what other people say about you. Noel Coward

The cast of Blithe Spirit, played by Nicholas Kory (around the table from left), Kryston Wisely, Bri Keran, Barb McColgan, Kevin Yaeger and Brianna Engels, surround a table while holding a séance as they inadvertantly summon the titular spirit played by Nicole Rothleutner. (Kelly Humphrey, Brainerd Dispatch)

The cast of Blithe Spirit, played by Nicholas Kory (around the table from left), Kryston Wisely, Bri Keran, Barb McColgan, Kevin Yaeger and Brianna Engels, surround a table while holding a séance as they inadvertantly summon the titular spirit played by Nicole Rothleutner. (Kelly Humphrey, Brainerd Dispatch)

Blythe Spirit is a lively romp through time and space, where the deceased never really go away, bringing to the life the phrase, “Your past will come back to haunt you.” In this classic comedy by Noel Coward, Charles is holding a se’ance as research for a novel that he’s writing. He says he doesn’t really believe in supernatural powers, but he sings a different tune when his first, deceased, wife, Elvira, shows up, all angelic looking, yet with a devilish attitude, especially towards his current wife, Ruth! Charles is the only one who can see and hear Elvira. Elvira can see and hear everyone. As you can imagine, they have much confusion, miss-communication, and several sight gags, all ingredients for a great comedy. 

Dawn Marks went all out choosing costumes for the this piece, set in England in what seems like pre-WWII. Coward wrote the play in 1941. The set is gorgeous, and by the end, seems to have character of its own. All the actors did a fine job. Kevin Yeager, who was last seen playing the ghost of an actor who played Hamlet in I Hate Hamlet at CLC, is this time the living character troubled by ghosts. My favorite scenes, the ones where I laughed out loud and almost clapped in delight, were when Barb McColgan, who played Madame Arcati, appeared in all her clairvoyance, to conjure up the dead.

Director Patrick Spradlin said the cast has come a long way in a short time, and that Blythe Spirit is a challenging play. The audience sees all the characters, including the ghosts. Some of the actors see the ghosts, most do not. So, the ones who can’t “see” them need to pretend that they can’t see or hear another actor who is on stage, sometimes right next to them, and when they do start to believe that they are there, talk in a direction where they might or might not be standing. It is really fun to watch, and as the audience, we feel like we’re in on all the secrets….but, not quite.

Go out and support you local theatre! Blythe Spirit is playing at Central Lakes College Theatre July 10-12 & 17-19, all shows start at 7:30 p.m.

Go. Create. Inspire!

Journaling Prompt:  Have you ever felt the presence of a spirit? Who would you like to have visit you from the beyond? Who do you want to stay away?