UA production lives up to its promises

John Florence/Photo Courtesy UA News Services At left, Warren Jackson plays the role of Dr. Einstein, and Mark Rogers plays Jonathan Brewster, in "Arsenic and Old Lace." The play centers around two elderly ladies who poison lonely male visitors with arsenic-laced elderberry wine.

Often times a new show fails to live up to it's hype.

The "comedy of the century" may turn out to be a waste of time and money.

So, When "Arsenic and Old Lace," a play written by Joseph Kesselring and directed by Virginia Smith, was described as "a riotous, side-splittingly hysterical farce," I wondered if I should have stayed home and watched some sporting event that I wasn't eve n interested in.

But, this was not the case.

The production, featuring a cast of University of Arizona students, lived up to its promises.

Upon entering the UA Laboratory Theatre, the audience is immediately taken back to 1941 Brooklyn, N.Y. with a clever set design that places audience members intimately close to the performance - allowing viewers to forget the real world and feel like a fl y on the wall in the peaceful setting of the Brewster home.

Johnnetta Bowser and Kara Lynn Moses portray Abby and Martha Brewster, two elderly sisters who love to feed the neighbors and help the needy. The only problem is that the two take it upon themselves to relieve lonely old men of their lives by serving them poisoned wine. They bury the bodies in their cellar.

The plot takes many turns as more characters are explored, specifically the Brewster's three nephews, Teddy, Mortimer, and Jonathan.

Robert May provides a healthy dose of physical comedy as Teddy Brewster, who believes he is actually former president Teddy Roosevelt. His eccentric speech and repetitive physical quirks leave the audience laughing, wondering and anticipating what he migh t do next.

The offbeat humor of Teddy is contrasted nicely by Mortimer, played by Blaine Christine, who tries to make sense of a situation well beyond sanity.

The play really becomes a farce when Mark Rogers and Warren Jackson show up as the evil third nephew, Jonathan, and his extremely comical sidekick, Dr. Einstein.

Add in a couple of oddball cops and the preacher's daughter from next door, and "Arsenic and Old Lace" will remind you of a circus crossed with a Stephen King novel.

The show lasts three hours, but don't worry. The mixture of good actors and a well-written script make "Arsenic and Old Lace" well worth your time. If you have any sense of humor at all, you will laugh.

The play will show in the Laboratory Theatre tomorrow through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday at 1:30 p.m. The show will be repeated in September.

Tickets are $14 for the general public, $12 for seniors and UA employees and $9 for students.