ACTORS' production of Aaron Sorkin's "The Farnsworth Invention" is 'best script of the season'

For fans of “A Few Good Men” and “The West Wing,” the next show at ACTORS theater is “must-see TV.”

Aaron Sorkin, the creator of those two popular productions, is also the mastermind of “The Farnsworth Invention,” which will premiere on the Ames Community Theatre stage on Thursday, April 4.

The ACTORS' latest production details the magical rise of television and how it came to be. The Chicago Sun-Times called "The Farnsworth Invention" a “firecracker of a play.”

“This is the best script we will do this season,” said Stan Rabe, a volunteer at ACTORS and a member of the show’s cast.

The plot involves a David-vs-Goliath style clash between two visionaries who claim they invented TV.

According to a news release, “The boy genius Philo T. Farnsworth with his team of enterprising, underfunded dreamers goes up against the brilliant corporate business mogul David Sarnoff, a telecommunications pioneer who was to become the president of RCA and the founder of NBC.” In the end, the audience is left to judge who should be given credit for television.

The local show offers brief histories of each of the men.

A self-taught prodigy, Farnsworth was born in Utah. He was still in high school when he started toying with the concept of electronic television. Farnsworth was the first person to engineer and transmit a moving image.

Sarnoff fled Russia with his family and settled in New York City. He started as a copyboy and eventually became president of NBC.

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Fast costume changes are a key to ACTORS production

The local production of "The Farnsworth Invention" will be fast and nostalgic.

“It has been an absolute joy watching my vision of this incredible show brought to life by this cast,” Mike Miller, director of the ACTORS production, said in a news release. “Not only do they have the challenge of playing multiple characters, they’re also tasked with making the scene changes fast and seamless.”

Action in “The Farnsworth Invention” is constant, even though the play moves across locations and time periods.

“Sorkin also does a great job of setting the audience up for things that happen in the later part of the story,” the release stated. “’The 'Farnsworth Invention’ script has been masterfully crafted to bring the audience into the story of how television was invented.”

With a simple set, the cast changes characters so frequently that complete costume changes aren’t possible.

It was challenging for cast and crew to indicate that an actor had taken on a different role.

“Audiences will see the influence Sorkin put on the story with how quickly the changes are made,” according to the release.

Newsday said the play is “vintage Sorkin and crackling prime-time theater.”

The cast is a mix of familiar and new faces. Cody Ihnen, who plays Sarnoff, and Doug Fiore, who plays Farnsworth, first appeared at ACTORS in “12 Angry Jurors.”

Several other cast members play multiple characters. ACTORS veterans include Ben Smith, Seth Levings, Sophie Bass, Natalie Morrill, Wren Bouwman, Stan Rabe, Trevor Rhedin and Ruthellen Cunnally.

ACTORS newcomers include Raleigh Altenhofen, David Lee, Lucas Bakken, Leila Tobin, Thomas Barbier and Scott Le.

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How to get tickets to 'The Farnsworth Invention'

The Farnsworth Invention opens April 4 and runs for two weekends. Discover Ames will sponsor appetizers on opening night.

Performances will be held at 7:30 p.m. April 4, 5, 6, 12 and 13 and at 2 p.m. April 14.

Tickets are available online at the ACTORS website, actorsinc.org. ACTORS Theater is located at 120 Abraham Drive.

Ronna Faaborg covers business and the arts for the Ames Tribune. Reach her at rlawless@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Ames Community Theater stages Sorkin's 'The Farnsworth Invention'