Practice makes perfect

Pennylynn Webb, Palestine Herald-Press, Texas
·2 min read

Sep. 25—Rehearsals for Palestine Community Theatre's fall production of Arsenic and Old Lace are in full swing.

Oct. 13 through Oct. 15 and Oct. 20 through Oct. 22, with curtain at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays at the historic Texas Theatre, 213 W. Crawford, downtown Palestine.

There will be a complimentary reception opening night at 6:30 p.m.

Linda McDonald is making her directorial debut with this play with the help of Assistant Director Sandy Webb.

McDonald said she has been active with the Palestine Community Theater for the last five years and was the person on the play selection committee who suggested PCT do this production.

"I thought it would be a fun show to do," McDonald said. "It's one of my personal favorites."

McDonald said PCT has a very strong cast for Arsenic and Old Lace and they are doing a great job in rehearsals.

For those that have never seen the show, Arsenic and Old Lace is a classic black comedy about the only thing more deadly than poison; family.

According to the play's synopsis on dramatists.com, the play, written by Joseph Kesselring, opens to drama critic Mortimer Brewster's engagement announcement being upended when he discovers a corpse in his elderly aunts' window seat. Mortimer, portrayed by Caleb Estrada, rushes to tell his aunts Abby and Martha, played by Katherine Newton and Sandy Webb, before they stumble upon the body themselves, only to learn that the two old women aren't just aware of the dead man in their parlor, they killed him.

Between his aunts' penchant for poisoning wine, a brother who thinks he's Teddy Roosevelt and another brother using plastic surgery to hide from the police, not to mention Mortimer's own hesitancy about marriage, it'll be a miracle if Mortimer makes it to his wedding.

This show is sponsored by Dr. Michael and Mrs. Charmaine Wilkinson.

Tickets, which are $12 for students ages 4 to 18 and $17 for adults, can be purchased in advance at www.PCTboxoffice.com and at the door before each performance.