SPRINGVILLE — Two sweet old ladies, a psychotic nephew and a pinch of cyanide create a hilarious mix of surprises in Art City Playhouse's somewhat-amateurish rendition of "Arsenic and Old Lace."
The performance's strong point rests in the script — a classic piece of drama by Joseph Kesselring.
Although a trace of insanity can be found in any family, Mortimer Brewster (Joel Dehlin) finds out just how crazy his family is when his aunts reveal their propensity for poisoning lonely old men. Convinced their deeds are acts of service, the old aunties have already buried 12 men in the basement with the help of their other nephew.
Family troubles begin to swirl out of control when violent prodigal nephew Jonathan Brewster (Kevin Lawrence) shows up.
Desperate to protect his aunts, Mortimer takes the audience through a series of side-splitting escapades.
The small Springville cast does an admirable job, and Nan Parkinson McCulloch and Cathy Merrill absolutely steal the show as Aunt Abby and Aunt Martha.
Forgotten lines and a generally drawn-out delivery make for an overly long play — two-and-a-half hours on one evening — but theatergoers of all ages will enjoy the story of family rivalries, young love and just general insanity.
E-mail: rwestenskow@desnews.com
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