By Charlie Warner, Special to the Independent
Student actors perform in “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” a show at the Laguna Beach High School Artists’ Theatre, which begins Friday, Nov. 4, for a two weekend run.
The play follows New Yorker Sheridan Whiteside as he is lampooned in a foreign environment, forced to put up with the local charm of a small town. Set in the 1930s, the play blends witty writing and touching themes to represent an era. Filled with popular culture from the time, the play serves as a time capsule for the modern observer.
The play also is a homecoming of sorts.
The current show’s director, Celena Marie DelPizzo-Howell, was featured in the 2006 production of the play as an actor. An LBHS student at the time, DelPizzo-Howell portrayed the character Maggie Cutler in a performance directed by the school’s longtime theater department chair, the now retired Mark Dressler.
“This hilarious comedy has always been one of my favorites and I am thrilled to be bringing it back to the Artists’ Theatre,” said DelPizzo-Howell.
“The Man Who Came to Dinner” features over 30 actors, including some from Thurston Middle School and El Morro Elementary, as well as a technical crew of 12, all of whom are school students. As the play’s co-director and producer, theater instructor Alexis Karol described, “it is a special one!”
The play will be on stage at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4, 5, 10 and 12 and at 2:30 p.m. Nov. 6 and 13. Tickets are $10 for students, $15 for adults. Reserved seating is also available for $20.
