WYTHEVILLE, VA. – Picture it. Springtime. 1992. Golden Girls but for [Wytheville] and the surrounding Two Virginias community.
That is how Karen Harvey describes ‘Four Old Broads’ the play by Leslie Kimbell which is making its debut at its home theater in Wytheville, Virginia following its West Virginia-run at the Bluefield Arts Center & Concord University.
This is production put on by new theater non-profit, Dogwood Theatricals.
One of the standout aspects of this production is absolutely none of the actors or actresses are novices with decades of community theater experience under their belts.
“I basically did not have auditions for this show. I called the best actors I knew. Most of the folks have 20-plus years [experience],” said Harvey.
“It is a belly full of laughs. I think the lesson is working together and reaching out to each other.”
Speaking with Harvey who has starred in various plays under 4Pals including the award-winning ‘Eleventh Hour’ and critically-acclaimed ‘Passing of Pearl’ she notes her process for developing a character starts with the written word.
“It’s a gradual process and it starts with the words and basically in how I resonate in who the character may remind me of,” said Harvey.
For Jennifer Alvarez the character-building comes with the costume design.
“The clothes help a whole lot. Maude is a really interesting character. Maude is almost do different characters depending on the act.
For 4Pals and Summit Theatre veteran actress Sandy Schweingruber who starred alongside Harvey in ‘The Eleventh Hour’ it is all about researching the era and character’s background.
“As far as character development I read the script. I went back and researched things that were talked about. I was a lady of burlesque and it mentioned Minsky so I went back and did some research on that,” said Schweingruber who plays retired burlesque dancer, Beatrice Shelton.
The curtain rises August 30th at 7:30 PM. The box office is open from 2-6 PM and two hours prior to the show.
The theatre is located at 205 Main Street in the town of Wytheville, Virginia.
To purchase tickets online click here.
For more information on the Millwald Theatre click here.
Copyright 2024 WVVA. All rights reserved.