Posted: 4/12/05
ëBlazing Gunsí will roar on Friday
By David Heiller
Argus News Editor
Get ready to boo and cheer.
The Founders Day Players are presenting Blazing Guns at Roaring Gulch at the Caledonia City Auditorium during the weekends of April 15 and April 22.
The comedy/melodrama by Shubert Fendrichs will have 7:30 p.m. performances on April 15, 16, 22, and 23, with a 2 p.m. performance on April 24.
Laura Eglinton, the first-time director, said the play is very funny. ìWeíve seen this play a dozen times and thereís still lines weíre laughing out loud at,î she said on April 7.
The cast members are quite accomplished, and have a lot of experience, Eglinton said. ìThey are a ton of fun to work with.î
Blazing Guns has musical pieces too, which were chosen to fit the dialogue of that portion of the play. They are humorous snippets that help tell the story, Eglinton said. The audience wonít be serenaded by beautiful voices like in Oklahoma, Eglinton said.
ìWe may be actors but weíre certainly not singers,î she said. ìWeíre hoping it has a humorous twist.î
Eglinton picked the play through a drama service because it called for a relatively small cast. Itís hard to find cast members, especially males, she said.
Doing a play takes a big commitment of time. Thatís why there was not a play last year, especially with many people involved in the cityís sesquicentennial celebration, Eglinton feels.
Eglinton worries that the plays could die out if more people donít get involved. The plays are well worth it, she feels, especially considering the junk on television.
Audiences enjoy the plays, and itís fun to see people you know get out of character, she said.
ìItís clean comedy and itís a family thing,î she said. ìI just donít think we have enough of that. Society as a whole. Iím not just talking about Caledonia.î
Practicing during the winter is a great way to fight cabin fever, she added.
Greta Goetting, who plays the evil Widow Black, is also excited about this yearís play. This is her fifth play, and itís one of her favorites. ìThis year as a whole itís just gone so smoothly. Everyone seems to be into it and having a good time,î Goetting said. Not having a play last year may have brought renewed energy back to the cast, she said.
This yearís play is simple, itís easy to follow, and there are no set changes. Itís short too, about 90 total minutes. ìA lot of us do a little singing, some better than others,î Goetting said with a laugh. Then she added, ìWeíre able to laugh at ourselves. You almost have to be.î
As for that audience participation, booing and cheering will be greatly encouraged. Shea Goetting, 11, and Claire Eglinton, nine, will even stand at the front of the stage with ìBooî and ìCheerî signs. Theyíll walk to the center to signal for the right response.
ìI get booed a lot,î Greta Goetting said.
Being in the play is fun for cast members, Goetting said. ìI feel like itís something I can do for the community, because it really is a big fundraiser for the Founders Day.î
Itís also a chance for her to be a little goofy and get out of the house. ìItís just kind of like a play date with your friends once or twice a week,î she said.
Laura Eglinton is an fabulous director, she added.
The audience will be both booing and cheering Peter Privet. He plays two roles, good guy Harry Heartthrob, and bad guy Snipe Vermin.
Asked how he managed that, Privet answered, ìI just change costumes a lot. Youíll just have to come and find out, and bring people.î
Cast members like to ad lib and use the names of people in the audience in their lines, Privet said. ìIíve used my dad a couple times and my boss.î
Itís all part of the fun, he said. ìItís fun trying to make people laugh.î
This is Privetís fifth Founders Day play. Itís a big time commitment, but a worthwhile one, he feels. ìWeíre kind of like a little family for a couple months,î he said.
He encourages people to attend a performance.
A synopsis of the play
Here is a synopsis of the play, Blazing Guns at Roaring Gulch. Cast membersí names are written in parenthesis.
Blazing Guns . . . in a hotel lobby At the Roaring Gulch Hotel, one never knows what could happen next. Our hero, Harry Heartthrob (Peter Privet), is in hot pursuit of the desperado, Snipe Vermin (Peter Privet), Harryís twin brother. Will they meet face-to-face? What will the lady sheriff of Roaring Gulch, Willie Lovelace (Kelly Petersen), do? What will Verminís nutty sidekick, stage-struck farm boy Bill Filbert (Bruce Eglinton), do? Will the evil proprietress of the Roaring Gulch Hotel, Widow Black (Greta Goetting), be booked up or just booked? With a good-natured desk clerk Barney Black, (Steve Schuldt), and customers like stranded actress Martha Muldoon (Candis Wiste), traveling salesman Colonel Crabtree (Sanford Wiste), and show girls Flora (Anna Von Arx) and Dora (Randi Vick), itís no wonder thereís Guns a Blazing.
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