Utter Despair Community Theater's Summer Season Comes to an End

The Summer is waning down. This means an end to the wonderful menu of delights that The Utter Despair Community Theater served to a hungry populace starving for the arts this past July and August.

There were several highlights including a production of Neil Simon's THE ODD COUPLE performed by the Gillespie Twins Edward and Larry. It was a surreal version due to the fact that you could not tell which was Felix and which was Oscar ... except for which one was wearing an apron and carrying a feather duster AND which one was wearing a ball cap and wearing a dirty sweatshirt. They would change roles each night, but who could tell? It was weird, but somehow seemed to bear a strange existential quality about the duo components of one's personality. THE FUTURIST! loved it.

And there was a production geared for children based on the little French school girl Madeline series of picture books by Ludwig Bemelmens. It was an adaptation loosely played with entitled MADELINE AND THE INVASION OF PARIS 1940.



The Community Theater Director Peter Wilkie is very avant garde and loves to challenge the audience. Wilkie's production of 12 ANGRY MEN cast with 12 mannequins, who spoke through off stage voices, was stultifying ... as was his OF MICE AND MEN wherein he substituted a drugged circus bear in the role of Lenny. This production proved to be terrifying to THE FUTURIST! who has a fear of bears ... and it was, also, stopped on opening night when the bear urinated on the audience in the first row seats.

Wilkie's most talked about production was some French spoken psycho drama that played only one night. It starred a cast of four and the Douglas Sirk film ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS was projected over the actors.



The trouser removal stirred the audience and was the highlight of the night.

And finally, there was the rendition of Mozart arias by 14 yr old Robin Schlotz. Robin received a lot of applause and kudos for his vocal technique. THE FUTURIST! must nod to Robin's talent for tonal gusto, but is not as enamored as everyone else since he lives two doors down from THE FUTURIST!'s abode AND his nightly rehearsals erected a roadblock to nocturnal rest for THE FUTURIST!.



Here's hoping the Autumnal offerings are as fascinating.