Charley's Aunt
at Wakefield School

Reviewed on April 28, 2018

Sophie Burdette
J.E.B. Stuart High School
Submitted for publication to Cappies News

What do drag, young love, and high tea have in common? Wakefield School showcased all three in their production of Charley's Aunt this weekend.

First performed in 1892, the Victorian farce had an original run of almost 1,500 shows in London, opening on Broadway in 1893. Brandon Thomas' three-act comedy concerns Jack Chesney and Charley Wykeham, two college students who invite their sweethearts (and Charley's aunt) over for lunch. When Charley's aunt is late, there seems nothing for the boys to do but to enlist their friend and fellow student Lord Fancourt Babberley ("Babs") to impersonate the relative in drag. As may be expected, a cocktail of shenanigans and dramatic irony ensues.

The production was accentuated by detailed physical comedy executed with spot-on timing by the cast. From playing monkey-in-the-middle with a briefcase of champagne to whipping up tea in a hat, the cast nailed their visual gags in the true spirit of a farce.

Armed with a puckish grin and an impeccable sense of comedic timing, Christopher Wagner's portrayal of the cross-dressing Babs was fresh and funny. Wagner slid with ease between hiding apprehensively behind a fan to firmly reproving an impudent gentleman. In the latter case, Wagner's stage presence was upheld by his arm as he struck the hat off the offender's head with a well-aimed book. Wagner was also able to carry the emotion of a lovesick young man, thwarted in affairs of the heart simply because his beloved did not see through his disguise as a woman.

Skyler Tolzien and Tori Finn worked in tandem as the young lovers Kitty Verdun and Amy Spettigue, executing synchronized stage business and forming sharp angles with their bodies. Tolzien brought a spark of sass to Kitty, while Finn's gracefully poised Amy served as a foil to her more impulsive beau, Charley (Ethan Rosenfeld). Although diction was occasionally difficult to understand, volume was always strong. The cast met with a few technical difficulties, but they covered for these in character without missing a beat.

The period costuming reflected the Victorian emphasis on appearances, with the gentlemen in sharp suits and ladies in pastels and lace. Each of the play's three acts featured a different set configuration, each effective without being overly complex. The doors and walls used in Acts I and III were reversible, so that one side featured warm-toned college lodgings on a bright morning, and the other became a blue drawing-room in the evening, hung with opulent curtains. Act II featured two simple arches and a stone wall. Bright greenery struck a refreshing contrast against the grey stone.

From drapes to drag, Wakefield School delivered a bright farce with glee.

Ellie Orzulak
Duke Ellington School of the Arts
Submitted for publication to Cappies News 2

Two college boys getting way in over their heads is nothing new. When paired with drag, it's a little bit newer. When added to dry British humor, enormous debt, proposals, forgotten love, and an unhappy guardian, it's a Shakespearean-like comedy with wholesome characters and hilarious twists. Charley's Aunt at the Wakefield School is a charming, goofy production that manages to be fresh and surprising, even given its predictable nature.

Charley's Aunt, written in 1892 by Brandon Thomas, broke all the records of its time. The play tells of one day in the lives of Charley Wykeham and Jack Chesney, two Oxford students in love, and planning to propose. When Charley gets word that his wealthy aunt, the lady Donna Lucia D'Alvadorez, is planning on paying him a visit, Jack and Charley jump at the opportunity and decide to hold a lunch, inviting their romantic partners. When they receive word that Donna Lucia cannot make it, they do the next best thing; Dress their buddy Babbs up in drag and hope that the girls don't notice anything odd.

Christopher Wagner takes center stage as Lord Fancourt Babberley, known as Babbs to his friends. Wagner, dressed in traditional women's clothing and a wig, expertly moved through being an eccentric aunt and a typical undergrad kid for the duration of the play. His performance and comedic timing were superlative, and his moments of sincerity with his love interest at the end of the play were genuine, and a wonderful contrast to his comedic points.

Alexander Mischel and Ethan Rosenfeld as Jack and Charley capture chemistry throughout the show like a champagne bottle- bubbly, light, and explosive if shaken. Mischel and Rosenfeld worked very well off each other, alternating moments of genuine confusion with hilarious physical altercations and satisfying moments of truth. Mischel plays the unsure boy when interacting with his love interest Kitty. (Skyler Tolzien) His bashfulness and light treading meshed with Tolzien's sarcasm to result in a sometimes awkward, but adorable budding relationship. Tolzien worked in sync with Tori Finn, who plays Kitty's best friend Amy. The girls sat down together, turned their heads together, and interacted with their boys together for moments of symmetry in the messy world of the play.

Another sweet duo was that of Jack's dad, Colonel Sir Francis Chesney (Andrew Maraska) and the real Donna Lucia (Audrey Brown.) Maraska's character was well researched and reminiscent of the period, he was very composed and always put together throughout the show. Brown played Charley's actual aunt with an all-knowing air, she reacted to the other characters in the show with sassy mannerisms and quips that let the audience know exactly who she was.

The set, designed by student Justine Jones, was simple and tasteful, it didn't distract from the action, but provided a gentle cushion to the plot; subtly letting the audience know where the characters were. In nice contrast to the minimal set, the costumes, designed by student Sophia McMahon, were extravagant. McMahon produced beautiful period dresses and suits that worked very well for each character.

At the end of Charley's Aunt, nearly everything was tied up nicely (except for the girl's grumpy Guardian, Spettigue.) Each actor maintained a grounding though the silliness of the show and produced a satisfying performance. Wakefield's charming, down-to-earth, and simply funny Charley's Aunt is a genuinely wholesome and sweet production.

Mary Lawler
Teens and Theatre Company
Submitted for publication to Patch.com

You know those times when you want to propose marriage to someone but then you get a telegram that says your millionaire aunt, whom you've never met before, and who you've been planning to have as a chaperone, is not going to show up when expected? Yeah, those times are sticky-wickets. However, Wakefield School Theater has no trouble at all dealing with such a situation. Wakefield School's production of Charley's Aunt proved to be purely a matter of delightfully entertaining tact and skill.

Charley's Aunt is a British farce written by Brandon Thomas. It premiered in 1892 and ran for over 1,200 performances. Since then, it has been reproduced a plethora of times, due to its uproarious antics and entwining encounters. The play begins with two Oxford buddies, the scheming Jack (played by Cappie Award Winner Alexander Mischel) and the conforming Charley (Ethan Rosenfeld) brainstorming on how and when to propose to their sweethearts, Kitty (Skyler Tolzien) and Amy (Tori Finn), respectively. Soon, they convince the girls to come over to their campus residence, by truthfully informing them that Charley's rich aunt, Donna Lucia D'Alvadorez (Audrey Brown) will be there to meet her nephew. When the aunt is delayed, Jack and Charley desperately force their pal Lord Fancourt Babberley (Christopher Wagner), Babbs as they call him, to play Charley's aunt. Complications arise when Jack's father, Colonel Sir Francis Chesney (Andrew Maraska), and the girls' unrelenting guardian, Steven Spettigue (Charles Mckee) battle to win over the "aunt".

Wakefield's cast committed themselves to their characters and the energy rose as the fast-paced show elapsed. Rosenfeld's Charley together with Mischel's Jack created a believable college-buddy duo that bolstered the wacky play throughout. Tolzien's sarcastic Kitty and Finn's loyal Amy themselves possessed amusing opportunities as the play progressed and took them willingly. Both actresses embraced their ladies' roles in complement and in sink to each other. Maraska portrayed Jack's dad amusingly, as during his character's reluctance to pursue the old "aunt". And Brown admirably supplied The astute aunt. Christopher Wagner's performance as Babbs, and as Babbs playing Charley's aunt, displayed great comedic skill in his constant switching from the aunt to Babbs. A scene, among many, in which he is particularly hilarious is one where Jack and Charley help him struggle to put a dress on him, causing much laughter of the audience. The physicality of the actors entertained throughout, whether by "monkey in the middle" (Babbs was the "monkey"), a book tossed to smack a hat off a head (very good aim!), or, my favorite, Jack and Charley's hilarious tackling in the background of what would have been a dull scene. The actors flowed casually without sidetracks, even when a match wouldn't light, or the back of a skirt had to be put back on. By the actors' focus, the kinks fit in well with the characters and comedy.

The play was performed in a gym with a stage shaped out of curtains. The lack of mics proved that the actors had impressive projection. The audience sat on bleachers right at the stage, creating an intimate experience like you were in the rooms of the play. Three simple sets each took an act. Jack's room in the first act flipped over to be a drawing room in the third. In the second act, a quaint garden with a stonewall and leafy plants did not distract from the hysterical happens on stage. Set pieces of furniture were not reused in more than one setting.

Charley's Aunt was quick, witty, and full of energy. An Oxford room of antics, that's "where the nuts come from!".

Julia Tucker
Westfield High School
Submitted for publication to Middleburg Eccentric LLC.

"I'm a disgrace to my sex," Lord Fancourt Babberley moans as he is forced to humiliate himself once again to maintain his facade as a middle-aged woman from Brazil, "where the nuts come from". Last weekend, Wakefield School paid tribute to classical theatre in their hilarious production of Charley's Aunt.

Charley's Aunt is a farce written in England in the 1890s by Brandon Thomas. It shattered theatrical records when it ran for almost 1,500 productions in London. The play focuses on two lovesick college boys who are trying to persuade their sweethearts to visit them, only convincing them to come with the promise that Charley's aunt, Donna Lucia D'Alvadorez, will be there to supervise. When Donna Lucia unexpectedly cancels on them, they must improvise to keep the girls there. Luckily, like an angel sent from heaven, their friend Babberley had just landed the role of a woman in a play and owned the perfect, lacy, frilly costume to assist them.

The whole cast had fun with the performance without straying from the plot. Actors tossed around bags, knocked a hat off someone's head with a tossed book and even made tea in a hat, leaving the script and story undisturbed. Lines were delivered clearly and loudly, even without the assistance of microphones. Every entrance was perfectly timed so there was never a break in the action, optimizing the dramatic irony of the show.

From the moment he put on his dress, Christopher Wagner as Lord Fancourt Babberley had a gleam of mischief his eye, promising slapstick comedy and hilarious responses to awkward situations. Throughout the production, Wagner maintained high energy that allowed him to deliver his lines smoothly and keep the show moving. In addition to his enthusiasm, he had good comedic timing combined with exaggerated movements that made the audience roar with laughter. He could easily switch from being frustrated while arguing with the boys to being a sweet lady when the girls walked in.

Jack Chesney and Kitty Verdun, played by Alexander Mischel and Skyler Tolzien respectively, had an adorable relationship. Audrey Brown as Charley's real aunt, Donna Lucia D'Alvadorez, stood out for her satirical jokes. Her character has a few sarcastic lines that she delivered with ease, using her voice and her face to convey the message. Andrew Maraska as Colonel Sir Francis Chesney filled the role with energy and enthusiasm.

All technical aspects of the show were simple and functional. The set was versatile and was easily flipped around to change the scene from act one to act three. All the furniture used was unique and useful in the scene. All the costumes were lovely and period-appropriate, but the girls' costumes were especially beautiful. Each girl had two dresses, one casual and one formal, and even with the alterations, they were stunning.

As the lights begin to dim, every person who was tangled into the glorious mishap of Charley's Aunt realizes how well the situation played out for them. Wakefield's humorous production of Charley's Aunt reminded the audience that even if things don't go as planned, they just might work out in the end.