OCTC Presents 2 Neil Simon Comedies This Week

Barefoot in the Park and Star-Spangled Girl

by Bernie Hale

Owensboro, KY (04/24/2019) — Owensboro Community & Technical College's (OCTC) Oak Island Theatre is presenting a double shot of comedy this week featuring two of Neil Simon's classic plays. OCTC's Oak Island Players will perform "Barefoot in the Park" on Wednesday, April 24 and Friday, April 26. They will also produce "Star-Spangled Girl" on Thursday, April 25 and Saturday, April 27. All performances are directed by Dr. Julia Ledford, will begin at 7 p.m. and be held in Blanford Hall, located in the Humanities building on OCTC's Main Campus at 4800 New Hartford Road, Owensboro.

The Barefoot in the Park cast in order of appearance: Haley Huston as Corrie Bratter, Court Lewis as the Telephone Repair Man, Cassidy Teague as the Lord & Taylor Delivery person, Jordan Acton as Paul Bratter, Madelyn Lord as Corie's Mother, Mrs. Banks, and Gabriel Bartley as Victor Velasco.

Barefoot in the Park Summary

Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park is a romantic comedy focusing on a pair of newlyweds, Corie and Paul, as they begin married life in a tiny, 5th-floor walkup apartment in a Manhattan brownstone. Paul is a strait-laced attorney; Corie has a far more spontaneous, free spirit. As the young couple contend with a lack of heat, a skylight that leaks snow, several long flights of stairs, oddball neighbor Victor Velasco, and Corie's well-meaning mother, they must also reconcile their own personal differences in how they approach life's challenges. Adjusting to married life isn't so easy! Barefoot in the Park is produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc. , 235 Park Avenue South, Fifth Floor, New York, NY 10003.

The Star-Spangled Girl cast in order of appearance: Matthew Golden as Andy Hobart, Jonah Bryant as Norman Cornell, and Kobe Shrewsberry as Sopie Rauschmeyer.

Star Spangled Girl Summary

Andy and Norman are two earnest young men using their apartment as a publishing office for a "protest" magazine in San Francisco. Sophie, an Olympic swimmer and all-American girl, moves into another apartment on the same floor. Sophie makes her first appearance paying a good-neighbor visit to the combination home and office of the two publishers. Her friendliness and charm leave Norman hopelessly smitten. Thereafter love, with him, is a determined madness, with the humor of it heightened by her frantic rejection of him. Meanwhile, his partner is fielding telephone calls from the irate printer who wants to collect the money due him, and distracting the landlady from thoughts of back rent with motorcycle rides and surfing expeditions. And while she is convinced that they are editing a dangerously subversive magazine, our heroine soon finds that her real source of annoyance is that the wrong man is pressing his attentions on her. Happily this situation is reversed in time, as love and politics blend delightfully in a bubbling series of funny happenings, set forth with the masterly skill and inventiveness that are the hallmarks of Neil Simon. The Star-Spangled Girl is produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc., 440 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016.

The supporting crews for both productions include: Stage Manager- Faith Christian, Lighting- Vivian Partridge, Props- Adam Vanover, Costumes- Cassidy Teague, Sound- Mackenzie McIntosh, Make-up- Emma Strain, Scenery- Joe Golden, April Conkright, Michael Boyd, Court Lewis, Shannon Collins, Kobe Shrewsberry, Matthew Golden, Jordan Acton, Haley Huston, Gabe Bartley, Jonah Bryant, Dan Hildenbrandt, Ben Sammet, Phoenix Burchfield, Thomas Rowe, and Brooklyn Wilson.

Media Attachments