After about 20 months, the Community Players of Concord is returning to its home theater and picking up the program right where it left off.
The Players had planned a set of four Neil Simon plays as its 2020 season in a tribute to the playwright who died in 2018.
But shortly after its run of The Odd Couple in February 2020, stay-at-home orders lowered the curtain at the Concord City Auditorium and the rest of the season was put on hold.
As things reopened, the Players staged productions outdoors, at the Hatbox Theatre and in partnership with the Colonial Theatre in Laconia. And now, at long last, they are returning to their home stage picking up right where they left off.
On Oct. 15 through 17, the Players will stage Simon’s Barefoot in the Park at the Audi. The show had already been rehearsed and the set mostly completed before its long intermission.
Simon’s classic comedy (remade as a movie in 1967 with Jane Fonda and Robert Redford) opens as newlywed lovebirds Corie and Paul Bratter behold their first home – a tiny fifth-floor walk-up in a crumbling Manhattan brownstone.
Corie, a free-spirited optimist, is excited by its possibilities. Paul, an uptight young lawyer, sees only its flaws – like the hole in the skylight and leaky closet.
Co-directors John Conlon and Betty Lent lead a cast of six outstanding actors in this well-loved romcom – Simon’s longest-running Broadway hit and the tenth-longest running non-musical play in Broadway history.
Griffen Stuart and Hannah McCauley play newlyweds Paul and Corie Bratter, who were recast for the rescheduled production while the rest of the cast are the original 2020 actors.
The couple’s life is complicated by the unexpected arrival of Corie’s mother (played by Jo Ann Kaplan), a lonely widow who seems to have nothing better to do than intrude on her daughter’s life. Hoping to give her mother something else to think about, Corie arranges an improbable blind date for her with their quirky, bohemian neighbor Victor Velasco (Wallace J. Pineault).
Chaos and comedy ensue because, while opposites may attract, adjustments may be needed to keep them together.
Rounding out the cast in exquisite comedic cameos are Kevin Guimond as a philosophical telephone repairman, and Pat Delzell as a hapless delivery person.
Conlon finds the heartwarming and funny show particularly appealing as a “show in time” – a glimpse back to the lifestyles and dreams of the late ‘50s and early ‘60s when a newlywed young couple like Paul and Corie knew what they wanted and optimistically pursued their dreams.
“The show is almost like a valentine’s day card to the audience,” Conlon said, “particularly to those who are old enough to personally remember that time.”
Most of the actors and production team who worked on the show last year are back, and the show’s set – which has languished in its nearly completed state at the Players’ studio for a year and half – has come to life again. Rehearsals were re-started, costumes and props re-assembled, and on Friday the show finally goes on!
Barefoot in the Park will be presented Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Oct. 17 at 2 p.m., at the Concord City Auditorium.
Those who still hold tickets for the original May 2020 production will receive new tickets by mail. (If you do not receive your updated tickets, please contact box office chair David Murdo at 344-4747 or nhdm40@comcast.net.) Tickets are available at the Audi box office or online at communityplayersofconcord.org/tickets. Cost is $20 for adults and $18 for juniors and seniors, with a $2 discount for tickets bought before Oct. 13.
All cast and production team members for Barefoot In The Park have been fully vaccinated and performers will be unmasked during the performance. Masks are required for all audience members.
To find out more, visit communityplayersofconcord.org.