Masque prepares ‘The Philadelphia Story’

By Lisa Angelucci
Collegian Editor
April 4, 2007

A pre-WWII Philadelphia socialite, Tracy Lord, about to get married for the second time, cheats on her future husband, George Kittredge, with a reporter, Macauly “Mike” Connor, who is covering her wedding. The reporter’s really only there because the bride-to-be’s brother has invited Mike and his photographer, Liz Imbrie to cover the wedding in order to keep a scandal involving the bride’s father, Seth Lord, out of the papers.

Although the plot sounds like an incoherent soap opera, the cast of The Philadelphia Story promises that the show is worth seeing. It’s a high brow comedy full of fast-paced sarcastic lines. And it has nothing to do with the Tom Hanks movie Philadelphia.

“It’s a different kind of comedy than the stuff we did last season,” said Pam Woodward, a sophomore chemistry and biochemistry major who plays Liz Imbrie. “After Jekyll & Hyde, it’s a little more light-hearted.”

The show is set in Philadelphia in the late 1930s or early 1940s. It provides a glimpse into the life of a pre-WWII dysfunctional family who live in a time when you might not expect to see a dysfunctional family. The period setting also means the costumes, sets and dialogue must all conform to a particular style.

“It being a period piece brings a whole host of challenges,” said junior English major Mark Costello, who plays Seth Lord.

Some of the challenges are those you would expect of a period piece, like very proper English and dated jokes. Others are those you wouldn’t typically think of, like the male actors who had to learn to sit with their legs crossed for the first time.

The Philadelphia Story forces the actors to develop their characters more than many other shows. There are no stock characters, so the cast has worked hard to understand their respective characters and the meaning of their actions.

“I really like how the characters have their own different sense of humor,” said junior American studies major Megan McGee, who plays Dinah Lord, the bride’s younger sister. “They’re not all cut from the same mold, for what they find funny and what they say.”

As bride-to-be Tracy Lord, freshman marketing major Hannah Datz finds her character especially challenging.

“She’s very fake a lot and it’s hard to distinguish when she’s being fake and when she’s real,” Datz said.

After Tracy Lord’s fiancé discovers her infidelity, their relationship obviously becomes more complicated. However, in a show that prides itself on having deep characters, the relationship between these two characters is not simply over.

“There’s kind of a cat and mouse game between my character and Hannah’s. They want each other back,” said sophomore communication and political science major John O’Riordan. “There’s a contrast between keeping a stiff upper lip but still showing emotion.”

The casting of The Philadelphia Story should help the show to be successful. Many of the cast members expressed their belief that the actors all fit into their roles well and are able to assume the personalities of their characters.

“I have to play a hard-nosed reporter. She’s someone who’s kind of tough and has seen everything,” Woodward said. “I have to get rid of my wide-eyed, naïve look.”

The beauty of this show, and an element that many members of the cast cited as something they particularly enjoy, is that every character is important and every character has depth. The show does have its defined leads, but the entire ensemble is able to shine.

“Every character has something he’s hiding,” said Sam Fran Scavuzzo, a sophomore political science major who plays the reporter Mike Conner.

“These aren’t archetypal roles,” O’Riordan said. “You have to become your character. It’s a very challenging play to do well.”

The Philadelphia Story will be performed at 8 p.m. April 13, 14, 19, 20 and 21 and at 2 p.m. April 15. The April 19 show is raffle night — students will receive one free raffle ticket with their admission for the chance to win prizes like cash, DVDs and gift certificates.

angeluccil1@lasalle.edu