A dose of comedy

Pack your flasks and get ready for laughs when the Riverbend Players present “Arsenic and Old Lace” by Joseph Kesselring this Friday, June 3, through Sunday, June 19, at Nehalem’s North County Recreation District Performing Arts Center.

The play begins with Mortimer Brewster living his best life, holding a steady job at a prominent New York newspaper and having just become engaged. He gets to visit his sweet spinster aunts to announce the engagement. He always knew that his family had a bit of a mad gene — his brother believes himself to be Teddy Roosevelt for example — but his world is turned upside down when he realizes that his dear aunts have been poisoning lonely old men for years.

When Mortimer’s maniacal brother, Jonathan, who strangely now resembles Boris Karloff, returns on the night that the aunts were planning to bury the newest victim, Mortimer must rally to help his aunts and protect his fiancée — all while trying to keep his own sanity. An uproarious farce on plays involving murder, Arsenic and Old Lace has become a favorite of regional theaters throughout the country.

Directed by Frank Squillo, the Riverbend Players cast includes Sue Neuer, Linda Makohon, Bryan Churchill, Rodney Dahl, Julee Ward, Jeff Slamal, Juli Stratton, Chazz Miska, Mark Bartram, Stephen Clark, Frank Squillo, Jon Helzer, Tom Cocklin and Sharon Gavin.

To get fully into the “spirit” of the play, grab an “Arsenic and Old Lace” commemorative flask. Order it with your tickets and it will be waiting for you in the lobby on show night. 

Tickets are $20 for general admission and $25 for reserved seats. Showtimes are 7 pm Fridays and Saturdays and 2 pm on Sundays. The NCRD Performing Arts Center is located at 36155 9th Street in Nehalem. For more information, go to riverbendplayers.org.