BLT presents 'Anyone Out There'
A cast and crew of both veteran and new are working on "Anyone Out There?" at the Butler Little Theatre downtown. The show is set to open March 13.
This play is the tale of a born loser, Oliver Pankey, played by Blake Lambermont. His landlady charges him when someone else breaks his window. Then his fiancee played by Alison Carey leaves him for a married man. To make matters worse, his boss at the bank cuts his pay when he asks for a raise.
Combine that with a thief who takes everything he has, including his only suit, add a mishap at his doctor's office, and Pankey changes his life, perhaps for the better.
For Lambermont of Butler Township, Oliver is his biggest role to date. "I was hoping for the role of Oliver," said Lambermont of his audition. "The reason I tried out for this role was because the show is as funny as can be with a lot of give and take and basically its just hilarious.
"The main things about Oliver are that he is a doormat, he doesn't like confrontation, and he doesn't standup for himself," said Lambermont, who added that Oliver even helps people put him down.
Because Oliver has such a huge change over the course of the show, he is like two characters in one and that can prove challenging for an actor. "All the transitions in the emotions are a lot of work because not only do I have to change the way I talk as well as the tone, I also have to change my body language. I need to keep track of which I am portraying and keep them as distinct as possible," Lambermont said.
Alison Carey of Butler plays Millie Milhouse, Pankey's fianceé and yet also the love interest of her boss, Herbie Henderson. "Millie is a well-meaning narcissist," Carey explained. "She's not unkind, but she's interested in her own happiness. If it comes at someone else's expense, so be it."
Her love interest, Herbie Henderson, is played by her real life love interest, her husband Jeff Carey. "I auditioned for the show because I wanted to finally be in a show at BLT with my wife, Alison, who is playing Millie," Jeff Carey said. "This character is fun to play because he is a pompous bully who belittles Oliver, the lead, and pushes him around but then shows what a spineless weasel he is when the plot unfolds."
He said he thinks the best part of the show for the audience will be the slapstick gags and the farcical humor.
Returning to the stage in a cameo appearance playing Oliver's nurse is Rikki Stupka. "I portray a flighty nurse receptionist who spends more time on her nails than doing her job. While this isn't a super large role, I auditioned knowing that it would again be a wonderful experience to spend time with theater folk," Stupka said.
The show is being directed by BLT newcomer Dave Neuhart and produced by Danyle Verzinskie. The producer and Butler Township resident has a vested interest in the show and was delighted to come on board with BLT's newest director. "Dave Neuhart was a newcomer to our theatre this season with his role as agent William Uggams in "Unhealthy To Be Unpleasant" in the fall of '08," Verzinskie said.
Verzinskie was the props manager for that show and so got to know Neuhart. "He mentioned that he had directed shows at Comtra, Beaver and at his church. Based upon his experience, I recommended him to the board as a potential director for this show. Since I was the one who recruited him, I volunteered to be the producer for this show," she said.
Verzinskie believes her endorsement of Neuhart was spot on and that the cast and the theater are already benefitting from his expertise. "I laugh every time I go to rehearsal; it gets better and better. The cast is breathing life into it and making the show go beyond the expectations I had from reading it through. Much of the credit for this goes to the director, Dave Neuhart, for putting his spin on the interpretation of the characters," she said.
Neuhart of Cranberry Township confirmed he, too, is enjoying himself and thinks the audience will also.
"The Butler audience will be in for a night of good laughs and fun, and will get to see some local talent bringing interesting characters to life," he concluded.
Tickets are available now. The show runs through March 21.
<B>WHO: </B>Butler Little Theatre<B>WHAT: </B>"Anyone Out There?"<B>WHEN: </B>8:15 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 2:30 p.m. Sundays and 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays from March 13 to 21<B>WHERE: </B>One Howard St.<B>TICKETS: </B>$10; call 724-287-6781 between 7 and 9 p.m.<B>INFORMATION: </B>www.bltgroup.org
