Join us for FRCS senior high production of the classic Dickens’ tale, A Christmas Carol. Follow the journey of cold-hearted Ebeneezer Scrooge as he is warned about the dire consequences of living a life of greed and materialism. Will nightly visits from different ghosts be enough to make him change his miserly ways?
November 21-23
A CHRISTMAS CAROL is produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com)
Please note that the archive currently only goes back to 2011. If you wish to see details about productions older than 2011, please contact us.
A suspense-filled thriller by Edward Chodorov based on a story by Hugh Walpole.
Mary Herries is a dignified, aristocratic women who lives quietly in her London home. She has a passion for art and fine furniture, and even though she is getting on in years, she enjoys being around these priceless articles. One day she meets a strange, young painter named Abbott, who uses his painting skill to enter into her life. Little does she suspect that this conman’s only interest is to covet everything she has.
This play was adapted for the screen in both 1935 and 1951.
November 9-11, 2023
Grandpa Vanderhof and his wacky family, the Sycamores, have been happily living their zany lives in his house by Columbia University in New York for many years. This family (and their friends) are a madcap group of eccentrics, marching to the beat of their own drum, with pride and joy. Their hobbies include collecting snakes, building fireworks in the basement, writing a myriad of plays that never get published, and taking ballet lessons. Things like stress, jobs, and paying taxes to the government are for other people, not for them! But when practical young Alice Sycamore becomes engaged to her company’s Vice President Tony Kirby, the Vanderhof/Sycamore clan must straighten up to meet the new in-laws. Disaster ensues when the Kirbys arrive at the wrong time and, despite the best laid plans, see Alice’s family in all of its crazy glory. The evening ends with everyone in the house getting arrested, and Alice ending the engagement. It isn’t until Grandpa’s wise speech to Mr. Kirby about the importance of living life to the fullest that the two families find a way to accept each other, and love conquers all. You Can’t Take It With You is a madcap, idealistic comedy that reinforces the idea that you can only live life to the fullest by doing whatever makes you happy.
November 17-19, 2022
We meet the charming and innocent ladies who populate their cellar with the remains of socially and religiously “acceptable” roomers; the antics of their brother who thinks he is Teddy Roosevelt; and the activities of the other brother—these require no further description or amplification here. ARSENIC AND OLD LACE is a ready-made comedy hit.
November 18-20
Back in the day, before computers and television, families would gather around the radio for some good old homespun entertainment. With all the restrictions we are experiencing today, we thought maybe going back to those days would be fun! When we discovered Mr. Cooper’s father had written over a dozen radio plays dating back to the 1930s the idea became a reality!
November 19-21, FRCS proudly presents “Cooper’s Catsup Radio Hour” featuring the live radio play, “Babbling Brook” by Dr. John Cooper, Jr. This play has all the adventure and romance and drama of most country westerns, only without real horses.
Old Pop Whitcomb bequeathed the 3-Bar Ranch to his two granddaughters from PA. The ranch hands fear that the ranch will be turned into a Dude Ranch!
This charming play is rich with cowboys, damsels in distress, and, of course, an outlaw, so there’s something for everyone!
A melodramatic farce in three acts, written by George Batson.
An old maid librarian has saved her money for twenty years, in order to buy a hotel where she can meet interesting people. She purchases a strange tumble-down place near the ocean, and gets what she bargains for—plus a good deal besides. The imperturbable librarian wanders through mysterious situations and thunderstorms, she meets with drama and comedy, the living and the dead, and somehow manages to emerge at the end none the worse for her extraordinary experience.
This charming Christmas story about the life of George Bailey and his hometown of Bedford Falls is a classic and one many families enjoy watching every Christmas season.
Mrs. Savage has been left ten million dollars by her husband and wants to make the best use of it, in spite of her grown-up stepchildren’s efforts to get their hands on it. Knowing that the widow’s wealth is now in negotiable securities, and seeing they cannot get hold of the fortune, the stepchildren commit her to a sanatorium hoping to “bring her to her senses.” In the sanatorium Mrs. Savage meets various social misfits, men and women who just cannot adjust themselves to life, people who need the help Mrs. Savage can provide. In getting to know them, she realizes that she will find happiness with them and plans to spend the rest of her life as one of them. But when the doctor tells her there is no reason why she should remain, she hesitates to go out into a hard world where people seem ready to do anything for money. The self-seeking stepchildren are driven to distraction by their vain efforts to browbeat Mrs. Savage, but she preserves her equanimity and leads them on a merry chase. At last her friends conspire to get rid of her stepchildren, and through their simple belief in the justice of her cause, they enable Mrs. Savage to carry out her plans to establish a fund to help others realize their hopes and dreams. The dominant mood is high comedy, and the audience is left with a feeling that the neglected virtues of kindness and affection have not been entirely lost in a world that seems at times motivated only by greed and dishonesty.
An entertaining and fanciful comedy appropriate for all ages.
A suspense-filled thriller by Edward Chodorov based on a story by Hugh Walpole.
Mary Herries is a dignified, aristocratic women who lives quietly in her London home. She has a passion for art and fine furniture, and even though she is getting on in years, she enjoys being around these priceless articles. One day she meets a strange, young painter named Elcott, who uses his painting skill to enter into her life. Little does she suspect that this conman’s only interest is to covet everything she has.
This play was adapted for the screen in both 1935 and 1951.
“A Trivial Comedy for Serious People” is a classic, farcical comedy by Oscar Wilde. During the Victorian time period, keeping up with appearances was of utmost importance for those in high society. The social rules were superficial, well defined, and to be followed if one was to be a credit to their class and upbringing. Oscar Wilde was from Ireland, which positioned him on the outside of respectable London society and gave him the perfect vantage point for poking fun at it. Through his writing, he mocked the way wealthy, polite society trivialized serious themes like marriage and honesty while obsessing over trivial aspects of life, such as cucumber sandwiches. The earnest/Ernest play-on-words elevates this difference. This trait of Wilde’s writing provided material for thoughtful discussions during rehearsals, as the cast & crew reflected on superficiality and materialism in our own culture, while evaluating what really honors God. On February 14, 1895, The Importance of Being Earnest made its debut and Wilde moved up in London society. They loved his humor even when it came at their own expense, which the following lines exemplify.
The Miracle Worker is a three-act play written by William Gibson and based on the autobiography of Helen Keller, The Story of My Life. The Miracle Worker tells the true story of Helen Keller, an Alabama girl struck blind and deaf as a baby after a high fever. Although her parents try to help her, Helen’s inability to communicate cause her to be undisciplined, violent and wild. In desperation, they hire Annie Sullivan, a partially blind, stubborn woman and assign her the task of teaching Helen. Annie and Helen enter into a tumultuous relationship. Annie is confident that when Helen learns to communicate, her mind will be free to understand the world around her. After separating Helen from her over-protective parents Annie begins the difficult process of teaching the girl. Even though Helen can spell back words onto Annie’s palm, her understanding of the words escape her. The intense time with Helen didn’t seem fruitful, and when Helen and Annie return to the family, Helen falls back into her unruly behavior. The Kellers are upset with the lack of progress. Annie doesn’t give up. When Helen spills a water pitcher on Annie, Annie takes her outside to refill it. Through this rough encounter, Annie spells “water” onto Helen’s hand. Suddenly, the miracle happens – Annie breaks through the silence and darkness of Helen’s world – Helen understands.
The play Quality Street by J.M. Barrie (the author of Peter Pan) is set in England during the early 19th century. Sisters, Phoebe and Susan Throssel, have made friends with Dr. Valentine Brown. Phoebe would like it to be more than friends and believes Dr. Brown feels the same, until he announces he has enlisted to fight against Napoleon and will be leaving Quality Street. Phoebe is heartbroken. She and Susan open a school in their home and for 10 years they make do with this drab existence. When the war is over, Valentine comes back but barely recognizes Phoebe as she has worn herself out teaching. He leaves Phoebe devastated and feeling somewhat insulted. Frustrated, Phoebe changes her dress and her hairstyle to show Susan she still has some youth left. Valentine returns to take Phoebe to a homecoming ball and fails to recognize her. Phoebe takes the opportunity to be a tease and create a new identity. It is this deception that increases the humor and makes Quality Street one of Barrie’s most noted period pieces.
You Can’t Take It With You is a comedic play in three acts by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. The Sycamores are a family of lively, free spirits. Their daughter is engaged to a man from a wealthy, straight-laced family, the Kirbys. Mayhem ensues when the Kirbys show up for dinner on the wrong night. This is a hilarious story of romance, wealth and poverty, and true happiness.
Matchmaker is set in the 19th century and tells the story of a woman by the name of Dolly Levi who seeks to arrange marriages for those around her and suddenly finds herself in the middle of it all. The stubborn, gruff Mr. Vandergelder, is determined to find a wife, though she turns out to be quite different from who he originally intended to marry. Matchmaker is a delightful comedy, following the lives of the entertaining characters as their paths intertwine. For those who are familiar with “Hello Dolly,” this play is the story without the music. We hope you will enjoy it!
