Noises Off 

by Michael Frayn 

Directed by A. Clay Boyce

Performances July 8^th thru 10^th  & July 15^th thru 17^th at 7:30 pm on Sunday July 11^th & 18th at 2:30

On the Main Stage at the School of Fine Arts.

The play takes a fond look at the follies of theatre folk, whose susceptibility to out-of-control egos, memory loss and passionate affairs turn every performance into a high-risk adventure. This comedy-within-a-comedy captures a touring theatre troupe’s production of Nothing On in three stages: dress rehearsal, the opening performance, and a performance toward the end of the run. Each performance is portrayed from behind the scenes, progressing from flubbed lines and missed cues in the dress rehearsal to mounting friction between cast members in the final performance. Brimming with slapstick comedy, "Noises Off" is a freewheeling farce of flapping doors, falling trousers and flying sardines!

Cast of Characters

Lloyd Dallas: The director of the play, Nothing On. Temperamental. One third of a Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.

Dotty Otley: A late-middle-aged actress. Forgetful. Dating Garry, though she attempts to make him jealous by meeting with Fred.

Garry Lejeune: A stuttering actor, easily fired up, repeatedly tries to attack Fred after believing that Dotty was cheating on him with Fred. Speech affectations disappear onstage but are ever-present offstage. Always is stuttering and completing sentences with, "you know..." Dating Dotty.

Frederick Fellows: An actor with a serious fear of violence and blood. Gets nosebleeds easily. Often questions the meaning of his lines and moves. Blames himself often for things going wrong.

Belinda Blair: Cheerful and sensible, a reliable actress. She may have feelings for Fred.

Poppy Norton-Taylor: Assistant Stage Manager. Emotional and over-sensitive, and jealous of Brooke, whom she understudies. Carrying Lloyd's child. One-third of a Lloyd-Poppy-Brooke love triangle.

Selsdon Mowbray: An elderly alcoholic man who hides his bottles onstage. If he is not in sight while rehearsing, the stage crew must find him before he passes out.

Timothy Allgood: Stage Manager. Understudies Selsdon and Freddy.

Brooke Ashton: A young inexperienced actress from London.  Pays no attention to other performers, neither in performance nor backstage. She rarely takes stage direction, and continues performing regardless of any other action onstage. Is always losing her contact lenses. One-third of a Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.