The second installment in the Wilburn family trilogy will hit The Bank Theatre stage starting Friday, October 30 as Farce of Habit is guaranteed to leave audiences laughing as much as its predecessor.
A Jones Hope Wooten comedy, Farce of Habit will once again be directed by Mark Ribble and follows on the heels of a successful run of Farce of Nature this past May.
The play will take you back to the Reel ’Em Inn Fishing Lodge in Mayhew, Arkansas, as the Wilburns struggle with habits – in more ways than one.
D. Gene (Corey Robertson) has developed an itch that he just won’t leave alone and his wife Wanelle (Amy Brett) has decided to give up caffeine. Both have picked a bad weekend to deal with their habits and drastic measures are taken to curtail both.
Their son Ty (Ryan Hallick) and his new wife Jenna (Becky Glover) are having all sorts of issues as Jenna suspects that Ty is seeing someone else, but in reality, Ty has secretly joined a local theatre group, leading to some outrageous costume changes.
D. Gene’s sister Maxie (Paige Frankfurth) is back on the police force full time, but has been assigned an undercover job with a biker gang, making for some funny scenes.
Three new guests arrive at the inn, including arrogant, world-renowned radio host Jock McNair (Spencer Dunn), recent retiree Huddle Fisk (David Murphy) and Hollywood redhead Barbara Stratton (Jaelyn Brett).
A gaggle of nuns has taken up residence in the barn, led by Sister Myrtle Agnes (Linda Collard), a no-nonsense senior member of the group who takes great pleasure in terrorizing D. Gene.
On top of all that, a major storm is brewing and an axe murderer is on the loose. The new guests provide hilarity a-plenty as many different situations – and surprises – play out.
You will enjoy the familiarity of the characters from Farce of Nature, but the story stands on its own and you needn’t have seen Farce of Nature to enjoy Farce of Habit.
“This cast is hard at work tightening everything up to bring yet another show that will leave people laughing,” said director Mark Ribble. “The physical comedy in this one brings the saga of the Wilburn family to a whole new level and I am grateful for this opportunity at our community theatre with all of these volunteers.”
“We are excited to bring this second installment of this trilogy to The Bank Theatre stage,” said Melinda Lewsaw, The Bank Theatre Chair of Theatre Programming. “Farce of Habit will have you laughing from beginning to end.”
Performances are October 30 and November 6 and 7 at 7:30 pm, with doors opening at 7 pm.
Matinee performances are October 31, November 1 and 8 at 2 pm, with doors opening at 1:30 pm.
The Bank Theatre is located at 10 Erie Street South in Leamington.
Tickets are $25+HST and available at the Box Office Thursday to Saturday from 11 am-1 pm, by phone during box office hours 519-326-8805, or online at banktheatre.com
