Off Stage sets ‘Farce of Nature’ auditions

Submitted information

Van Wert community dinner theatre group Off Stage Productions will be holding open auditions for its spring production Farce of Nature, a comedy co-written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, and Jamie Wooten. The production will be directed by Mandy Fifer.

Open auditions are set for Tuesday, February 7, and Thursday, February 9, at 7 p.m. both days, at the Van Wert Senior Center, 220 Fox Road in Van Wert.

Off Stage will be looking to cast nine adults (five females and four males of various ages). No prior acting experience is necessary to audition. Scripts are available for review before auditions; call 419.238.9394 for details.

Performance dates will be April 22,23,28,29,30 and May 5 and 6.

The story of Farce of Nature is as follows:

The non-stop hilarity of this Southern-fried farce highlights one day in the life of the Wilburn family of Mayhew, Arkansas. Meet D. Gene Wilburn, the owner and proprietor of the Reel ‘Em Inn, the finest little fishing lodge in the Ozarks. Well, it used to be, but lately business is down, tourists are few, and the lone guest who’s just checked in — an extremely jittery Carmine DeLuca from Chicago — is only there due to a location shift in the Witness Protection Program.

Doesn’t anybody just want to fish anymore? Certainly not D. Gene’s frustrated wife, Wanelle, who’s fed up with their lackluster romantic life. She’s taken drastic steps to improve it through hypnotic suggestion and, for the life of him, D. Gene cannot understand why his pants keep falling down. D. Gene’s feisty sister Maxie has her own problems, chief among them battling ageism to resume her career in law enforcement. She’s determined to prove her worth by keeping Carmine DeLuca alive through the weekend — a task that’s going to prove to be much harder than she bargained for, since she keeps losing both her gun and the bullets. And she never anticipated the gangster Camine’s been dodging for the last five years, Sonny Barbosa, is about to walk through the door, in hot pursuit of his sexy wife, Lola.

Seems the headstrong Lola has driven hundreds of miles to the lodge to follow her boy toy: D. Gene and Wanelle’s son, Ty. But Lola meets her match in Ty’s seemingly innocent girlfriend, Jenna, whose patience has reached the breaking point after months of waiting for Ty to come home.

In the deliciously funny romp that ensues, they all hide, lie, disguise themselves, cross-dress, and slam doors chasing one another, while trying to figure out the source of an increasingly awful stench. By then it’s too late and the lodge is surrounded by vicious critters and hungry varmints that have followed the odor down from the hills.

Yet by the delightfully chaotic climax of this one outrageous day, love blossoms, truths are revealed, and the lives of all — family, guests and gangsters alike — change in incredible and surprising ways. This side-splittingly funny Jones Hope Wooten comedy is guaranteed to win audiences over — hook, line, and sinker!

Stay tuned for forthcoming announcements indicating show times and reservation information of the seven shows held at the Senior Center. More information on Off Stage Productions can be found online at http://www.offstagetheatre.com and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/OffStageProductions.