|
Sounding Board - Ripe and Ready
January 10, 1999 - Robert Jones
The Ripe & Ready Players is a theater group from Chattanooga, Tennessee, that visited the Dock Street a couple of weeks back. The company is comprised of senior citizens of various ages and genders, the oldest being Hattie Bryant, 95, and still out there chewing the scenery. Unfortunately, Ms. Bryant had a cold the night I was there, but even deprived of its star, the troupe provided an evening of happy entertainment.
The composer/director of the company is Suzanne Carter, a show pianist of the type I've often wished existed in Charleston. Ms. Carter had invented the show from skits and songs spawned by the performers themselves, and she played the whole thing from an onstage piano. The songs had to do with the cheerier aspects of getting old, and the skits were fairly sharp sketches of oldsters going about their lives. The wit was sometimes wicked, and the performances were right-on, especially when the cast didn't have to worry about ensemble precision in the musical numbers.
Suzanne Carter is definitely on to something. There must be a lot of post-retirement people around town who would love to be involved in this sort of thing. And think of the benefits to producers of community theater -- a cast with a lot of time on its hands! No jobs, no kids to raise ... just a willingness to rehearse until they drop. Are you listening, you theater people?
|
