Just last week, the curtain fell on the final performance of the Stern College Dramatics Society production of Arsenic and Old Lace, a witty black comedy written by Joseph Kesselring and directed by our very own speech professor, Reuven Russell.
Arsenic and Old Lace is a murder comedy centered around two sweet old aunties named Abby and Martha Brewster who poison lonely old gentlemen with a deadly cocktail of elderberry wine spiked with arsenic, strychnine, and just a pinch of cyanide – out of the goodness and kindness of their hearts, of course. The play is filled out with a host of increasingly crazy and wacky characters, Teddy, a nephew who thinks he’s Teddy Roosevelt, Jonathan, a nephew who due to an unfortunate plastic surgery now looks more like Boris Karloff, and Mortimer, the sanest nephew of the lot, who spends the majority of the play attempting to figure out how he got dragged into the whole mess in the first place.
Abby and Martha were played wonderfully by Ayden Pahmer and Sara Rozner, respectively. Pahmer and Rozner got their sweet old lady gimmick down pat; their confused innocence at being told that murder is wrong was hilarious to behold. Their synchronized reactions stole the show, and their comic timing was incredible. Their adorable confusion over the crime provides a great comedic base for other characters. A prime example of this would be when the aunts interact with Daniella Eson, who plays Mortimer, the straight man of the play. His growing frustration and hysteria at being unable to make the aunties see reason is amusing to watch. The quick dialogue and snappy back-and-forths between Mortimer and his aunties was made all the more enjoyable by the impeccable comedic timing of the trio.
Malka Sigal, in her final performance for the Stern College Dramatic Society, plays the homicidal nephew Jonathan to perfection. She balances the right level of eerie spookiness and likeability, giving her wacky pseudo-surgeon sidekick Dr. Einstein, played by Jordyn Kaufman, great banter material. Together, they made the greatest of odd couples, Jonathan dreaming of slowly torturing his hated brother Mortimer, and Einstein begging, in his wonderfully depicted accent, him to get rid of Mortimer the “quick way.” If Sigal’s Jonathan is not masterful as a performer alone, the incredible makeup definitely helped, adding an element of ghoulishness to the costume making her character all the more memorable. Einstein’s makeup was incredible as well, but it was his exit that truly stole the show, leaving the audience in stitches night after night.
Teddy was played by Racheli Schuraytz, who impressively got many of Teddy Roosevelt’s mannerisms and speech patterns down to a humorous art form. Every thunderous “Chaaaaarge!” she delivered was met with uproarious laughter, and her indignation and confronting “Taft” was hilarious to watch.
The cast is rounded out by some secondary characters who made every second memorable. Sora Gordon, Ariela Greengart, and Devorah Mehlman play a trio of bumbling and ineffective cops, one of whom leaves Mortimer tied up in the ropes that Jonathan trapped him in, so that he can get Mortimer’s help in writing his play. Police Chief Rooney is played to perfection with a mix of righteous indignation and frustration by Rochela Neiman. Talya Cederbaum had the difficult task of playing both the parts of Reverend Harper and Dr. Witherspoon, but she rose to the challenge and played both characters with aplomb. Leah Fleishacker plays Mr. Gibbs, the murderous aunts’ first near miss, with hilarious brusqueness, made all the more amusing by Mortimer’s frantic attempts to chase him away and save his life.
The costumes, especially Abby and Martha’s, were amazingly assembled, and the makeup was impressive. The set however, was what really stole the show, with the black and white backdrop adding just the right amount of murderous whimsy to really set the tone for the play. When the incredibly talented cast took their final bows to thunderous applause, it was secure in the knowledge that they had performed to the best of their ability, and had done so wonderfully.