By MITCHELL PEARL
Following their successful production of “Treasure Island” in March, the Brandon Actors Troupe—Youth Company will present “Spaghetti Western” this Friday, June 27 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, June 28 at 2 p.m. on the Otter Valley Stage. “Spaghetti Western” is a comic melodrama written by Tracy Wells which follows the adventures of Grannie Smith and her charming but clumsy granddaughter, Petunia Pearl, who run the Hoot ‘n’ Holler Hotel.
The play is full of laughs, drama, and a Wild West adventure . . . with a twist of pasta! The name of this play, “Spaghetti Western,” is a nod to the more general term, “spaghetti Western,” which refers to a subgenre of Western films produced in Europe starting in the mid-1960s. The term was used by foreign critics because many of these Westerns were “low budget” and were produced and directed by Italians. In this “Spaghetti Western” play, the spaghetti is actual. Grannie and Petunia enter a spaghetti-sauce contest to try to win enough prize money to pay the mortgage of the Hoot ‘n’ Holler Hotel. Will they succeed or is it “Mission Im-Pasta-ble”?
With a cast of 20 youths, kindergarten age through 12th grade, from around the region, this production will be full of action, comedy, and . . . spaghetti! There are two shows only, and entry is by free-will donations. The show runs approximately an hour and a half, with an intermission. Advance tickets are not necessary.
Looking ahead, the Brandon Actors Troupe will be presenting the musical, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” in September. Auditions are on Sunday, June 29th from 2-6 p.m. and are open to adults post-high school age. For more information and to sign up, go to BAT – Audition Information or the Brandon Actors Troupe Facebook page.
