The Uneasy Chair - 2007

The Uneasy Chair
Opens Feb 23

If we call The Uneasy Chair a comedy of manners set in Victorian England, it does not do justice to the absurd and comic antics that the play contains. If we call it a wildy funny comedy, it does not encompass the clever verbal humor. Let’s call it a comedy that is hard to categorize.

The Uneasy Chair, written by 29-year-old contemporary playwright Evan Smith, opens on the Racine Theatre Guild stage February 23 and runs four weekends through March 18. It contains various styles of humor, from unpredictable and silly, to witty and smart turns of phrase.

Miss Amelia Pickles is a proper English lady who runs a boarding house in London. Retired military man Captain Josiah Wickett appears on the scene, hoping to rent a room. In ideal circumstances, Wickett would fall in love with his landlady and marry her for a happy-ever-after ending. But The Uneasy Chair plays with circumstances and with stubborn and prickly characters whose actions are far from ideal.

Wickett and Miss Pickles do begin a relationship, but it is one of bickering and squabbles, over topics such as money, honesty, marriage, and more. Instead of hot passion, they share a “cool and distant intimacy.” Smith thickens the plot with the addition of Captain Wickett’s nephew, John Darlington, who falls in love with Miss Pickles’ niece, Alexandrina Crosbie. The young couple would like nothing more than to see the elder couple marry.

Then the complications build. A mix-up in letters causes Miss Pickles to think that Wickett has proposed marriage to her. As Wickett denies the proposal, Miss Pickles takes him to court for breach of promise. Somehow both the defendant and the plaintiff are represented by the same barrister, in a very funny courtroom scene. Barrister Cagebee jumps back and forth in the questioning, doing both the examination and cross-examination.

Wickett, hoping to make the best of the situation, does marry Miss Pickles, and then we see the further development of this far-from-smooth relationship. They end up in court again, and another character refers to the way these two relate as a “court-ship.” We follow their hilarious struggle for one-upmanship through 25 years.

The playwright uses unexpected methods to inject humor. One of them is to have the characters step in and out of the action and address the audience directly. Another is that all the peripheral characters--three men and two women (one quite pregnant)--are played by the same male actor, always to comic effect.

The Uneasy Chair opened in New York in 1998, with Roger Rees (of Nicholas Nickleby fame) and Dana Ivey (who played Daisy in Driving Miss Daisy on Broadway) in the two main roles.

Critics made many positive comments, including:

“The Uneasy Chair is an expert boulevard drama with juicy roles for terrific actors. It reflects an observer’s shrewd attention to the absurdities of dating and mating.”

“Pickles and Wickett’s prickly thicket of a relationship develops as they bicker over matters great and small… as the rent-crossed lovers.”

“A smart, witty period piece filled with marvelous British middle-class characters played to comic perfection.”

“It’s a rare treat to see a Victorian comedy with such a fresh script.”

From the Managing/Artistic Director - Doug Instenes

An Exciting Season Ahead

At this time of the year the play reading committee announces the shows chosen for the upcoming season. There is always a sense of excitement to look ahead, this time to our celebratory 70th year of the Racine Theatre Guild. I want to personally thank this year’s committee and chairperson Karen Reisenauer for all the hard work. I’m sure you will be pleased with their selections.

Season 69 is not yet over, however, as we have three sensational plays still to come. The Uneasy Chair is a clever comedy written by a young contemporary playwright, but set in Victorian England. It plays with the ideas of love and marriage, as well as miscommunication, and the competitive spirit between two stubborn people.

Stand and Deliver, opening in April, presents a real-life story about how one teacher made a difference in the lives of his inner-city students. Then we close the season with a bang, presenting the superb musical Gypsy, based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee. With great music, it tells the tale of a stage mother and her daughters, and what people will do for a life in entertainment.

We hope you will join us for the rest of this season and for years to come. If you have a commitment problem, may I suggest a Flex Pass. This allows you to pick and choose which plays you want to see.

Join us at the Racine Theatre Guild for a fabulous season ahead. Also, if you ever get tired of just watching the shows, why not try volunteering. It’s great fun, and a good way to meet some wonderful people.

Cast & Crew

The Uneasy Chair

by Evan Smith

Cast

Crew