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‘Foul Play’ writer draws on experience
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
YOUNGSTOWN
“Foul Play,” a comedy written by Valley theater veteran Terry Shears, will get its premiere Friday at the Youngstown Playhouse.
Using the construction of a play-within-a-play, it looks in on a small community theater that is populated by some quirky folks in crazy situations.
It’s safe to say that Shears used his decades of experience in writing the script.
“Community theater is a gold mine for humor because you see people in awkward and funny, stressful situations and how they handle them,” said Shears. “The characters in ‘Foul Play’ go through one of the most awkward evenings of their lives and put on a truly foul play.”
The first act, set in real time, takes place in two adjoining dressing rooms backstage during the 50 minutes or so before the opening night of the awful melodrama “Miss Weevil’s Whimsy.”
An invisible wall separates the rooms.
The second act is largely the performance of “Miss Weevil’s Whimsy” and the aftermath of the horrible performance. The dressing room tables from the first act become the dining table of an orphanage in 1898 Indiana that is the setting for “Miss Weevil’s Whimsy.”
“Foul Play” will be performed in the Playhouse’s intimate Moyer Room. It will run for seven shows over two consecutive weekends.
For Shears, it will mark the third time a play he wrote is performed.
“I’ve toured local schools with my collected and dramatized ‘Aesop’s Fables,’ and last summer, my one-act ‘Just Someone at a Party’ was performed in the Moyer Room,” he said. Shears has since expanded “Just Someone” to a two-act show and is seeking a venue for its performance.
Shears also has published short stories, memoirs and a novel.
“Miss Weevil’s Whimsy” is set in Youngstown, where it is being produced by the fictitious Smokestack Players, but Shears said it easily can be adapted to anywhere with a few minor line changes.
“I hope the show becomes part of an exodus of good material from the Youngstown area to the larger theater world, which is something we are seeing happen more and more with local playwrights,” he said. “We have an amazing theater scene in this area, comparable to that of much larger cities.”
Shears also hopes that audiences who see the 90-minute “Foul Play” will get a good laugh.
“Those familiar with theater can play the ‘I know him, I’ve worked with someone like her, I’ve been around kids like that’ game, but everyone, theater experience or no, will enjoy these quirky characters and the hell they go through,” he said.
“Foul Play” is being directed by Liz Conrad. The cast includes Hollis Bernacki, Miranda Canacci, Emily Choleva, Owen Corey, Kage Coven, Rachel Franek, Molly Galano, Aiyana Moore, Mitchell Myers, Tom O’Donnell, Timothy Thomas and Lily Weiss.
Devin Whitehouse serves as stage manager, and John Pecano and Ellie DiCiero designed the set and costumes, respectively.
Shears has a long history in the area’s community theater scene. He has acted in about 75 productions since he debuted at the Playhouse in 1998 in “See How They Run.” He has done about 30 shows at the Playhouse, including children’s theater, and also has worked at Salem Community Theater, New Castle Playhouse, Trumbull New Theater, Victorian Players, the Oakland and Mahoning Valley Players’ Shakespeare in the Park. He also has appeared in two movies.