‘Importance Of Being Earnest’

Mountain Mail reports
From a cool London drizzle to a Dallas summer sizzle, the Socorro Community Theater’s upcoming production of The Importance of Being Earnest offers a new look at a much loved classic comedy by Oscar Wilde.
Setting the play in Texas in 1955, director Christopher Watts said, “I wanted to do something different. Shakespeare is often set in modern contexts. Could I do that with Earnest?”
Oscar Wilde, a master of witty conversations, puns, and paradoxes called this play “a trivial comedy for serious people.”
Originally set in Victorian England, Wilde makes fun of the social conventions the upper classes held dear – manners, property, love of money, morality, and class structure.
“Though on the surface it’s a trivial comedy, the underlying themes still ring as true today as they did 100 years ago,” Watts said.
The plot centers around two friends, Jack (the romantic) and Algernon (the cynic). Both men lead dual lives in order to escape their daily routines – one to leave his dull existence in the country to play in the city, the other to leave the city in order to relax in the country. Their deceptions soon collide, resulting in a series of funny situations that might compromise Jack and Algernon’s romantic plans. Will Gwendolyn still love Jack when she finds out his name isn’t Earnest? Will Cecily still find Algernon utterly charming when she discovers the truth about him?
“The cast is a good mix of SCT veterans and several new faces,” Watts said. “Excellent character dynamics have developed and we’re all well on our way to a captivating performance.” The cast includes Alan Roes, Katy Weaver, Dietrich Bachman, Rauni Montoya, Rheda Brown, Virginia Alguire, John Stokes and Tom Fitch.
Watts called The Importance Of Being Earnest “a light, fun play that pokes fun at our social customs and even ourselves. The absurd premise and dry one-liners will keep the audience laughing.”
Performances at Garcia Opera House are Friday and Saturday, Aug. 28-29 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 30 at 1 p.m. Tickets at the door are $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, and $6 for students. For information call 838-0379 or visit www.socorro. com/sct.

‘Importance Of Being Earnest’