I’ve always been a fan of writer and quirky playwright Noel Coward.
In November 2006, I visited his holiday getaway estate named Firefly in Jamaica, also the tropical seaside site of his final resting place following his death at age 73 in 1973.
I think Coward would be pleased to know his stage works, including “Blithe Spirit,” first unveiled in London in 1941, are still earning audience ovations.
Dunes Summer Theatre and Artist Director Steve Scott have kicked off its 2024 season with “Blithe Spirit,” which concludes three weekends of performances this weekend on June 16 in Michigan City.
“Blithe Spirit” centers on a sophisticated British novelist named Charles haunted by the ghost of his mischievous former wife, who appears after a séance congers her spirit.
I caught a performance of the stage comedy last weekend, and director Michael Lasswell, who is also Dunes’ resident set and scenic designer, has hit a home run, especially with all of the clever special effects included to tell the story.
The cast members for “Blithe Spirit’ are mostly new to the Dunes stage, and also new to working with each other, led by Sean Kelly as novelist Charles Condomine opposite Danielle Bilderback as his second wife Ruth Condomine, both tormented by Danielle Kerr as the now ghostly first spouse Elvira. Mary Jayne Britton plays the family maid Edith and Dean Johanson is Dr. Bradman, with Stacy Nelson as his bickering wife Mrs. Bradman and Madeline Pell as Madame Arcati.
All the cast members are incredible in their character roles, but Pell as the spirit medium ranks as the levitating favorite for this production launching Dunes Summer Theatre’s 73rd Season.
For the last Broadway revival, the great Angela Lansbury was cast as kooky Madame Arcati, resulting in the 2009 performance run for Lansbury to win her fifth Tony Award for the “Blithe Spirit” role. She reprised the role again in 2015 at age 89, before she died in 2022.
It was Margaret Rutherford, who died at age 80 in 1972, who originated the role of Madame Arcati and also portrayed her in the 1945 film version with Rex Harrison as frazzled Charles. For the 1987 revival, Richard Chamberlain played Charles opposite actresses Judith Ivey and Blythe Danner as his rival wives, and the great Geraldine Page was under the turban of Madame Arcati.
Page, who received a Tony Award nomination for her portrayal, died of a heart attack at age 62 during the 104-performance run.
The old-school stage gimmicks and trickery work wonderfully for the special effects throughout the show, especially during the finale scene.
Tickets for “Blithe Spirit” are $35 and available by calling 219-879-7509 or at dunesARTS.org with performances at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and a final show at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 16, on Father’s Day. Dunes Summer Theatre is nestled in the woods along the Lake Michigan shoreline at 288 Shady Oak Drive in Michigan City.
The rest of the Dunes Summer Theatre season includes “Talley’s Folly” June 28-July 14; “The Bridges of Madison County” July 26-Aug. 11; and “The 4th Annual Dunes Broadway Cabaret Romantic Journeys” Aug. 15-17.
The Dunes Arts Foundation, which operates Dunes Arts Summer Theatre and Education Programs, became incorporated in 1951 and is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Philip Potempa is a journalist, published author and the director of marketing at Theatre at the Center. He can be reached at pmpotempa@comhs.org.
