Newnan Theatre Company Presents NOISES OFF!

Newnan Theatre Company is pleased to announce the opening of the raucous comedy Noises Off by Michael Frayn on Thursday, May 10th. The show will run through May 20th. It will be presented in the NTC Mainstage arena.

Highly regarded as one of the funniest shows ever written, Noises Off tells the story of a theatre troupe trying its best to get ready to open a show called "Nothing's On." Lloyd Dallas (Lance Smith), the very stressed director, is down to his last three Valiums trying to deal with his cast, his stage manager, and his love life. The lead actress, Dottie Otley (Andi Laaker), was a star at one time and is valiantly trying to be one again. Actor Gary Lejeune (Chaz Ferguson) is still a good actor, but he cannot seem to manage to make a complete sentence when he is not acting. Actress Belinda Blair (Michelle Mason) is everyone's "stage mother," but she, too, is feeling the pressure. Brooke Ashton (Emily Kimbell), the sexy co-star, is all about looks and not much in the way of intelligence. Frederick Fellowes (Cody Baum) is a competent actor who doesn't handle stress well and handles violence even less so. And everyone is trying to keep Selsdon Mowbray (Ralpn Myers) from turning his hearing aids off and keeping him sober. Lloyd's stage crew, Tim Algood (Luke Bennett) and Poppy Norton-Taylor (Ann Moore) are just trying to stay above water.

"This show is a gift for anyone who has ever done theatre or seen a show," says director Tony Daniel. "The first act is the cast's horrific last rehearsal before opening night. The second act is a painfully funny look at what can go on during backstage during a show. And the third act is the show itself, near the end of its run, when everyone is so tired of one another they cannot even bear looking at one another."

"The cast of the show has the very crazy job of playing both actors and the characters those actors are supposed to be playing. And it becomes very difficult for those actors to keep their backstage antics, feuds, and fights from getting on stage. But, of course, when stress kicks in, anything can happen, and usually does."

"We've all been in shows that come down to the wire, getting the set built, the cast ready, the cues set, so this is almost a labor of love," says Michelle Mason, the actress playing Belinda. "I've never been in a show where this much goes wrong, thankfully, but I have been in shows with actors who drive the others crazy, or a set with doors that keep sticking shut. It's fun to be able to make fun of all that."

Noises Off opens May 10th at Newnan Theatre Company and runs through May 20th. Tickets are on sale now and are available by visiting the NTC website, www.newnantheatre.org, or by calling 770.683.6282. Showtimes are 8 PM Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and 3 PM on Sunday.