Anyone familiar with the Santa Maria Civic Theatre knows that the dedicated volunteers there are used to wearing several different hats. Someone who directed the last show may be acting in the current one, or somebody performing on stage may have painted most of the set.
For example, current Santa Maria Civic Theatre President Catherine Brown also plays Sonia in the upcoming production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, explained vice president and director for the show Stuart Wenger. But Brown is also coordinating the opening night gala fundraiser on Sept. 19, no easy task in and of itself.
“Both Catherine and I are very busy this year,” Wenger said. “She directed God of Carnage at the start of the year, then I directed Brooklyn Boy, now I’m directing this show, then she’s directing the Christmas play, and then we go to vote at the board and we got president and vice president, so … I could use a nap!”
Wenger joked about his packed schedule but couldn’t mask his excitement about the upcoming production. Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike is a farcical comedy with some heartfelt moments, he explained, that include family drama, a clairvoyant maid, and plenty of references to Anton Chekhov.
The first three characters listed, Vanya (Craig Scott), Sonia (Catherine Brown), and Masha (Sally Buchanan), are siblings. Sonia, who is adopted, stayed on the family farm with Vanya to take care of their parents during their convalescence. The death of the parents—two teachers who named their kids after characters from Chekhov plays—has hit the two hard, and they’re resentful that Masha wasn’t around to help.
Masha—a successful Hollywood actress—is resentful for her own reasons, however, after years of sending checks to help support the farm and her family. She walks back into their lives with her trophy boyfriend Spike (Jim Moonier) in tow and announces her plans to sell the farm. A big ball of family drama unfurls as the titular characters bicker, boast, and bleat years’ worth of resentment at each other. The play is peppered with references to Chekhov, whose plays often deal with turbulent family dynamics, especially when the consideration of an estate changing hands is concerned, Wenger said.
“I read five of Chekhov’s plays before I started directing this because I just wanted to catch all the references,” he said. “It’s great if you know the Chekhov plays, you can catch the references in the script, but if you haven’t seen any Chekhov, it’s still just a great play,” Wenger said.
All the actors in the production are returning Santa Maria Civic Theatre volunteer performers. Several started as recently as last year, like Sally Buchanan, who commanded the stage for her first performance in The Foreigner, which also displayed Jim Moonier’s skill for carefully crafted comedy. Craig Scott displayed passionate rage in God of Carnage, directed then by Brown.
Joining the four are Amytra as the pseudo-psychic maid Cassandra and Sarah Willingham as the country girl next door Nina. Both have delivered wonderful performances in past plays, and Willingham has been involved in most productions over the past few years, including the Summer Fairy Tales programs.
Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike dishes up its laughs with a more mature audience in mind, Wenger explained, with some adult themes making the production not suitable for children.
“There’s a few f-bombs in there, and so we always let people know that beforehand,” he said. “And then Spike is in his underpants for a couple of scenes.”
Wenger doesn’t think the mature elements of the play are too extreme. They actually add to comedy of the play, he said, but it does make his job as director a little awkward at times.
“Believe me, I’m checking Jim, I have to check his underwear to make sure nothing sneaks out,” he said, laughing. “Just want to make sure everything is secure and locked down.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne often laughs too loud at the Santa Maria Civic Theatre. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Sep 17-24, 2015.