FRANKLIN, Pa. — The performance of “You Can’t Take It With You” continues on August 27, at Barrow-Civic Theatre in Franklin.

With over 600 combined years of theatre experience, the cast and crew of You Can’t Take It With You, a play by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, bring the Vanderhof household to life.

About the Play

This household is filled with an eclectic collection of cheerful, yet lovable eccentrics. Patriarch of the house is Martin “Grandpa” Vanderhof (Al Shilling). Grandpa is a philosophical man who has made his peace with the world, with the exception of the Internal Revenue Service, long ago. The next generation sharing the house is his daughter, Penelope “Penny” Sycamore (Becki Williams), who is a happy but unpublished playwright. Her husband, Paul Sycamore (John McConnell), happily makes fireworks in the cellar. Penny and Paul have two daughters, unmarried Alice (Hannah McCarthy) and Essie Carmichael (Tracy Brown). Essie is an eternally optimistic but inept ballerina who makes candy. Her husband, Ed Carmichael (Kolby Martin), sells Essie’s candy while distributing leaflets that he prints himself. He has a passion for his printing press and the xylophone. Alice seems to be the only “normal” one in the household. She is a secretary at the firm of Kirby & Co.

Enter Tony Kirby (Christian Marshall), Alice’s boyfriend. Tony is the son of her boss and the epitome of normality and success in the business world. Tony loves Alice, in spite of the craziness in her family home. To celebrate their engagement, a dinner party is planned to introduce Tony’s strait-laced parents, Mr. Anthony Kirby Sr. (Bill Trimble) and Mrs. Miriam Kirby (Fay Trimble), to her family. Prior to their arrival, she tells the family, “I want him to take you in easy doses. I’ve tried to prepare him a little, but don’t make it any worse than you can help.” However, things don’t go exactly as planned. The Kirby’s mistakenly arrive on the wrong night. Rather than being on their best behavior, the Vanderhof tribe is at their hilarious worst. Just when they think it can’t get any worse, things are compounded when three G-Men (Aaron Ritsig, Andrew Ritsig and August Babington) arrive. The ensuing confusion just adds to the hilarity of the play.

About the Cast

Just as this play centers around the Sycamores, a loving and supportive family, the cast and crew are, for the most part, all long time veterans of the Barrow-Civic Theatre and members of the “Barrow Family”. Veteran actress and 56 year member of the board of directors of the Franklin Civic Operetta Association/Barrow-Civic Theatre, Mary Ann Richardson, summed it up by saying “all of life’s experiences like weddings, births and funerals happen within our theatre. We experience highs and lows together. It is a real family. This is a very special production to me because it is dedicated to a member of the Barrow family that we’ve recently lost, Ed Ramage. He would have fit right in with the members of the Sycamore household.” She went on to say, “I’ve known Al, Tami, John and Mike forever, and Chris Marshal since he was a baby. To be in a show with all of them again is very special. We are also very thrilled to welcome newcomers, Reg, Dennis, Katie and Ben to the family.”

The cast and crew of the show are also full of family members that are united, not only by their love of theatre, but by blood. The Stage Manager and Light Technician (David and Jill Kellner respectively, are brother and sister). Twin brothers, Aaron and Andrew Ritsig (two of the G-Men), grew up on the Barrow stage through the Youth Theatre program. Husband and wife, Bill and Fay Trimble (the Kirbys), are long-time veterans of the Barrow stage. They are very happy to be working together with so many old friends. Their son, Galen Trimble (Donald), has appeared in various Barrow productions with each of his parents separately, but this is the first time all three Trimbles have appeared on stage together. Galen summed it up best by saying “it has really been a wonderful experience working with my parents, and I feel blessed for this opportunity.”

While Al Shilling and his daughter, Director Tami Shilling, have both been involved in theatre for over 45 years each, this is the first time Tami has directed her father on the stage. Tami said “my father and I have always supported each other in our theatrical endeavors, as has the rest of my family. There is something special about being able to direct a show featuring a loving and supportive family while having the opportunity to direct my father, and working with so many veterans of the Barrow-Civic family.”

Rounding out the cast and contributing to the overall chaos of the household are Mr. DePinna (Mark Dougherty), the iceman who stopped in eight years ago and just stayed. He helps Paul build fireworks; Boris Kolenkhof (Reginald Rice) Essie’s ballet teacher; Gay Wellington (Katie McKibben) the actress to whom Penny plans to read one (or more) of her plays; Rheba (Brooke Lawrie) the maid; Donald (Galen Trimble) Rheba’s boyfriend and sometime handyman; Wilbur Henderson (Mike Eichholtz) IRS agent; and The Grand Duchess Olga Katrina (Mary Ann Richardson) a friend of Boris’.
This hilarious play is directed by Tami Shilling. The production crew includes Stage Manager, Dave Kellner; Sound, Amanda Lewis; Lights, Jill Kellner; Set Design, August Babington; Props, Jean Merwin; Costumes, Dennis Brock; Hair and Make-Up, Kaleb Lewis; back stage crew, Ben Welton; and co-producers, Jeri Bolton and Chris Shaw.

For More Information

“You Can’t Take It With You” performances are August 19, 20, 26, 27 at 7:30 p.m. and August 28 at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets are $15.00 for adults, $14.00 for seniors/military, and $10.00 for students/children.

Tickets can be purchased at the Barrow Box Office at 1223 Liberty Street in Franklin, by calling 814-437-3440, or visiting www.barrowtheatre.com.