AC kicks off theatre season with classic 1940s comedy by Noel Coward

The Amarillo College Theatre Arts Program is pleased to present a classic comedy by famed English playwright Noël Coward as its first show of the 2022-23 season.

Blithe Spirit, which is under the direction of Monty Downs, veteran instructor of theatre at AC, takes the stage for a four-day run beginning Thursday, Oct. 6 at the Experimental Theatre on the Washington Street Campus.

Performances Oct. 6-8 start at 7:30 p.m., and the run will be capped with a matinee beginning at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 9.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students (college or high school) and AC employees. They can be purchased at the door or online. Additionally, groups of 10 or more are entitled to $6 seats if purchased at least 24 hours in advance.

The story revolves around a British widower and novelist who, now remarried and seeking material for his next book, asks a spiritualist to conduct a séance. Problems arise, of course, when he is consequently haunted by the ghost of his temperamental first wife.

The ghost goes to great lengths to disrupt the marriage of the novelist to his second wife, who naturally is entirely unable to see or hear the ghost.

“This is a fun comedy with a lot of witty jokes,” said Downs, whose student cast contains a mix of newcomers and veterans of the AC stage.

Cast members are: Emily Errington, Tarissa Lewis, Diego Lopez, Steve Parker, Victoria Perez, Damianna Rockholt, and Taylor Skidmore.

Blithe Spirit was first presented in London in 1941 and created a long-run record of non-musical British plays with 1,997 performances. It also did well on Broadway later that year, running for 657 performances.

For more information about the play or the AC Theatre Arts Program, please call 806-371-5359.