EXAMPLES OF A Playbill Bio:
Roger McCafferty (Roger Tramplemaine) has been doing theatre for 40 years. Three of his favorite roles include Donna Lucia in Charley's, the Baker in Into the Woods, and Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace. Roger has appeared in more than 40 plays in his career and has directed more than 50 for CHS. He would like to thank his family for giving up so much time with him so he can pursue his dreams.
Roger McCafferty (Grandpa Vanderhof) is making his debut in this year's production. He is extremely excited to bring the character of grandpa to life. Having appeared in several YPT productions, Roger is ready to take the stage at Aberdeen Central. He thanks you all for coming to the show and hopes you will enjoy the important message this play delivers.
If you do not have previous acting experience, talk about your character and what you like about them, etc. . You may also want to include your future plans.
WRITE IN 3rd Person. Do not use "I" or "me"
Roger McCafferty (Roger Tramplemaine) has been doing theatre for 40 years. Three of his favorite roles include Donna Lucia in Charley's, the Baker in Into the Woods, and Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace. Roger has appeared in more than 40 plays in his career and has directed more than 50 for CHS. He would like to thank his family for giving up so much time with him so he can pursue his dreams.
Roger McCafferty (Grandpa Vanderhof) is making his debut in this year's production. He is extremely excited to bring the character of grandpa to life. Having appeared in several YPT productions, Roger is ready to take the stage at Aberdeen Central. He thanks you all for coming to the show and hopes you will enjoy the important message this play delivers.
If you do not have previous acting experience, talk about your character and what you like about them, etc. . You may also want to include your future plans.
WRITE IN 3rd Person. Do not use "I" or "me"
Meet the Vanderhof Family
"Grandpa" Martin Vanderhof was once part of the competitive business world. However, one day he realized he was unhappy. So, he stopped working. Since that time, he spends his days catching and raising snakes, watching graduation ceremonies, visiting old friends, and doing whatever else he wants to do.
The members of his household are just as eccentric:
So, What's The Appeal?
Perhaps America has been in love with You Can't Take It With You because we all see a little bit of ourselves in Grandpa and his family members. Or, if not, perhaps we want to be like them.
Many of us go through living up to the expectations of others. As a teacher, I meet a surprising number of students who are going to college major is something simply because their parents expect them to. Grandpa Vanderhof understands the preciousness of life; he pursues his own interests, his own forms of fulfillment. He encourages others to follow their dreams, and not submit to the will of others.
In this scene, Grandpa Vanderhof is headed out to chat with an old friend, a policeman on the corner:
Grandpa: I have known him since he was a little boy. He's a doctor. But after he graduated, he came to me and said he didn't
want to be a doctor. He had always wanted to be a policeman. So I said, you go ahead and be a policeman if that's
what you want. And that's what he did.
"Grandpa" Martin Vanderhof was once part of the competitive business world. However, one day he realized he was unhappy. So, he stopped working. Since that time, he spends his days catching and raising snakes, watching graduation ceremonies, visiting old friends, and doing whatever else he wants to do.
The members of his household are just as eccentric:
- His daughter Penny writes plays simply because a few years ago "typewriter was delivered to the house by accident." She also paints. Easily distracted, Penny never finishes a single project.
- His son-in-law Paul Sycamore spends hours in the basement making illegal fireworks and playing with erector sets.
- His granddaughter Essie sells candy and has been clumsily attempting ballet for over eight years.
- His grandson-in-law Ed Charmichael plays the xylophone (or tries to) and accidentally distributes Marxist propaganda.
So, What's The Appeal?
Perhaps America has been in love with You Can't Take It With You because we all see a little bit of ourselves in Grandpa and his family members. Or, if not, perhaps we want to be like them.
Many of us go through living up to the expectations of others. As a teacher, I meet a surprising number of students who are going to college major is something simply because their parents expect them to. Grandpa Vanderhof understands the preciousness of life; he pursues his own interests, his own forms of fulfillment. He encourages others to follow their dreams, and not submit to the will of others.
In this scene, Grandpa Vanderhof is headed out to chat with an old friend, a policeman on the corner:
Grandpa: I have known him since he was a little boy. He's a doctor. But after he graduated, he came to me and said he didn't
want to be a doctor. He had always wanted to be a policeman. So I said, you go ahead and be a policeman if that's
what you want. And that's what he did.
Cast list
Helen Murray as Penelope (Penny) Sycamore: The daughter of Martin Vanderhof, mother of Essie and Alice, and wife of Paul, Penelope is the fluttery, gentle lady of the house. She decided to become a playwright when a typewriter was delivered to their house by mistake. Since that time this accidental playwright has spent much of her time writing works with titles such as Poison Gas.
Peyton Johnson as Essie Carmichael: The daughter of Penelope and Paul, granddaughter of Martin Vanderhof, and wife of Ed, Essie is a pixie in toeshoes. At the age of twenty-nine, she wants to be a dancer in the worst way--and, according to any unbiased observer, that is exactly what she is. The eternal student, she takes lessons from Boris Kolenkhov and is constantly dancing across the living room.
Tessa Wiest as Rheba: The maid in the Vanderhof household, she probably understands this unusual family better than anyone.
Tabor Schabot as Paul Sycamore: The husband of Penelope and father of Essie, Paul Sycamore is in his mid-fifties, but with a kind of youthful air. His quiet charm and mild manner are distinctly engaging. However, under that unassuming exterior lies a man who lives for his fireworks--the ones he manufactures in the cellar.
Cain Ingram as Mr/Mrs. De Pinna: Years ago, De Pinna was delivering ice to the Vanderhof home--and just decided to stay. Now the mad genius of pyrotechnics helps out Paul in the cellar. (This role could be cast male or female)
Shawn Hepola as Ed Carmichael: The husband of Essie, Ed is a nondescript young man in his mid-thirties. However, he has two passions: the printing press and the xylophone.
Jacob Usselman as Donald/Donna: Rheba’s boyfriend/daughter, Donald/Donna spends a lot of comfortable time at the Vanderhof home. (This role could be cast male or female)
Lincoln End of Horn as Martin Vanderhof: The patriarchal head of the family, Grandpa Martin Vanderhof is about seventy-five, a man whom the years have treated kindly. He is a man who made his peace with the world long, long ago, and his whole attitude and manner are quietly persuasive of this. He does, however, have a long-standing “disagreement” with the Internal Revenue Service.
Deryn Lewis as Alice Sycamore: The daughter of Penelope and Paul and sister of Essie, Alice is a lovely, fresh young girl of about twenty-two. Because she is a secretary in a Wall Street office, she is in daily contact with the world and seems to have escaped the tinge of mild insanity that pervades the rest of the family; however, her familial devotion and love are readily apparent. In the course of the play she is engaged to marry Tony Kirby, her boss’s son.
Abe Wieland as Tony Kirby: The boyfriend and later fiancé of Alice, Tony Kirby is a personable young man not long out of Yale and Cambridge. Although he fits all the physical requirements of a boss’s son, his face (and his spirit) has something of the idealist in it, invoking in him a certain fondness for the Vanderhofs’ quirkiness.
Sam Pharris as Boris Kolenkhov: Essie’s dance teacher, Boris Kolenkhov is a hearty, explosive, Russian ballet-master.
Eric Jacobsen as Mr. Anthony Kirby, Sr: Tony’s father and Alice’s boss in the Wall Street office, Mr. Kirby is a successful businessman who wants his son to follow in his footsteps; thus, he is very disapproving of the Vanderhof family and of his son’s engagement to Alice.
Courtney Hanisch as Mrs. Miriam Kirby: Tony’s mother, Mrs. Kirby is of the same mind and temperament as her husband.
Gavin Scherbenske as Wilbur Henderson: A staunch government woman from the Internal Revenue Department, Henderson has been dispatched to collect twenty-four years worth of back income taxes from Grandpa Vanderhoff. (This role could be cast male or female)
Madi Vetter as Grand Duchess Olga Katrina: The former Grand Duchess and cousin to the former Russian Czar, Olga Katrina now waits tables at Childs’ Restaurant in Times Square and reminisces with Kolenkhov about pre-Revolutionary Russia.
Miah Galbraith as Gay Wellington: An actress Penny meets on a bus and brings home to do a reading of one of her plays she has written.
Alex Snell as Federal Agent : FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Kylee (Aaron) Hanson as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Rayn Girioux as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Mya Williams as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Skylinn Williams as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Kayleen Hermans as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Brooklyn Hettich as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Peyton Johnson as Essie Carmichael: The daughter of Penelope and Paul, granddaughter of Martin Vanderhof, and wife of Ed, Essie is a pixie in toeshoes. At the age of twenty-nine, she wants to be a dancer in the worst way--and, according to any unbiased observer, that is exactly what she is. The eternal student, she takes lessons from Boris Kolenkhov and is constantly dancing across the living room.
Tessa Wiest as Rheba: The maid in the Vanderhof household, she probably understands this unusual family better than anyone.
Tabor Schabot as Paul Sycamore: The husband of Penelope and father of Essie, Paul Sycamore is in his mid-fifties, but with a kind of youthful air. His quiet charm and mild manner are distinctly engaging. However, under that unassuming exterior lies a man who lives for his fireworks--the ones he manufactures in the cellar.
Cain Ingram as Mr/Mrs. De Pinna: Years ago, De Pinna was delivering ice to the Vanderhof home--and just decided to stay. Now the mad genius of pyrotechnics helps out Paul in the cellar. (This role could be cast male or female)
Shawn Hepola as Ed Carmichael: The husband of Essie, Ed is a nondescript young man in his mid-thirties. However, he has two passions: the printing press and the xylophone.
Jacob Usselman as Donald/Donna: Rheba’s boyfriend/daughter, Donald/Donna spends a lot of comfortable time at the Vanderhof home. (This role could be cast male or female)
Lincoln End of Horn as Martin Vanderhof: The patriarchal head of the family, Grandpa Martin Vanderhof is about seventy-five, a man whom the years have treated kindly. He is a man who made his peace with the world long, long ago, and his whole attitude and manner are quietly persuasive of this. He does, however, have a long-standing “disagreement” with the Internal Revenue Service.
Deryn Lewis as Alice Sycamore: The daughter of Penelope and Paul and sister of Essie, Alice is a lovely, fresh young girl of about twenty-two. Because she is a secretary in a Wall Street office, she is in daily contact with the world and seems to have escaped the tinge of mild insanity that pervades the rest of the family; however, her familial devotion and love are readily apparent. In the course of the play she is engaged to marry Tony Kirby, her boss’s son.
Abe Wieland as Tony Kirby: The boyfriend and later fiancé of Alice, Tony Kirby is a personable young man not long out of Yale and Cambridge. Although he fits all the physical requirements of a boss’s son, his face (and his spirit) has something of the idealist in it, invoking in him a certain fondness for the Vanderhofs’ quirkiness.
Sam Pharris as Boris Kolenkhov: Essie’s dance teacher, Boris Kolenkhov is a hearty, explosive, Russian ballet-master.
Eric Jacobsen as Mr. Anthony Kirby, Sr: Tony’s father and Alice’s boss in the Wall Street office, Mr. Kirby is a successful businessman who wants his son to follow in his footsteps; thus, he is very disapproving of the Vanderhof family and of his son’s engagement to Alice.
Courtney Hanisch as Mrs. Miriam Kirby: Tony’s mother, Mrs. Kirby is of the same mind and temperament as her husband.
Gavin Scherbenske as Wilbur Henderson: A staunch government woman from the Internal Revenue Department, Henderson has been dispatched to collect twenty-four years worth of back income taxes from Grandpa Vanderhoff. (This role could be cast male or female)
Madi Vetter as Grand Duchess Olga Katrina: The former Grand Duchess and cousin to the former Russian Czar, Olga Katrina now waits tables at Childs’ Restaurant in Times Square and reminisces with Kolenkhov about pre-Revolutionary Russia.
Miah Galbraith as Gay Wellington: An actress Penny meets on a bus and brings home to do a reading of one of her plays she has written.
Alex Snell as Federal Agent : FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Kylee (Aaron) Hanson as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Rayn Girioux as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Mya Williams as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Skylinn Williams as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Kayleen Hermans as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Brooklyn Hettich as another Federal Agent: FBI agents who raid the Vanderhof home looking for illegal firework manufacturiing and propaganda distribution/printing.
Synopsis
Grandpa Vanderhof and his wacky family, the Sycamores, have been happily living their zany lives in his house by Columbia University in New York for many years. This family (and their friends) are a madcap group of eccentrics, marching to the beat of their own drum, with pride and joy. Their hobbies include collecting snakes, building fireworks in the basement, writing a myriad of plays that never get published, and taking ballet lessons. Things like stress, jobs, and paying taxes to the government are for other people, not for them! But when practical young Alice Sycamore becomes engaged to her company’s Vice President Tony Kirby, the Vanderhof/Sycamore clan must straighten up to meet the new in-laws. Disaster ensues when the Kirbys arrive at the wrong time and, despite the best laid plans, see Alice’s family in all of its crazy glory. The evening ends with everyone in the house getting arrested, and Alice ending the engagement. It isn’t until Grandpa’s wise speech to Mr. Kirby about the importance of living life to the fullest that the two families find a way to accept each other, and love conquers all. You Can’t Take It With You is a madcap, idealistic comedy that reinforces the idea that you can only live life to the fullest by doing whatever makes you happy.
REhearsals - Monday - Fridays from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m.
All rehearsals are scheduled for the Thomas F. Kelly Theatre. (A copy of the schedule is linked below)
- Be sure to check the schedule to see if you character is needed for the day's rehearsal. Not all characters are needed everyday.
- The schedule is not set in stone. Adjustments will have to be made as we work through the rehearsal process. You will be notified through REMIND of any changes to the schedule. Changes will also be posted on this website.
- There are two special rehearsals that will run at a different time than all others. ***Friday, September 28th will be our Final "Fix It' rehearsal that will run from 3:30 until finished (hopefully by 8 p.m.). We will provide a pizza supper during a rehearsal break at no charge. Actors and Crew members will provide their own beverages. ***Monday, October 1st will be our final Dress Rehearsal. This rehearsal will start and 3:30 and will end after a full run of the show. The show runs 2 hours so if we can get into make-up and costume by 4, we should be done by 6 p.m. BE PREPARED TO STAY UNTIL WE ARE DONE AND ALL NOTES ARE GIVEN.
- All cast members need to be at the final two rehearsals...make arrangements to clear your schedules!!!!!!!!!!
CHANGES TO SCHEDULE:
*Thursday 9/20 -- Full cast needed for costumes and run scenes we have missed earlier. We will also run Act I.
*Friday 9/21 -- Full Cast needed. We will be running Act II and III. Due to line issues, we are behind a bit on our schedule and need to finish working Act III from Wednesday.
*Thursday 9/20 -- Full cast needed for costumes and run scenes we have missed earlier. We will also run Act I.
*Friday 9/21 -- Full Cast needed. We will be running Act II and III. Due to line issues, we are behind a bit on our schedule and need to finish working Act III from Wednesday.