VGCC Students Present Classic Comedy
Vance-Granville Community College drama students will stage Mary Chase’s classic play, Harvey, Thursday, December 4 through Saturday, December 6. Each night’s performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the small auditorium in Building 2 on the college’s main campus in Henderson.
The play, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1945, tells the story of Elwood P. Dowd and his imaginary friend, a six-and-half-foot tall rabbit named Harvey. When Elwood starts to introduce Harvey to guests at a society party, his sister, Veta Louise Simmons, has seen as much of his eccentric behavior as she can tolerate. She decides to have him committed to a sanitarium to spare her daughter, Myrtle Mae, and their family from future embarrassment. Problems arise, however, when Veta herself is mistakenly assumed to be on the verge of lunacy when she explains to doctors that years of living with Elwood’s hallucination have caused her to see Harvey, also. Doctors commit Veta instead of Elwood, but when the truth comes out, the search is on for Elwood and his invisible companion.
VGCC student Shawn Rhodes stars as Elwood P. Dowd, while Sharon Henderson plays Veta. Other members of the cast include Cassandra Nida, Brynn Kelsey, Jessica Montez, Jake Turner, Isaac Garner, Patrick Nethercutt, Celia Lynes, Zeb McGill and Nicholas Henderson.
The production crew includes Randy Ragland, Bobby Burnside, Samer Jizi, Charles King, Daniel Knutson and Joe Garner. Betsy Henderson, VGCC’s Theatre Arts/Speech instructor, directs the play.
Admission is $5 for the general public, and $2 for VGCC students, faculty and staff. Tickets may be purchased at the door.
For more information, call Betsy Henderson at (252) 738-3371.
Above: VGCC students rehearse a scene from the play Harvey, which they will perform Dec. 4, 5 and 6 at 7:30 p.m. From left to right, Shawn Rhodes of Butner plays Elwood P. Dowd, Cassandra Nida of Littleton plays Myrtle Mae Simmons, Brynn Kelsey of Henderson plays Ethel Chauvenet and Sharon Henderson of Warrenton plays Veta Louise Simmons. (VGCC photo)
