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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Ski survey gets heavy response Ashland High drops homecoming king and queen Read the Mt. Ashland Ski Area survey recap Election officials fine Richardson for late reporting of rent-free home Medford airport launches 'Amazing Race' style contest Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Robber arrested in U.S. Bank heist Emergency Services Bank robbery reported at Court Street US Bank Emergency Services Officials pin down source of Mt. Shasta mudslide Politics and Elections Election officials fine Richardson for late reporting of rent-free home Phoenix Council race draws a full house Sheriff a no-show at Chamber candidate forum Southern Oregon's Dennis Richardson woos liberal Portland Matthew T. 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Grape growers are talking water Food Community blog: Keep salmon succulent by smoking, poaching New festival will celebrate smoked salmon Community blog: Low oven setting yields easy 'sun-dried' tomatoes Wholesale program puts Rogue Valley food in aisles Backpack stuffers add zest to fall outings Home and Garden Start now for a bowl of winter sunshine Counting the reasons to keep your eating local Medford gardens to be showcased Saturday Trees aren't always the best companions for plants Hot tips for a cool (shade) garden Health Community blog: Finding Fun, Not Fear, In Our Senior Years Community blog: Menopause: What's it Good For? Part 2 For the brain, there’s no such thing as over the hill Local health clinics land federal grants to hire medical, dental staff Community blog: Do You Love Enough To Heal Your Dog And Cat? To Bring An Elephant To Tears? 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Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Forest Service won't charge media with filming fee ... Ashland High drops homecoming king and queen ... Election officials fine Richardson for late reporting of rent-free home ... Forest Service won't charge media with filming fee ... Ashland High drops homecoming king and queen ... Election officials fine Richardson for late reporting of rent-free home ... THEATER Randall Theatre presents 'Blithe Spirit' Noel Coward's ghost story is 'probably the funniest ever constructed' Actors Pam Ward and Jonathan Matthews, director Susan Aversa-Orrego and the rest of the crew at Randall Theatre worked fast to figure out how to stage playwright Noel Coward's "Blithe Spirit." By Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 23, 2014 @ 10:22 am Updated Sep 23, 2014 at 6:25 PM By Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 23, 2014 @ 10:22 am Updated Sep 23, 2014 at 6:25 PM » Social News Actors Pam Ward and Jonathan Matthews, director Susan Aversa-Orrego and the rest of the crew at Randall Theatre worked fast to figure out how to stage playwright Noel Coward's "Blithe Spirit." The community theater group was set to produce an adaptation of Stephen King's "Misery," when three weeks into rehearsal King and the licensing company entered litigation over royalties, and all productions of "Misery" were ordered to cease and desist. "I worked on Noel Coward's 'Blithe Spirit' before," says director Aversa-Orrego. "I felt the new show could be prepared rather quickly. Pam and Jonathan agreed to the roles of Madame Arcati and Charles Condomine, respectively. That left five other roles to fill, and we found some amazing actors who agreed to take on the challenge of a very short rehearsal period." "Blithe Spirit" opens Friday, Sept. 26, with a reception at 6:30 p.m. and curtain at 7 p.m. at Randall Theatre, 10 Third St., Medford. Opening night tickets cost $20 and include beverages and appetizers. Other performances are set for 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, Thursdays through Saturdays, Oct. 2-4 and Oct. 9-11, and 1 p.m. Sundays, Sept. 28, Oct. 5 and Oct. 12. Tickets cost $15 for reserved seats. Pay-what-you-want-tickets are available 30 minutes before shows. Flex passes and group rates are available. "Written in 1941, 'Blithe Spirit' is probably the funniest ghost story ever constructed," Aversa-Orrego says.  Condomine is a novelist who is researching the occult for a new book, and he decides to invite eccentric medium Arcati to his home for a seance. The quirky, crazy Arcati somehow manages to conjure up Condomine's first wife, Elvira, who disrupts the entire household and drives his second wife, Ruth, to hysteria. "The situation is silly enough," Aversa-Orrego says. "But the true delight of the play is the dialogue Coward has constructed. The veneer of upper-crust of society crumbles as the barbed lines fly back and forth between characters. Ruth and Charles, once so superior and smug, are reduced to silly squabbling as Elvira designs her plan to get Charles to the other side for eternity." Victoria Simone Stewart plays Ruth, Stephanie Jones plays Elvira, Timothy Kelly plays Dr. Bradman, Becky Durango plays Mrs. Radman and Courtney Crawford plays the cockney housemaid, Edith.  Elvira and Charles experienced a heated, tempestuous love affair — along with a few on the side — that probably wouldn't have endured, but was great while it lasted. As they rehash what went wrong with their marriage, it becomes clear that their love was more of an idealized relationship than a real one. It's really too late to repair the damage, but they try to make one another take responsibility for it anyway.    "The futility of trying to fix a marriage when one of the party has passed over provides some of the best moments of the play," Aversa-Orrego says.   Charles' and Ruth's second marriage is not the "first, fine careless rapture," as Charles says in the script. It's a quieter, more comfortable love that enables him to live a peaceful existence while working on his novels. That peace, though, is thoroughly managed by Ruth, who takes over the household affairs and dominates him. He consents without protest because he doesn't have as much of an emotional stake in the game. As long as his life goes along happily and he doesn't have to think about it, the marriage works.   The fun starts as the marriage's faults are revealed while Elvira manipulates him.   "Putting these two relationships together and contrasting how Charles relates to both of these women drives the play to its crazy conclusion," Aversa-Orrego says.   Coward wrote his funny ghost story during the destruction of World War II, making him the subject of some criticism, Aversa-Orrego says. The playwright merely commented that "as the story was thoroughly heartless, you can't sympathize with any of them."   His characters best come to life when they're self-absorbed and selfish, because it allows audiences the opportunity for rich, heartfelt laughter, she says. By Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 23, 2014 @ 10:22 am Updated Sep 23, 2014 at 6:25 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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