This weekend, University Theatre undergraduates and graduates will explain exactly why “You Can’t Take it With You.” The show opens Friday, April 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Mitchell Theatre. This classic comedic play, written by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, originally opened in 1936 and won the 1937 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
“You Can’t Take it With You” is the story of the Sycamore/Vanderhof/Carmichael family, a troupe of eccentrics who do not live according to society’s rules. Alice Sycamore, the “normal” child in the family, falls in love with her boss’s son, Tony. Hilarity ensues as Tony Kirby’s family shows up for dinner on the wrong night and is subjected to illegal fireworks, FBI agents, a Russian ballet teacher and all sorts of other crazy characters and events.
“Everything that can go wrong goes wrong that night. On another level, it’s your typical love story where Alice and Tony meet and fall in love and fall out of love and fall back into love and live happily ever after,” said director Ron Himes in a recent interview with The Badger Herald.
The guest director for “You Can’t Take it With You,” Himes is also the founder and director of the Saint Louis Black Repertory Company and the Henry E. Hampton Artist-in-Residence at Washington University. He is excited to work with the Madison University Theatre, and he said although the play is a classic, the Madison cast has brought some fresh energy to the show.
“Pretty much everyone in this cast is serious about the craft of acting and wants to pursue it to a certain degree, and that brings a different type of energy to the whole thing,” said William Bolz, a graduate student who plays Boris Kolenkhov in the production.
Not only is the cast made up of talented students, the entire production is very student-driven. All of the acting graduates at UW-Madison are part of the cast and the set designer, costume designer and lighting designer are all Madison MFA students. The set is especially interesting; it is full of paintings, knick knacks and even a xylophone. Just one glance at the set gives the viewer a glimpse into the odd life of the Sycamore family.
“You Can’t Take it with You” is a romantic comedy, but it also has a great message. The show brings to life the motto, “The best things in life are free.” It also teaches the audience members to follow their dreams, no matter how absurd or crazy they may seem. University Theatre’s production of “You Can’t Take it With You” is set to make the audience laugh, but it will also give viewers a chance to examine their own lives in a new way.
“Just come see it and come ready to laugh,” Bolz said. “It’s fun, it really is.”
You Can’t Take It With You begins April 15 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at utmadison.com or at the Union Theater box office located at the Memorial Union on Park Street. Tickets are $14 for students, and $20 for adults.
