By Christina AmorosoPLAY Editor
When deciding to direct WAVE’s Psycho Beach Party, Communication senior Dennis Webber says inclement Chicago weather factored into the decision.
“I really hate the winters here,” the Florida native says before a rehearsal in the Louis Room Tuesday night, an evening when winds and snow are keeping even the bravest Northwestern students indoors.
But if you brave the elements and venture to the Louis Room this weekend, you will find a scene that might make you forget about the dreary weather and negative wind chill outside – a set comprised of a surfer hut, hot dog stand and even real sand, among other beachy items. It’s makes you thankful that Spring Break is finally only a few weeks away.
Psycho Beach Party is described by Webber and the cast as many things: a spoof, over-the-top and simply an hour of crazy comedy.
The show was written by Northwestern graduate Charles Busch (Speech ’76) and first took off in New York the early 1980s as a drag show-infused satire of the ’60s Gidget movies.
“Charles Busch was very clever in his commentary,” says Communication senior Erin Sprague. She plays Marvel Ann, and refers in particular to Busch’s commentary on ambiguous gay relations and how women were objectified and portrayed in these films.
“It’s a very clever show … I hope we picked up on that … It’s a lot smarter than people might think it is,” she says.
Communication senior Christine Stulik plays Mrs. Forrest and also talks about Busch’s parody and simultaneous social commentary about gender and sex.
“It’s a very heightened parody,” she says. “It’s hard to keep it honest when the characters are so ridiculous.”
Psycho Beach Party centers around a young woman named Chicklet, who’s determined to learn how to surf and fit in with the surfing community, says Communication sophomore Cara Brown, who portrays Chicklet’s best friend, Berdine.
“(Chicklet’s) goody two-shoes character is exposed,” Webber says.
Brown describes her own character as “the nerdy, spunky sidekick of the main character.”
Brown also says this show differs in comparison to other shows she has seen here.
“This one just takes a lot of risks and doesn’t hold back,” she says.
Webber says the way the Northwestern show has been adapted makes it unique.
“We threw in a few silly movement numbers,” he says, but he does not want to go into detail and give anything away.
“It’s so different from anything I’ve done,” Communication sophomore Kate Yoder says, who plays Bettina Barnes. “You can actually sort of relate to the characters … we’re all sort of quirky in our own way, in our own right.”
But the director and cast members also say the show has not been without its challenges.
“Doing comedy is a little bit difficult,” Webber says, who wrote and directed last year’s performance of Mrs. Prudential.
“In the end we found something unique and fun,” he says.
Brown, who has done mainly film acting, is acting on a stage for the first time and says theater acting is different from film.
“It requires a lot more constant energy,” she says.
Yoder stresses the importance of perfecting timing and how to say lines in a way that come off as comedic. She also says she has prepared for her role in some other ways.
“I watched a lot of Marilyn Monroe movies,” she says. Yoder also says her character is very similar to the legendary blonde actress.
“She’s basically this B-movie starlet … definitely a diva,” she says. “(She’s) just sort of thrown into the bunch … she’s in Malibu because she’s escaping the Hollywood life.”
Stulik describes her character, Mrs. Forrest (Chicklet’s mother), as similar to the character Joan Crawford in Mommie Dearest.
Forrest has a split personality and she is also a former prostitute who has undergone life changes.
Stulik says, with a laugh, that she has a “mild obsession with sexually repressed ’50s housewives.”
She has also acted in other shows, including Boy Gets Girl, a TI lab show.
Sprague describes her character, Marvel Ann, as your typical mean high school girl.
She says Marvel Ann likes to keep Chicklet and Berdine close.
“She’s kind of a slut,” Sprague says. “She definitely uses her feminine wiles to get what she wants.”
While everyone describes the show differently, Yoder sums up the show with six simple words:
“It’s just a sexy good time,” she says.
Psycho Beach Party goes up in the Louis Room on Thursday, Feb. 15 at 8 p.m., Friday, Feb. 16 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 17 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for everyone else. They can be purchased at the door.
Medill sophomore Christina Amoroso is the PLAY theater editor. She can be reached at [email protected]
