By Jerome Lawrence & Robert E. Lee
“One of the most exciting plays of all time.”
Think back to before September 11, 2001, before Monica Lewinsky, Watergate, and the assassinations of the 60’s. Before “I like Ike” and even before WWII. To just before the great depression when in the cities the flappers were flapping and the fat cats were “living the high life.” But in the rural communities it was the time when right was right, wrong was wrong and all the answers were found in one book, The Bible.
It is 1926. If you were born that year you would be 78 years old today. So for most of us this is a time that we can only read about, or imagine. But as we may imagine it, the times were not so simple. Things were changing. Lucky Lindy was about to cross the Atlantic and only 13 years earlier the Titanic sank into the ocean.
This was the year of the Scopes Monkey trials, when Charles Darwin was put up against the likes of the apostles, the writers of the scriptures and GOD.
“Inherit the wind,” written several decades after the famous trials, recreates what was the 1926 Americana of rural America and this important event that changed forever the way we, as a society, think of ourselves and our relationship with the almighty.
This show will be our second foray into putting another show onto the outdoor stage in September. After the success of 1776 last year we decided to give another show a try. One of the reasons for doing this show in this time slot outside is the fact that Inherit the Wind has a cast of 21 men, 6 women 2 boys and 1 girl. It does have a large cast. And it would not fit, very well, on our indoor stage.
There are parts for all types of people and every kind of actor. Most parts are small to medium roles but add more to the Americana of the play that any main character ever could. This is also a great show for a family to participate in because we could add any number of extra’s to fill out and help depict that Americana. Auditions for the show are July 31st @ 1PM right here on this stage and the show opens the Thursday after Labor Day September 9th and runs through that Sunday September 12th.
But I don’t want you to get the wrong impression; “Inherit the Wind” is not just a recreation of the scope's trials. It is much more. It is a story of Love, Faith, Religion, and Cynicism. It has more meaning and story in its silences than most plays have in their dialogue. Come be a part of this play, weather on stage or in the audience, and witness a story that is one of the truly great American dramas of any century.
Director of “Inherit the Wind”
Mike Huelsmann
