THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 29, 1994 TAG: 9410290172
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
TYPE: Theater Review
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
It's not ``I Love Lucy.'' It's more like, ``I'm forced to love Lucy.''
That's about it for silly plot in ``Beyond the Door,'' the second annual Safe Halloween presentation by the Tulls Creek Players at Currituck County High School.
Paul Vanneck, fresh from murdering his wife, seeks haven in the very wrong place, the home of Ruth and Alice Dodge.
The eccentric sisters offer him a choice.
They will turn him over to the police, or they will let him stay put and marry whomever or whatever is ``Beyond the Door.''
Vanneck thinks about the `damned-if-I-do, damned-if-I-don't' situation, then decides that the bonds of matrimony are less confining than the chains of justice.
There is one slight problem. He learns that Lucy, his bride-to-be, lives beyond that door, but he is not allowed to see her until Alice plays an off-key version of ``The Wedding March.''
All the performances are satisfactory, none startling, but the one that warrants a little extra attention is teenage Katie Smith as Dr. Troy, the minister called to perform the ceremony.
Looking like a heavyset Amish visitor, she moves the way Frankenstein would, and speaks in a monotone.
Cheri Chappell as the keyboard sister and Patricia Spicer as Ruth, the dominant half of the duo, have captured the family personalities.
For a while, the audience doesn't give a hoot about what's happening.
Over and over Vanneck asks about Lucy - over and over, the Dodge sisters offer evasive responses.
The show could prove a little talky for the young ones, but if they can make it to the end, they will be fascinated by the very well done finale.
Grownups will get a kick out of it, too.
``Beyond the Door'' is not beyond the realm of anyone's enjoyment.
It's not ``I Love Lucy.'' It's more like, ``I'm forced to love Lucy.''
That's about it for silly plot in ``Beyond the Door,'' the second annual Safe Halloween presentation by the Tulls Creek Players at Currituck County High School.
Paul Vanneck, fresh from murdering his wife, seeks haven in the very wrong place, the home of Ruth and Alice Dodge.
The eccentric sisters offer him a choice.
They will turn him over to the police, or they will let him stay put and marry whomever or whatever is ``Beyond the Door.''
Vanneck thinks about the `damned-if-I-do, damned-if-I-don't' situation, then decides that the bonds of matrimony are less confining than the chains of justice.
There is one slight problem. He learns that Lucy, his bride-to-be, lives beyond that door, but he is not allowed to see her until Alice plays an off-key version of ``The Wedding March.''
All the performances are satisfactory, none startling, but the one that warrants a little extra attention is teenage Katie Smith as Dr. Troy, the minister called to perform the ceremony.
Looking like a heavyset Amish visitor, she moves the way Frankenstein would, and speaks in a monotone.
Cheri Chappell as the keyboard sister and Patricia Spicer as Ruth, the dominant half of the duo, have captured the family personalities.
For a while, the audience doesn't give a hoot about what's happening.
Over and over Vanneck asks about Lucy - over and over, the Dodge sisters offer evasive responses.
The show could prove a little talky for the young ones, but if they can make it to the end, they will be fascinated by the very well done finale.
Grownups will get a kick out of it, too.
``Beyond the Door'' is not beyond the realm of anyone's enjoyment. by CNB