"The Man Who Came To Dinner" at Alhambra High School

The community is invited to join Alhambra High School Drama Club for their production of Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman’s comedic play, The Man Who Came To Dinner. Performances will be held at the AHS Performing Arts Building at 150 E Street in Martinez on Wednesday, November 5th, Thursday, November 6th, and Friday, November 7th at 7 p.m. with a final matinee Saturday, November 8th at 2 p.m. Tickets are available on GoFan or tinyurl.com/alhambraplay.

The action takes place in the small town of Mesalia, Ohio in the late 1930s where the Stanley family has invited a dinner guest: the famously outlandish radio orator and traveling lecturer Sheridan Whiteside, played by Senior Ben Williams. The family’s delight at their celebrity guest is short-lived as he immediately slips on a piece of ice on their doorstep and badly injures his hip. The egotistical and larger-than-life Whiteside suddenly finds himself confined to the Stanley home for weeks during the Christmas holiday, forced to put his tour, career, and lavish lifestyle on hold with only his whipsmart, no-nonsense secretary Maggie Cutler (Calina Montero) as company.

With the frazzled Stanleys (Ben Scott and Megan Kelley) under threat of an immense personal injury lawsuit, Whiteside commandeers the home and terrorizes the family with his nonstop demands. Chaos ensues as Whiteside unleashes a string of insults, invites a parade of eccentric guests, and intrudes in the personal matters of the Stanley’s young adult children (Soph Pogorzelski and Emma Scott). When Maggie is distracted by the charming local newspaperman Bert Jefferson (Ethan Basa), Whiteside throws his full efforts into disrupting the budding romance that threatens to separate him from his valuable secretary. He manipulates the beautiful star actress Lorraine Sheldon (Soraya Chavez-Monteiro) to come to Mesalia to pit her against Maggie for a showdown the likes of which the small town has never seen.

The Man Who Came To Dinner will have audiences laughing with hilarious one-liners, absurd surprises, and an ensemble cast of talented Alhambra students. Additional featured roles include Brody Moran as actors Beverly Carlton and Banjo, Samantha Yasaki as the spinster nurse Miss Preen, Lillian Padilla as the daft town physician Dr. Bradley, Annabella Boyce as the mysterious Harriet Stanley, Charlotte Allen and Kylie Nemis as the loyal butler and cook, and Angelina Harris as the odd Professor Metz. Rounding out the cast in a variety of supporting roles are Bina Bordoff, Scarlett Cardiff, Annabelle Rose George, Sierra Greene, Ruby Griffone, Ramona Hawkins, Mariano Kozera, Chloe Lamm, Alayna Morales, Jillian Richards, and Salem Simpson.

The Man Who Came To Dinner is the directorial and production debut of AHS drama teacher Ms. Emma Malki. Mrs. Sara Stafford is technical director with costume design by Ms. Sara Bragg. Technical crew includes Livi DeShasier, Valeria Gonzalez-Sandoval, Violet Harrington, Eli Huntsinger, Mak Lusk, Erin O’Hara, Landon Poston, Daylana Shorter, and Daphne Yasaki.

The production is supported in part by the nonprofit organization the Alhambra High School Arts Foundation, currently soliciting sponsorships from local businesses and individuals to support costs of this and future student productions. Learn more at givebutter.com/sponsorahsdrama. Lead sponsors at the time of publishing are The Kelley Family and Martinez Music Mafia.