Don’t tempt fate

Sullivan West’s productions of “A Touch of Evil,” and “The Monkey’s Paw” share a common theme

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — Be careful what you wish for; you may get something you never envisioned along with it. That theme tied the two short productions of “A Touch of Evil” and “The Monkey’s Paw” together as a company of talented young Sullivan West players performed the light and dark productions before an appreciative audience on November 13-14.

In “A Touch of Evil,” by Orson Wells and Cynthia Mercati, a young man lacking in self-confidence weighs his bleak life and blurts out that he would gladly sell his soul for success. This Faustian notion, uttered by Winton Goodman, played convincingly by John Taylor, is conveyed to his friend Angie (Bridget O’Brien), who expresses her disapproval just as Mona Mephistophiles (Nicole Daley) appears seemingly out of nowhere prepared to grant him his wish.

Daley stood in for Evelyn Hett, who was unable to perform on opening night due to illness. With only a week to get ready, Daley, who was cast in the role of Jezebel, ably switched, and did a splendid job as the devilish temptress.

To convince Winton that she does indeed possess the power to alter his existence, Mona brings out a trio of soothsayers, Pandora (Skie O’Hara), Lucretia (Alicia Baldwin) and Cleopatra (Grace O’Connor), who talk about Winton’s past and future to convince him to complete the bargain.

Fortunately, Angie, who harbors fond feelings for the despondent Winton, helps him to decide against selling his soul.

Having seen how badly just such a contract went for Elwood (Randall Grimm), that decision becomes that much easier. The two principal characters come to their senses and the play ends up with them wondering if it all has been just a dream.

Short, light and to the point, the play, which was directed and produced by teachers Russell Johansen and Kevin Mann, was a fine opening salvo for the nascent drama club.

Taylor returns in the second production to play the gruff Sergeant-Major Morris, the bearer of a strange relic in the production of Lewis Parker’s adaptation of W.W. Jacobs’ short story, “The Monkey’s Paw.”

As it turns out, Morris, who has traveled the world, carries around a mummified monkey’s paw which he reluctantly shows his hosts Mr. and Mrs. White, played by Grimm and Julia Berger. Listening attentively to Morris’ strange tale of the arcane object, which was charmed by a fakir to teach people about the pitfalls of tampering with fate, their son Herbert (Richard Smith) convinces his father to turn aside the Sergeant-Major’s grim warnings associated with making three wishes which the paw will grant.

Herbert suggests that Mr. White wish for 20,000 pounds to pay the mortgage. As it turns out, that is the sum granted to the Whites in compensation for Herbert’s gruesome death in the machinery at his workplace.

A despondent Mrs. White later urges her husband to use the paw to bring her son back to life. An ominous knocking at the door might well be the mangled Herbert, but Mr. White’s final wish for Herbert to return to his final resting place leaves that ultimate consequence to the imagination. Berger does a fine job of displaying the gamut of emotions felt by her character.

The two plays feature lights and sounds handled by Kenny Rhodes, Noah Barker and Greg Shepherd. Valerie Bascom served as stage manager.

A musical production of “The Wizard of Oz,” is slated for the spring at Sullivan West, but the drama club is not staging that.

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