This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, March 12, 2012 - Holt High School’s production of "You Can’t Take it With You" kept audiences laughing as well as bestowing upon them a priceless lesson: There are more important things in life than work and money. The play provided a night of surprises and laughter.
Bringing a boy home to meet your family is never easy, but when your family is as eccentric as the Sycamores, it makes for an outrageous and enlightening evening. Holt High School’s production of "You Can’t Take it With You" kept audiences laughing as well as bestowing upon them a priceless lesson: There are more important things in life than work and money.
"You Can’t Take It With You" was written by George Kaufman and Moss Hart and debuted in 1936. Winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1937, the script was adapted into two movies. Unlike most shows, the play is done in three acts, allowing for one long intermission as well as a short stretch.
As we first meet the Sycamores, they seem like they could be a normal family. Sure they have their quirks, but who doesn’t? As the fireworks explode, the IRS appears and the younger daughter unskillfully prances around the living room, we realize the family is just plain wacky. Except, that is, for the older daughter, Alice.
Alice (Amanda Clevenger) is the ideal young lady, and she finds the ideal young man, Tony (Sam Peglow). The two actors had the most energy on stage and chemistry kept things interesting.
To lighten the mood, Mr. DePinna (Christopher Geerling) delivered his lines in a way that made the audience laugh and Ed’s (Andrew Milhous) confused expressions and silly antics were always fun to watch. The grandfather's (Brenden Schaeffer) outlook on life was delivered convincingly. The random Russian dance teacher (Brandon Callahan) who showed up, as well as his friend the Duchess (Ashlyn Gordon) made everything seem like a joke. The drunk actress (Grace Malinee) delivered memorable lines and was really able to create a character for herself in the little time she appeared on stage.
Technically, the show shined. The costumes were period appropriate, as well as nice to look at, and the props were simple yet effective. Hair and make-up was nice, although aging effects were slightly overdone. Lights and sounds had a few minor glitches, which are to be expected with a high school show, and they handled them well. The show provided challenges for both light and sound crews from all the explosions that took place, and the set was well constructed and worked for the show.
Holt High School’s production was a night full of surprises, laughter and morals.
Jennifer Boston is a student at McCluer High School.