The Biddy sisters are back by popular demand at the Habersham Community Theatre and their energy and comedic timing is better than ever. A Biddy Full Day is written and conceived by Millie Adcox and Jim Cannon who first produced this epic comedy on the John Kollock Stage in 2007.
A Word from the Playwright Herself, Millie Adcox
Smoke on the Mountain, which is a popular Southern play about three elderly sisters helped to inspire Adcox and Cannon to write the show. “Jim Cannon and I collaborated to write it. The Biddy’s (In Smoke on the Mountain) are actually the Biddy’s in here but we took a little bit of license and wrote the story. They inspired us to write the story,” says Adcox. Writing and producing a full length play can be tough for some people but Adcox knew exactly how she wanted the show to be told live on the stage. “I would say it wasn’t difficult at all. The way it’s written is in vignettes so that it basically shows up the three sisters in each scene but then it highlights one character in each of those scenes so that everybody gets to shine in that one scene,” adds Adcox.
Meet the Sisters: A Character Analysis by the Actors
Mildred: “Miss Mildred is the younger of the three sisters and she is always having to defend herself against the other sisters. She’s very mild and meek , however she had quite the firey side,” says Jan Hames on her character. “It was very interesting to be able to take Miss Mildred’s character and make her my own within the guidelines of what the play could be written. I got to add a little bit of myself to her and she’s turned out to be one of my favorite characters.”
Maude: “Maud,” Lynda Smith laughs, “…she’s the oldest of the sisters and she is sort of quick to lose her temper but she really likes to laugh so she can change very quickly. She’s a little protective of the others but at the same time they all squabble so much that it’s kind of hard to tell them apart sometimes.” Smith says real life relationships play into the foundation of her character. “I’ve thought about some of the aunts I’ve had that have been characters and that I’ve enjoyed.”
Myrtle: “Miss Myrtle is the crotchety one of the three, which is a stretch for me to play..ha.ha.ha,” jokes Mosely.
Sisterly Love
One of the things that makes A Biddy Full Day the show that it is, is the comedy and the relationship that the three sisters have with one another. Each character has a uniqueness about them that sets them apart from the others. “When you first start with a script, you highlight your lines and you look for your lines. As the play evolves and you evolve in the play then you are looking at your fellow characters’ lines, so, you really wind up knowing most of the play by the time you get to performance because you’ve listened and you’ve read it so much and seen them act,” says Hames.
The cast includes the talents of Carmen Adams as Willie Pullit, Steve Grizard as N. Ron Fraude (1st week of performances), Jody Wall as Nurse Carrie A. Hattchett, Jerry Davis as Baby Buddy Biddy, Barbara Grizzard as Nurse Goodbody, Lee Mulkey as N. Ron Fraude (2nd Week of performances), Jennifer Benson as Ima Dumass, Jack Molnar as Phil Pusher and Justin Dudkiewicz as Lawrence Fink, Jr.
All three Biddy sisters and the entire company are thrilled to bring the comedy back to the Kollock stage. Smith says she hopes the audience will walk away feeling warmly entertained. “I hope that they realize that everyone has good and bad days, but with a good sense of humor they can usually overcome the problems they have.”
A Biddy Full Day will play at the Habersham Community Theatre on April 17, 18, 23, 24 & 25 at 7:30PM and on April 19 and 26 at 2:00PM. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 706-839-1315 or by going online at www.habershamtheater.org.
Scenes from a Biddy Full Day
Click photos to enlarge
