'Arsenic and Old Lace' Comes to Livermore

The nefarious activities of two charming elderly siblings and their hilarious relatives and neighbors make for great fun for fans of the Asbury Players. Among the relatives is a nephew who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt, another who stays one step ahead of the law and a third just trying to stay sane. 

"Arsenic and Old Lace" is a farcical black comedy that was first presented in New York on Aug. 18, 1941. It tells the story of Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic in Brooklyn who must deal with his spinster aunts who have taken to murdering lonely old folks with a homemade cocktail of elderberry wine, arsenic, strychnine and "just a pinch of cyanide."

The brother who thinks he's Roosevelt digs locks for the Panama Canal in their cellar, which also serves as the graves for the aunts' victims.

Meanwhile, among all the mayhem, Mortimer debates whether to go through with his recent promise to marry the woman he loves.

The Asbury Players

The Asbury Players is a volunteer theater troupe at that was started in 1991 by then-Associate Pastor Chuck Johnstone, a huge fan of the theater and old movies. Barbara David, the group's director, started out writing and directing plays at when her children were students there.

When Johnstone came back to Asbury as pastor after working at another church for 10 years, he resurrected the Asbury Players, which had fallen by the wayside. David became the director, and since then, the group has perfomed dramas, musicals, comedies, murder mysteries and melodramas.
The actors don't worry about making money or being too serious. They just want to entertain people and have fun.

Last year, each performer picked a show tune that they wanted to sing and David wove them into a storyline that became "The Asbury Follies."

"Arsenic and Old Lace" will take place in the church's sanctuary building. Because the actors take over the altar, the set is a custom-made, modular stage that has been built by volunteers over the years. It can be reconfigured for different performances.

Performance Dates

All performances are at Asbury United Methodist Church, 4743 East Ave., Livermore.

Curtain time is 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday. Doors open 20 minutes before show time. Tickets are $10, $8 for seniors and younger than 12. 

There will be a dinner Saturday. Dinner tickets are an extra $10 per person and must be purchased Tuesday.

Tickets can be purchased at the door. For more information or to make reservations, call Cherie Salamanca at 925-455-1048.