Popular parody

By Mitch Pugh, Broomfield Enterprise
October 23, 2002

'Twilight Zone' production in Lafayette expanded by popular demand

They've performed Shakespeare, George Cohen and Vladimir Gubaryev in the last year. While a community acting group, the Lafayette Community Players don't back down from a challenge.

Yet, last year they found their most popular production may also be the most enjoyable to perform.

So they're back again this year with "Twilight Trilogy: A Twilight Zone Parody," beginning Oct. 25 and running through Nov. 15 at the Mary Miller Theater in Lafayette. Part parody and part tribute, last year's production drew the largest crowds the group has seen in its seven-year history.

This year they've expanded the number of shows and tweaked the format a bit. But the invigorating rehearsals and pre-production hasn't changed.

"I acted in the Twilight Zone we did last year. It was one of the funniest shows I've done here," said recent University of Colorado graduate Melissa Holmes. "For a lot of the people who keep coming back, it's a nice change of pace."

This year Holmes is directing "A World of His Own," one of the three 30-minute episodes that make up the production. Louisville resident Madge Montgomery, who also sits on the nine-member Lafayette Community Players board, is directing "To Serve Man" and "The Living Doll" with fellow community player Jackie Tisinai.

While fun, capturing the distinct flavor of the Twilight Zone television programs is also challenging.

From the costumes to the set to the music, great pains have been taken to make sure the production is reminiscent of the popular 1960s show.

"We try to capture the feel of black and white TV by using a very limited color palette," Montgomery said. "The set is gray and black and white. That was a very important feeling from the show and we wanted to capture that."

But the production isn't limited by black and white. In "The Living Doll," the evil, talking doll at the center of the episode is dressed in color to accentuate its prominence.

Even the familiar, jagged musical score and unusual sound effects are represented.

"We wanted to remind the audience of the sound of the show. The music was very important," Montgomery said.

This year's production presented even more daunting challenges. In "A World of His Own," people are supposed to disappear. Without the advantage of TV editing technology, directors and production staff had to be creative.

"Coming up with a method to make people disappear was a little challenging," said Holmes, without revealing exactly how the trick will be pulled off.

However, the appeal of the production, directors concede, still lies in the seemingly over-the-top dialogue from which the "parody" portion of the title fits in -- intended or not.

"It comes from an era with a very different acting style," Holmes said. "So even though we don't change the dialogue that much, it comes off as a parody here."

Whether it's a parody or tribute may be an open question, Montgomery said, but the formula seems to be working.

"I don't know if it's the Halloween season or the nostalgic appeal for people," Montgomery said. "But it's also something where you can be a little campy and audiences respond to that."

INFO • www.LCPtheatre.org