Paint Branch Perspectives opened its doors to its latest production on November 15th as cast and crew presented Oscar Wilde’s classic comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest. This play had the perfect balance of lying, laughter, and love.

The audience laughed the whole night away as John Worthing, played by Jack Richards, faced the challenge of maintaining his fake persona while trying to win over Miss Gwendolen Fairfax, played by Asha Brown.

As for playing the lead role, Richards felt that it was, “nerve racking to have such a responsibility.”  However, he did find that it, ultimately, left him “grateful for the opportunity [so] any fears I had just melted away.”  Richards’ witty humor paired perfectly with Harry Pham’s role of Algernon Moncrieff, Thiane Gaye’s role as Lady Bracknell, and Bethany Boyer’s portrayal of Cecily Cardew.

Gaye, a senior, felt that playing such a snobby character “was very challenging at first, because she’s very elitist and judgmental and I’m not like that.”

Overall, it was a rewarding role for her, and she loved being “a source of comedy and enjoyment for the audience members.”

The cast did a strong job of portraying their characters, but they couldn’t have done it without the diligent crew members, including senior member Noa Weinshel, who got to see the whole play unfold over the course of several weeks of preparation and rehearsal. “I think that, overall, the cast and crew, with the help of Ms. Perkins and Mrs. Ryan, did an amazing job. It’s a lot of hard work, and it’s so rewarding to see such a good final product,” stated Weinshel.

The Perspectives cast and crew had sound chemistry, which was apparent during the performances.  “A lot of the cast have been with us [Perspectives] for a couple of shows now and everyone’s really comfortable together,” commented Weinshel. “Even those who are in their first show did a really good job. By the time the show started, those who had to portray relationships were close enough that it wasn’t hard.”

A lot of time, blood, and sweat went into the production of this play. Asked if there was one thing she would want the audience to know about Perspectives’ work on this show, Ms. Perkins replied, “How much hard work the kids put in.”

As for the choice of play, Ms. Perkins said that “I wanted to do a classic play that wasn’t Shakespeare.”

The Importance of Being Earnest was full of humor. The play ran for four performances on consecutive weekends, closing on Saturday, November 23rd.  For those of you who did not get a chance to see this show, you’ll have one more chance to catch a Perspectives show this spring when they put on their annual musical.