Reading Community Players looking for laughs

• Reading Community Players

Brian Korthals/Daily Globe Cast members (front, from left) Jan Cuperus, Marla Somnis, Amy Stefferud, Wanda Larson, (back, from left) Chip Peters, Bruce Brunk, Scott Brunk and Wendell Kuhl prepare for the Reading Community Players’ production of the comedy “Lie, Cheat and Genuflect” at the Reading Community Center.

Talk about it

READING — Audiences don’t expect the Reading Community Players to recite Shakespearean dialogues, perform dramatic readings or act out tragic scenes.

“We’re all about comedy,” explained Reading Community Players director Sandy Wood. “There’s nothing too serious about what we do. It’s all about having a comedy, a farce, something that’s wild or wacky with a lot of mayhem.”

This year’s wacky Reading offering is “Lie, Cheat and Genuflect,” which will be staged Friday, Saturday, Sunday and May 6 and 7 at the Reading Community Center. It is the story of the Buckle brothers, Billy and Tom, played by locals Scott Brunk and Bruce Brunk, who are in financial trouble due to a gambling debt.

“Their grandfather died, and there’s going to be a will reading,” explained Wood about the plot. “They’re sort of the black sheep of the family, but they still feel entitled to the money — they’re strapped for cash. They’re at this old mansion, trying to see of they can get a share of the funds.”

Other members of the cast include Chip Peters, Wanda Larson, Amy Stefferud, Marla Somnis, Wendell Kuhl and Jan Cuperus, who show up as a lawyer, mansion caretaker, mobster, mobster’s girlfriend and other assorted characters who enter and exit the fast-paced scenes.

“There are lots of crazy things going on, with all the doors and people in and out, in and out, in and out — people in and out of the wine cellar and the closet,” described Wood. “Timing is really important to the play, and this cast really works well at that. They’re just masters at this kind of a farce comedy, and they enjoy it.”

The timing is tricky, but staging the play is even trickier, given the setting.

“Staging is always the challenge, because we have a tiny, tiny stage, and getting that to work is difficult, with all the doors and that kind of thing,” Wood said about trying to create the illusion of a mansion in the space. “That’s always the most challenging part of it. And then we have to deal with the weather and getting people to practice, and people’s various schedules. But they really devote a lot of energy to this — people volunteer to do this and make it work.”

This is the 12th year for the aptly named Reading Community Players — the money they raise goes to back into the Reading community and the Reading Community Center in particular.

“In 1974, when the school was closed, the building was turned over to the community, as a community center,” Wood explained. “It takes a lot to keep that thing going — maintenance, heat, electricity, insurance — and it really is an asset to that community. People from all around come in and use it. There are horseshoes during the summer, and there’s been a volleyball league for years. We want to keep those things going, too.”

The Reading community also sponsors some sort of youth excursion every year. Last year, a bus took kids to the Minnesota Vikings training camp, Woods gave as an example, and money raised by the annual play helped to fund the trip.

The community play has also become a community tradition, with audience members from around the area returning year after year to take in the dinner theater performance.

“We got a nice letter from someone who’s come the last few years, saying she’s so glad we’re doing it again and encouraging us not to quit,” Wood related. “That’s nice to hear.”

To keep the play going, however, the Reading Community Players can always use new talent, Wood noted.

“We are looking for people, new cast members, new blood, because it is a big commitment,” she said. “We had some people who aren’t back this year, due to health and family issues, but hopefully they will be back next year.”

Because it is a dinner theater, advanced tickets are recommended. The meal of turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, roll and dessert will be served at 5:30 p.m., and the performance begins at 7 p.m.

“We always tell people that we have to be really entertaining, or the turkey will kick in and we’ll all fall asleep,” joked Wood.

Tickets for all the performances are available by calling (507) 478-4229, 926-5404 or 372-7223.

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