READING -- Look out. Virgil Sludge is back.
Fans of the Reading Community Players are apt to consider Virgil a close personal friend by now. After all, the lovable country bumpkin from Lickskillet -- and his family and friends -- has been the subject of two plays in Reading, and a third will be presented beginning next week.
"Virgil and the City Slickers," the third chapter in playwright Eddie McPherson's comic series, will be performed March 31 and April 1-2 and 7-8 at Reading Community Center. Friday and Saturday shows will be at 7 p.m. following dinner (turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, rolls and dessert) at 5:30 p.m.; the Sunday performance will be at 2 p.m. following a snack.
According to cast member Karen Feit, this will be the last "Virgil" play in Reading. The previous shows have been "Virgil's Wedding" and "Virgil's Family Reunion."
"Mainly, we have a lot people back playing the same characters as they did in the first two," Feit said.
ADVERTISEMENT
"In this one, two city girls get stranded on the way out to college in the hicksville of Lickskillet," she continued. "They come upon the Sludge household, and they are wanting to use their telephone because they can't get a signal with their cell phones."
The "city slickers" meet Mama Sludge (Feit's character), who's the same good ol' country gal she's always been, and Harley Wayne (played by Feit's husband, Tom), who has become, well, a little lost.
"He is now portraying different characters, and they're all not people," Feit said.
Virgil's father-in-law, Leonard Hooper, has also created a miracle tonic that everyone wants to steal, Feit said. One of the two stranded city girls wants to become a marriage counselor, and she gets plenty of practice while in Lickskillet.
"Then her fiancé comes," Feit said. "What happens from there will be very unpredictable. ... The revelations that come out after her fiancé arrives will prove to be very interesting."
Virgil again is portrayed by Scott Brunk. His wife, Michelle Brunk, is also wife Margaret on stage. Another familiar face in Reading theater, Wanda Larson, now plays Mrs. Hooper -- she formerly had the role of Granny. Larson, along with Karen and Tom Feit and Al Madison, have acted in all seven Reading Community Players shows.
The group is dedicating "Virgil and the City Slickers" to Ray Cuperus, who had been active in Reading productions prior to his death Jan. 16.
For tickets, call the Feits at 478-4260 or Sandy Wood at 372-7223. There are openings available for all performances.
