With the Gaslighters, the Brits invade again, melodramatically
You remember, vaguely perhaps, or once recited the opening lines from poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 1861 poem “Paul Revere’s Ride”: “Listen, my children, and you shall hear/Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere …” and other lines about a lantern in the belfry-arch of the North Church: “One if by land, and two if by sea …”
But during Revere’s fabled ride on horseback to warn Americans of the British invasion during the early days of the Revolutionary War, did he actually yell, “The British are coming! The British are coming!”?
Does it matter?
Not much, perhaps, except you might hear the exclamation in the Gaslighters Theatrical Company’s melodrama of the same name from the 2023 Vacaville Fiesta Days event during the long Memorial Day weekend.
In something of a departure from other melodramas, the Gaslighters have presented during previous Fiesta Days, a celebration of the city’s Western and Hispanic heritage, the musical and comedic melodrama is set during Revolutionary War times rather than in the mid-to-late 1800s, when most traditional melodramas take place, Mary Cornelison-Muehlenbruch, the melodrama director, said in a press release.
Originally produced for the 1976 Fiesta Days, “The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming!” was written by late Vacaville resident Alice McDonald, with music by the late Carol Zadnik, for the national bicentennial.
Cornelison-Muehlenbruch pointed out that the melodrama uses our country’s
fight for freedom as the backdrop for all other traditional elements found in melodrama, a dramatic work that exaggerates the plot, with protagonists who are morally pure, the antagonists luridly evil, and with a final scene ripe with poetic justice, of rewards for the good and punishments for the evil.
The hero, Capt. Staunchly Allgood (played by Bryan Pro), is a brave, stouthearted Minuteman who is always greeted with hearty cheers. The heroine, Liberty Bell (Lisa Andrews), is the beautiful, loyal and virtuous daughter of an idealistic
colonialist father, “and is greeted with sympathetic oohs and ahs,” said Cornelison-Muehlenbruch.
And of course, there’s the evil villain, Col. Reginald Cavendish-Blemish (Oz Angst), of His Majesty’s Fifth Grenadiers, a British Redcoat who is a wily and conniving scoundrel spying on the colonialists loyal to their newly declared country. As for all dastardly villains, noted Cornelison-Muehlenbruch, he will be greeted to the stage with “traditional rousing boos, jeers, and hisses of disapproval.”
Other characters include:
Daisy (Cathy Knowles), “a Cockney commoner who is not terribly bright, and who is loyal only to herself,” according to Cornelison-Muehlenbruch.
Dr. Ben Franklin (Robert Payawal), the brilliant diplomat, statesman, wit, and Founding Father of the new republic.
Debra Franklin (Linda James), Dr. Franklin’s snobbish wife.
Samuel Bell (Ron George), Liberty’s father “whose idealism and strong character gave birth to a new nation.”
Abby Allen (Lizeth
Flores), Liberty’s best friend who bemoans the fact that she’s a woman who cannot join the fray.
John Wells (Brian Stevens), “one of the Minutemen who knows who he wants the minute he p p sees Abby,” CornelisonMuehlenbruch described in the prepared statement.
And the Town Crier (Doug Blankenship), who makes timely public announcements.
Paul Knowles serves as this year’s master of ceremonies, and Kevin Phillips is the musical director.
As with all Gaslighters’ productions, the melodrama is a family-friendly comedy appropriate for all ages and where the villain frequently interacts with the audience adding an improvisational element to each show, said Cornelison-Muehlenbruch.
“This melodrama is somewhat different from the previous melodramas we’ve presented because of when it takes place,” she said, adding, “It isn’t meant to be a history lesson, but rather it is meant to be a fun, entertaining show that uses the backdrop of the American Revolution to tell the story. We think our audiences will find it to be very funny and entertaining.”
IF YOU GO
The Gaslighters“The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming!”Where: The Saturday Club 125 Kendal St., VacavilleWhen: 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 3 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday; and 3 p.m. MondayTickets: $12 general admission, $6 ages 12 and underBy phone: 628-3737Online: www.vacavillegaslighters.com