Well-Read: Frank O’Donnell Takes on the Holidays

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Robin Kall, GoLocalProv Books Columnist

Herrrrre's Ant'ny! From the comedic mind of Frank O'Donnell

What would the most wonderful time of the year be without a healthy dose of family? The perfect way to add to the joy of the season is to make your reservation to see Ant'ny Claus - A Dysfunctional Family Christmas. Written by Rhode Island's own, Frank O’Donnell, the show is based on a character Frank has portrayed at holiday gatherings for the past 15 years where he has inside information about the guests that are there. A typical Rhode Island party, in other words!

Comedian to playwright

Frank was my guest on Reading With Robin this past Saturday (podcast can be heard at www.readingwithrobin.com) and I enjoyed hearing Frank talk about the writing process and watching his story come alive on the stage. "Three years ago, I started thinking this would make a fun play," he says, "and I worked on a very cursory outline and started jotting notes.” Writing 90 pages of script is departure from the writing Frank is used to doing in his stand up comedy and interactive shows. We also talked about the rewrites and changes that are made when the actors take hold of his words. While Frank originated the role, actor Geoff White will give his interpretation on stage while Frank watches from his seat in the audience. O’Donnell calls White “perfect as Ant’ny –he gets the character and is sort of the straight man throughout the show.”

Meet Ant'ny

Ant’ny is Santa’s disgruntled little brother in a story as old as time –sibling rivalry at its best. O’Donnell says, “He’s got to be ready to step in if Santa can’t fulfill his duties on December 24th.” Well, it’s been ten years and Ant’ny is still waiting for the call. Come watch this wacky cast of characters which includes Ant’ny’s highly opinionated live-in mother-in-law, an oversized elf, and his own personal reindeer.

Frank had one act finished in January and mentioned it to his friends at Theatre Works as a fun alternative to A Christmas Carol. They then presented the synopsis to the board, and it was added to the 2011/2012 season. The flip side, of course, was that now there was a deadline. The first draft was completed by July and there was a live read-through in August. From that performance there were a number of changes –both additions and deletions and auditions were held in October.

“Director Mark Anderson has been very patient in allowing me to co-direct,” Frank shares, “it’s fun being the playwright and watching the words I’ve written and the characters I’ve created come to life.”

“The best thing is," he says, "I find myself laughing – which means the players are doing something with the words and characters that catches me by surprise and I really couldn’t ask for more than that.”

The cast: bringing the laughs to life

Some of the actors include Bethany Lynn Giammarco, who O’Donnell says stepped in late in the game to take over the role of Carmella and brings a great stage presence to the role with a terrific understanding of the comedy. He calls Connie Anderson “one of the finest comic actresses I know, and she moved over from Carmella to Carmella Senior effortlessly." John Morris brings his stand-up experience to the stage for the role of Bruno the Elf, along with the improvisational experience he picked up doing Frank’s interactive dinner theater shows. When talking about Bennie Blue Balls, Ant’ny’s lead reindeer, Frank lit up like well, a kid at Christmas. “The intent was to create a puppet and have someone just do the voice, but when Lynn Nadrowski did the read-through, her facial expressions brought a whole lot to the lines, so now she'll be wearing a reindeer outfit and makeup so she looks like a reindeer without losing the face.”

Will this become a holiday tradition, you ask? From your lips to the holiday audience's ears!

For more info go to www.twri.org. Performances are Fri. Dec 2nd at 8pm, Sat. Dec 3rd at 8pm, Sunday Dec. 4th at 2pm, Fri. Dec 9th at 8pm, Sat. Dec. 10th at 8pm and Sun Dec. 11th at 2pm. Theatre Works is at 142 Clinton Street, Woonsocket, RI. For reservations call 401-766-1898. Tickets are $18 for adults and $15 for seniors, children 12 and under and military.

Reading enthusiast and all around "book-pusher" Robin Kall can be heard live Saturday mornings from 7-8am on Reading With Robin WHJJ 920AM. Also streaming live at www.920whjj.com. Follow on Twitter @robinkall, and Facebook - Reading With Robin. All new Web site! www.readingwithrobin.com Tune in this Saturday to find out what this year’s Reading Across Rhode Island Selection will be!! (hint –it’s a good one!)