Things are getting wild at Sixth Street
Daighla Williams and Zeke Hess are just two of the stars of the new Sixth Street Melodrama show "Who Will Win the Doctor's Heart -or- Be Careful Who You Cheer For." Now playing at the Wallace theater.
Photo by JOSH McDONALD
WALLACE — American comedian W.C. Fields once said, “never work with children or animals, they are scene stealing and unpredictable.”
Fields may have been on to something with that, but that isn’t stopping Rhonda Duce, the writer and director of "Who Will Win the Doctor's Heart -or- Be Careful Who You Cheer For" — which opened earlier this week at the Sixth Street Melodrama and Theater in Wallace.
Duce’s cast is one of the youngest ever, with the oldest cast member clocking in at 23, and the youngest actor being 14.
Duce wrote the play just a few years ago when the idea came to her while she was watching a different show at Sixth Street.
“It popped into my head and I knew I needed to write it down,” Duce said.
The story follows a young and adventurous doctor (scientist, not medical) who secures funding for an expedition into the jungle to document the behaviors of an animal that her grandfather claimed to have discovered previously, but is considered a myth.
Along with her assistant, the doctor journeys deep into a remote part of the jungle where she is pursued by some rather obnoxious and unsavory individuals.
The whole premise of the play surrounds being careful who you trust because you may never know if there are ulterior motives.
Jesaray Harpel, Tanner Lee, Garyk McGillivray, Kennedy Duce, Daighla Williams and Zeke Hess are your stars and starlets for the show — many of whom are already veterans of the stage in Wallace.
Joined by accompanist Tamara Lindroos, the show features a lighthearted and exceptionally familiar musical backdrop that plays directly into the action happening on the stage above.
Following the play and subsequent intermission, the actors give you a few more moments of entertainment with a traditional musical and sketch review. During the review, you’ll get a chance to hear the talented McGillivray nail a wicked parody of a recent Billboard chart topper.
Curtains opened earlier this week, but there are still plenty of opportunities to see this show.
"Who Will Win the Doctor's Heart -or- Be Careful Who You Cheer For" will run for the next three weekends through July 31, with showtimes on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. and then on Sunday at 2 p.m.
For more information or to pre-purchase a ticket, call 208-752-8871.