Opening Night

Andrea Geary is an agricultural reporter for The Manitoba Co-operator.

Foster’s play is a lighthearted look at two people, married for 25
years, who still have some secret dreams. Jack and Ruth Tisdale are
attending the opening night of Whisper on the Wind. This is Ruth’s
idea of a great evening out; Jack would rather sit on the couch at home
and watch the World Series on television.

Whisper on the Wind’s director is praying that the production will be
a success. He is kept busy coddling a temperamental leading lady,
threatening to walk out, and pacifying a jealous girlfriend. The cast
includes a once-very-popular actor (now making a living as a socket
wrench in TV commercials), another actor (whose main work is as a
waiter), and a male lead (who gets unexpectedly upstaged in the second
act.

Foster’s comedic play-within-a-play does not pretend to hold any deep
meaning. It is successful because it is entertaining.