Leading Ladies Hits the Mark

By Laura Podgornik
Contributing Writer
Posted 5/4/09

“Men in heels” is probably all you need to hear before you start to grin. Leading Ladies delivers much more than a simple grin, however. This comedy/drama starring UW Superior’s own Molly Wynne McFarlane and Aaron Wainman is sure to give any audience member a good chuckle.

The show takes place in lonely York, Pennsylvania. Early in the performance we learn that Meg (McFarlane), a cheerful and passionate young woman is engaged to marry Duncan (Mat Winter), an uptight minister. They had planned to attend a play at the local moose lodge, but an inconvenience causes them to miss the performance. The audience, however, does not.

We are then introduced to Leo Clark (Wainman) and Jack Gable (get the last names?), two struggling British actors who have outperformed their two-person Shakespearean act and soon find themselves broke on a train back to New York. Clark picks up a newspaper and discovers that a dying woman is looking to leave her inheritance to her two lost British nieces, whom she hasn’t seen since their childhood.

Clark manages to convince Gable to join him in dressing in drag in order to impersonate the nieces. Meg is elated when she receives the telegram stating that her two lost cousins will soon arrive at the home she shares with her ailing aunt Florence (Julia Rickert). Duncan greets the pair with suspicion due to the inheritance and continues to scheme throughout the performance to unravel their secret.

Hilarity and fast paced action ensue as multiple love triangles are formed. Offbeat characters like the quirky and nervous Butch (Ben Cohen) and bubbly, often confused Audrey (Meghan O’Toole-Gott) definitely contribute to much of the comedy. This eight member cast delivers a performance of both professional and comical quality.

As director Kelly Mullan stated within the program, “It was our aim to bring you a night of laughs – I hope we hit the mark.”