A Very Rich Woman
Performances
February 18-19, 23-26 & March 1-4, 1971
Venue
Community Players Theatre
Synopsis
“A Very Rich Woman” tells the story of Mrs. Lord, a Boston widow, who together with her late husband built an enviable fortune the hard way, by working for their money. Being a very spirited widow, she now decides to have a fine old time by giving away diamonds and paintings, taking taxi cabs with abandon, and buying an oversize yacht as if it were a boat for a bathtub. Unfortunately, she has two lacquered daughters, her own Regan and Goneril, who are covetous of the family fortune and resent the manner in which their mother is enjoying the fortune. The sisters have her committed to a sanitarium but miss a bet when they think that this will hold the old gal. Mrs. Lord reaches out to her own passel of friends, has herself declared “unincompetant,” and returns home still the top hand in charge.
Adapted by Ruth Gordon from the play by Philippe Heriat
Historian’s Corner
In the program for “A Very Rich Woman,” there appeared an “In Memoriam” article for Forrest E. “Dick” Brown who had just directed the Players’ popular mystery-thriller “Wait Until Dark” in December. The Memoriam spoke of Dick as a master teacher, able worker, an inspiration, and a guiding light from the time the Robinhood Lane Theater’s doors opened. Dick’s portrayal of Willie Loman in “Death of a Salesman” (the first production in what was then a shell of the new building) was considered a landmark in Players’ history.