The McLean Community Players (MCP) celebrate a return to the Great Falls Grange with Mary Chase’s Pulitzer Prize-winning, timeless comedy “Harvey,” which was produced at the Grange in 1986 by the Great Falls Players, one of MCP’s predecessor companies. New audiences are invited to join the eccentric Elwood P. Dowd and his mystical friend “Harvey,” an invisible Pooka rabbit, for three weekends in March beginning Friday, March 9.
Harvey tells the story of the efforts by Elwood’s sister Veta, who loves her brother dearly but is embarrassed by his habit of introducing his invisible friend to “important” people around town, to have Elwood committed to the local sanitarium. A mistake is made, however, and it is Veta who is committed, not her brother. The resulting chaos leads to unanticipated but hilarious impacts on a host of characters. Of course, everything is sorted in the end but there are surprises, and dollops of wisdom shared, as everyone determines exactly what is “real.”
The production represents something of a homecoming for the McLean Community Players. For several decades the Players – then known as the Great Falls Players – performed exclusively at the Grange, and it was only when the opportunity arose to perform at the McLean Community Center (in a venue where musicals as well as dramas or comedies were practical) that the Great Falls Players merged with another theatre group to form the McLean Community Players.
The Community Center is now closed for extensive renovation, and the Players have used the opportunity to perform at other venues in Northern Virginia.
The Great Falls Grange is located at 9818 Georgetown Pike in Great Falls and is a handicap accessible facility.
Evening shows will take place at 8 p.m. on March 9, 10, 16, 17, 23 and 24; matinee productions at 2 p.m. March 11 and 18. Ticket prices are $20 for general admission, $18 for students and seniors, and $15 for group sales of 10 persons or more.
Tickets may be purchased through the Players’ website: mcleanplayers.org, or at the Grange door if seats are available.
