The Griffon News

By Marcella Dehghani
Missouri Western’s theater department is putting on The House of Yes, a hilarious comedy/drama opening up on Nov. 2 at 8 p.m.

Wendy MacLeod’s The House of Yes was originally performed in April 1990 in San Francisco at the Magic Theater. It has been seen in 1993 at the Gate Theatre in London and in 1995 at the SoHo Repertory Theater in NYC. It became a movie in 1997 with a few big names like Parker Posey, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Tori Spelling. The show has everything in it to make it entertaining. It has humor, sex, murder; it’s dark, perverse and witty. What more could you want?

According to a press release, The House of Yes is a comedic tragedy that follows an upper class family’s destruction from the JFK assassination. Marty Pascal returns home for Thanksgiving to introduce his fiancée, Lesly, to his family. Lesly starts to uncover disturbing family secrets upon her arrival. As the plot thickens, we learn that Marty and his sister Jackie, who calls herself Jackie-O because of her obsession with the Kennedy’s, have had an incestuous affair. Marty is torn between the unthinkable pleasure of being with his sister and the comfort of actually being normal.

Jeremy Warner is a theater instructor at Western and the director of this play.

“The play is a search for one’s identity, dealing with inner secrets and one’s own sense of family and belonging as overshadowed by the political catastrophes we witness, which are warped by the media’s coverage,” Warner said . “The play is hilariously funny, yet deeply disturbing, as it probes the skeletons hidden in a rich family, who has cut themselves off from the rest of the upper class.”

One thing focused throughout the production of this show was the element of media.

“To me, this play is about the redefinition of our culture through media. This family was tragically impacted by the assassination of JFK, similar to the impact that Americans felt during the morning of 9/11,” Warner said. “I want the audience to feel something with the play. I specifically approached this play as a vehicle for emotion. Be it sadness, happiness, shock, confusion or any other range, this play should have an element of emotion.”

With such a disturbing yet funny story line, it seemed to spark much interest among the many that auditioned.

“I was looking for people who could redefine the characters and play well together on stage,” Warner said. “Casting is a difficult process, because you receive a lot of good people. One of my goals is to try to pick the best ensemble, meaning the people that will work best together.”

Those interested in seeing the play are encouraged to call ahead for reservations at 271-4445.