REVIEW


PASO ROBLES -- Opening Friday, March 17, and running until April 2, Wine Country Theatre, Located in downtown Paso Robles at the Park Street Ballroom, invites the community to enjoy a night of pure joy and side-spLitting laughter with its production of Noises Off.

Noises Off, which will kick off the 2017 main stage season, may very well be one of the most hilarious farces ever written, said Wine Country Theatre board member and current promotion coordinator Gary Hernandez-Borjan.

"In a nutshell, (the show) presents us with the antics of a troupe of actors and what happens both on and off the stage during their production of 'Nothing On' Hernandez-Borjan said.

Wine Country Theatre, a nonprofit community theater company based in Paso Robles, focuses on creating an artistic home base for local artists of the greater northern San Luis Obispo County area.

The actors in Noises Off, who were selected through open auditions in January, are a group of local, incredibLy talented volunteers, Hernandez-Borjan said. The cast wilL feature several familiar faces, including Brianna Birks as Brooke, Matthew Hanson as Lloyd, Bob KnowLes as Selsdon, Sean McCallon as Tim, Kate Perello as Poppy, Zandi Peters as Dotty, Cory Schonauer as Garry, Kate Winslow as Belinda and Bo Wolf as Frederick.

Robin Kirk WoLf, director of Noises Off, submitted an initial proposal for the show back when the season was originally announced. Considering she directed last season's Steinbeck tragedy, Of Mice and Men, Wine Country Theatre board members were excited to work with her again.

However, "It's great to embrace something a little lighter," Wolf said with a laugh. "There's something about this show that always brings me back. It's obviously drop-to-the-floor funny, but what really reaches me is that, in its heart, Noises Off is about people doing what they love, as awful as they may be at it." Live theater channels real, raw talent and gives audience members a chance to truly appreciate what is happening right there in front of their faces.

"Live theater is unique in its ability to completely take you away from whatever is happening in your life and immerse you in the world of the show," Hernandez-Borjan said.

Actors share that same thrill and so much more, too. Being part of a theater production allows them to momentarily escape from their own lives to step into the shoes of whichever character they are currently taking on the role of, Hernandez Borjan said.

"Actors push themselves out of their comfort zones and become someone they created while simultaneously trusting alL of the other actors to do the same," he said. "It is magic, and like no other experience in the world."

Share a night of endless Laughter with strangers and friends alike at the upcoming Noises Off performances on Fridays and Saturdays, March 17, 18, 24, 25 and 31 and April 1, at 7:30 p.m., with Sunday matinees on March 19 and 26 and April 2, at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $25 for general seating and $15 for students. For tickets or more information, call 800-838-3006 or go to winecountrytheatre.com. Park Street Ballroom is at 1232 Park St. in downtown Paso Robles.