Longueville Little Theatre Company

Even though she's 114 years old, Charley's Aunt can still be one funny lady, thanks to the timeless theatrical devices of mistaken identities, sight gags, and physical humour.

Our production, directed by Janthea Brigden, provides a modern retelling of the classic. Originally produced in 1892 in London, Charley's Aunt has been a favorite since then -- on stage, in the movies (in 1941 with Jack Benny) and as a musical, 1952's Where's Charley? with Ray Bolger.

It's the story of two college boys, Jack and Charley, who want to go out with their girlfriends, Kitty and Amy, but can't go anywhere in Victorian England without a chaperone. A proper chaperone seems to be in the offing when the boys learn that Charley's rich aunt, Donna Lucia, will soon come to town.

When Donna Lucia sends word that she can't come after all, the boys don't scuttle their plans; they recruit one of their classmates, Lord Fancourt Babberly, to impersonate Charley's aunt. He dresses up in a black satin skirt, a pair of mitts, an old-fashioned cap and a wig. "She" is so fetching (to say nothing of her most attractive fortune) that Amy's Uncle Stephen and Jack's father, Sir Francis, immediately begin to court her.

Into all this mayhem arrives the genuine aunt, Donna Lucia, accompanied by Babberly's beloved, Ela.

How can this work out?

In best English tradition, not until there has been a lot of confusion, running in and out of doors, shrieks of dismay and surprise, and a lot of laughs.