Town Players of Newtown continued its 2025 season with a play written and directed by Gene Golaszewski titled Double Vision that opened last weekend at The Little Theatre.

Double Vision is a farce, a comedy sure to set audiences’ lungs ablaze with laughter as the characters navigate through absurd situations. The story features a theater company named the Riverford Arts and Theatre Society, or RATS, that is all set for opening night, or so they think.

The show opens with Nickie (played by Kimberly Marcus) wondering how she will ever get herself out of the situation she has found herself in: several of the actors set to take the stage suddenly cannot make the show. Curious minds will have to see the show to find out way. The only thing The Newtown Bee will share is the characters went “by the way of the chickens,” as Golaszewski wrote in his director’s note.

Barry (Rob Pawlikowski), the director of Mystery House — Golaszewski's play-within-the-play — enters the stage to converse with Nickie and brainstorm how they will remedy the missing actor issue. Carl and Trish (Shawn Brown and Kristin Aug respectively) also join Barry and Nickie on the stage to throw some ideas out there.

Suggestions include, but are not limited to, lots of free wine and complimentary nuts, a bingo parlor, and Carl’s skivvies. Soon, Mrs Hertel, concessions manager for RATS, joins the commotion on stage and is soon assigned a part to play in the company’s production of Mystery House. Despite Mrs Hertel’s constant questions about her part, they manage to get her off stage and ready to perform for the show.

The actors are then visited by Trish’s Grandma (Amanda Bunting). A crowd favorite, Grandma is stuck in her golden days when she played a part in Dial M for Murder. Armed with scissors in her purse, the crew manages to get Grandma off the stage and into the lobby to wait for the show to begin.

The actors then decide they will each play multiple parts for Mystery House and keep pages of the script on hand behind the set furniture. With all the characters backstage and now prepping for curtain call, Grandma finds her way back to stage with her mischievous scissors. As Grandma cuts her way across the stage, the curtain falls and Act One concludes.

The beginning of Act Two begins with Barry informing the audience they will be treated to a show with Trish playing Mindy, he means Cindy; Nickie playing Cindy, he means Kelly; and Carl playing Barry, he means Larry, of course. The show begins and characters appear and reappear through the side and center doors on the set, often forgetting which area of the house is through which door, missing cues, and mixing up wigs and costumes.

With Grandma walking across the stage during the show, the characters find it difficult to remember the plot, their lines, and even who they are supposed to be playing entirely. The show falls into utter chaos, and tiny mustaches go flying. Hats get misplaced and switched, along with trench coats and housemaid coats.

It is all very farcical indeed. Serious circumstances unfold in unserious ways, and all ages can enjoy the resulting laughs.

Performances of Double Vision continue weekends through June 14 at The Little Theatre, 18 Orchard Hill Road. For more information, tickets, and show times, visit newtownplayers.org.