The female lead had a four-hour drive because of icy roads, so her understudy filled the role … until she felt a tap on her shoulder.
And only 30 people braved the snow to come to the theater.
But we all know where this is headed, don’t we?
The show must go on.
“That’s exactly what I posted on Facebook,” said Brenda McGinnis, director of Magenta Theater’s “Parfumerie” production. “The show must go on.”
Magenta Theater did precisely that Wednesday night. Despite winter weather that paralyzed much of the Portland-Vancouver area, the show went on, and then some. It offered something that a couple of local theater veterans said they’ve never seen before: a midscene handoff.
Because of treacherous Columbia Gorge roads, it became obvious that Kelci Fuller wasn’t going to make it to the theater in time for the 7:30 p.m. performance. She left her home near Troutdale, Ore., at 5 p.m. and arrived in downtown Vancouver at 9.
“Usually it’s a 10-minute drive” to the Interstate 205 bridge, Fuller said. “That took three hours. A lot of what I was going through was panic.”
Fuller was concerned about her understudy, Kelcey Feeney. Prior to Wednesday’s show, Feeney’s most visible role in the production had been as forewoman of the crew that built the sets.
“I knew she didn’t have much of a heads-up. I was sure it was a scary experience for her. I was thinking I was letting everybody down,” Fuller said.
But when the curtain went up, Feeney was there in the role of perfume shop employee Amalia Balash — even though she’d never done a rehearsal.
“I prepared by reading the script, and learned her part by watching. I was able to do it with a script in my hand,” Feeney said.
Ninety minutes into Wednesday’s performance, Feeney was in the middle of a scene when she felt a tap on her shoulder. It was Fuller, in costume, on stage, and ready to resume the role.
“I was so relieved she made it to the theater; I gave her a big hug,” Feeney said.
Feeney took off the coat that Amalia wears in the scene, Fuller put it on, and, well, the show went on.
“It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” McGinnis, the director, said. “Every member of the audience broke out in applause.”
