THE HOUSE BY THE LAKE
By Hugh Mills
Produced by Fred Chapman
Performed April 1960
Fred Chapman, the FIRST ever person to have his picture in a Wyong Drama Group programme. (He certainly wasn't the last!) (See full-size image here)
Wednesday 27 April, 1960 [Interesting that the men were captioned by the paper, but the ladies' names had to be written in in pen later on by Bonnie]
(Note that these articles can be expanded in the browser window they open in by clicking on the picture and scrolling around) (See full-size image here)
The play was performed for two nights, Thursday 28 April 1960 and Friday 29 April 1960 and was produced by Fred Chapman (A renowned Wyong resident of Chapman's Stores fame).
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This is more than a thriller. It is a play of character and atmosphere. An atmosphere which builds tensely as the debarred psychiatrist and his sister (Maurice and Stella) first plan the murder of their unpleasant half-brother (Colin), and then put their plan into operation, making their killing seem to be a simple accident. However the best laid plans are apt to go astray, particularly where murder is concerned, and of course this play is no exception. The other characters in this psycho-thriller include Maurice's wife, Janet, Colin's long-suffering wife, Iris, and Colonel Forbes, a neighbour.
Wednesday 27 April, 1960 - Article on the show in an unknown newspaper (view full article)
4 May ,1960 - Article on the show (view full article)
4th May, 1960 - Another article from the same newspaper. Note that this is on page 1! (view full article)
4th May, 1960 - The same article continued (view full article)
The show programme (accessible below) was revolutionary in that it was the first to ever publish a picture of one of our members (Fred Chapman himself). Nowadays not only is the cast and director featured, members of the stage crew are frequently also depicted (which is quite a recent trend).