September 11-26, 2010
by Joe Orton
“If you haven’t been to see anything at The Gallery Players, now is the time. What the Butler Saw is a great way to start what looks to be a very exciting season. The excellent production team, steadied by the very capable hand of director Zak Hoogendyk, guides us through [the play] nimbly. Hoogendyk’s sense of timing, as with that of his fine cast, is impeccable, as it has to be for such a complicated piece to work. I can assure you, none of it looked easy; in fact, it reminded me of synchronized swimming at the Olympics, only a lot more fun, and generally less wet.”
– J Jordan, nytheatre.com
Illustration by Michael C. Malbrough
Producer – Neal J. Freeman/The Gallery Players
Director – Zac Hoogendyk
Production Stage Manager – Katherine Schroeder
Set Designer – Starlet Jacobs
Costume Designer – Erica Evans
Lighting Designer – Austin R. Smith
Props Master – Dustin Cross
Sound Designer – Ann Warren
Associate Producer – Alanna Degner
Assistant Stage Manager – Evangeline Rera
Pictured: Emily Taplin Boyd and David Sedgwick in The Gallery Players’ production of What the Butler Saw. Photo by Bella Muccari.
The Cast
Dr. Prentice – David Sedgwick*
Mrs. Prentice – Nicole Fitzpatrick*
Geraldine Barclay – Emily Taplin Boyd
Nicholas Beckett – Kane Prestenback*
Dr. Rance – Tom Cleary*
Sergeant Match – Nat Cassidy*
*appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association
Director Zac Hoogendyk and actors David Sedgwick and Emily Taplin Boyd discuss What the Butler Saw.
The Prentices are not an ordinary couple. Dr. Prentice is a psychiatrist with his own hospital who believes that the best way to interview a girl for a job is to seduce her. Geraldine Barclay does her best to comply, but nothing is going to work smoothly in this nut house that includes Mrs. Prentice, a nymphomaniac who is seduced by a bellhop in a hotel, or maybe it’s vice versa. Mrs. Prentice brings home her reluctant bellhop just as the state inspector decides to pay a visit to the hospital. What ensues is a wild melee of disappearances, disguises and discoveries as husband and wife try to hide their prizes from the inspector and from one another. The ending is one of those delights that Oscar Wilde might have dreamed up in a sequel to The Importance of Being Earnest.
Pictured (l to r): Tom Cleary and David Sedgwick in The Gallery Players’ production of What the Butler Saw. Photo by Bella Muccari.
What the Butler Saw premiered in London’s West End in 1969, two years after rising star playwright Orton was bludgeoned to death with a hammer by his male lover at the age of 34. The play has never had a Broadway production. 

“The goal of this production is nothing short of leaving the audience spasming with laughter,” said director Zac Hoogendyk. “The cast has taken up this goal as their own, and it has been very exciting to watch them sink their teeth into one of the funniest plays I have ever read.”
“Hilarious, outrageous… It dazzles!… Wonderfully verbal, toying with words as if they were firecrackers.” N.Y. Times.
“Brilliant, witty, the funniest show so far this season.” NBC TV.
“Madly antic humor.” AP.
Performance Schedule:
Saturday, September 11 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, September 12 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, September 16 at 8:00 PM
Friday, September 17 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 18 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, September 18 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, September 19 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, September 23 at 8:00 PM
Friday, September 24 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 25 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, September 25 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, September 26 at 3:00 PM – final performance
Pictured (l to r): Nat Cassidy, David Sedgwick, and Emily Taplin Boyd in The Gallery Players’ production of What the Butler Saw. Photo by Bella Muccari.