On April 4 at 7:30 p.m. and April 5 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Torrey Honors College will be putting on their Spring 2025 production of “It Pays to Advertise.” The play is an American comedy that tells the story of the son of a soap tycoon who becomes his father’s business competitor.
A FIRST-TIME DIRECTOR TAKES THE LEAD
Junior screenwriting major, Audrey Schnell, stepped into the role of director for the first time. Schnell contacted Janelle Aijian, associate director and professor of Torrey Honors College, back in Spring 2024 and was offered the role of director. Over the course of the next year, Schnell worked on choosing a play and beginning production.
While this may be her first time directing, Schnell has already identified two things that are important to her, one of which is “making sure that everyone can be doing the work while still laughing and enjoying themselves.” Schnell recalls a memorable and funny moment during rehearsal where one of the actors accidentally said “Kiss her friend” instead of “Kiss her hand. It’s French stuff.”
“The whole cast broke for that one,” Schnell said.
The other thing that is important to Schnell as a director is “keeping the kind of comedy consistent with what the show calls for rather than having jokes that may succeed in making the audience laugh but are the wrong kind of funny for the show.”
MEET THE CAST
Achieving that consistent comedy is made possible by the four main characters of the play: Rodney Martin, Cyrus Martin, Ambrose Peale and Mary Grayson. Rodney Martin is the son of the soap tycoon and is played by sophomore Bible major, Carter Barnes. Cyrus Martin is the soap tycoon played by sophomore health sciences major, Tyler Jones. Ambrose Peale is a press agent played by senior cinema and media arts major, Timothy House. Mary Grayson is Cyrus Martin’s secretary and Rodney Martin’s fiance played by sophomore screenwriting major, Kalinn Hilt.
The humor of the play relies heavily on precise timing.
“It’s what really makes it work,” Schnell said. “It is mostly in the really fine-tuned, quick-witted humor, but there are also some really good emotional beats that require a similar skill in timing…They aren’t the sort of thing that audiences will necessarily consciously notice, but they all contribute to either the comedy or the drama of it in a very particular way that will affect audiences even when they aren’t thinking about it.”
JOIN THE FUN
Whether you notice these minute details or not, “It Pays to Advertise” is an experience that Schnell encourages people to attend. If you are interested in seeing this dramatic comedy, you can visit the EventBrite page to purchase tickets. For the full playbill, see this link.
