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[from this article published July 28, 1995 in The Valley Times

‘Borrowed’ whimsical interlude

Theatre Review

By LINDA DAVIS

Staff writer

NORBERT VON DER GROEBEN/Times

FULL OF LIFE: Pud (Matthew Wright) and Gramps (Kip Wixson) cheat Death in the fanciful "On Borrowed Time."

A heart warming gem of a show. “On Borrowed Time” at Chanticleers playhouse will delight audiences of all ages.

A fanciful plot, a cute kid, his kindly grandfather and a top-notch cast of supporting actors make this a memorable production.

The play written by Paul Osborn centers around the Northrups: simple folks who live in a farmhouse with a mysterious apple tree—everyone who climbs it gets stuck.

Granny Northrup (Sandy Becker) knits a lot and keeps an eye on Gramps’ bad habits. He's known to cuss and swig moonshine now and then—not a good example for his grandson, Pud. Pud adores Gramps, in spite of his faults. When Pud's parents are killed in a car crash, care for the boy becomes their responsibility

Life is good on the farm: that is, until Mr. Brink (J.D. McGie) shows up—and offers his cold, gray hand to Granny, persuading her to come with him. Brink appears again a few days later, summoning Gramps. After all, he's old; his time has come. Wily Gramps recognizes Death when he sees it, chases Brink up the apple tree and fences him in. Nothing can die as a result.

As Gramps, playhouse veteran Kip Wixson is perfectly cast, though he puts a kindler, gentler spin on his character than the 1939 movie with Lionel Barrymore, a certified curmudgeon. The role of Pud is double-cast with two talented youngsters making their debut: Katie Sowell and Matthew Wright. On opening night, the bright-eyed Matthew never missed a cue or a line in a demanding role that kept the fourth-grader onstage most of the time.

Suzanne Henry brought comedy and color to her role as Demetria Riffle, the boy's moralizing aunt who wants custody of him.

The highlight of this show is the interplay between Gramps, his doctor (Louie Hesemann) and his lawyer (Burt Bassler) while they wangle over whether Gramps should go to the nuthouse for telling people he has Death trapped in his tree. Hesemann's deadpan delivery of “I've been up all night trying to kill something and nothing will die, not even a fly,” is a classic. And it proves to the men that Gramps speaks the truth.

This magical blending of whimsy and life has a poignant conclusion as Gramps and Pud try to cheat Death.

Sets and direction by Mary Lou Ramirez are superb, down to the apple tree that stays firmly planted, even with Death sitting in it.