Rabbit Sighting: Chenango County Players in production of “Harvey”

OXFORD – As Easter quickly approaches, children aren’t the only ones seeing rabbits. The NYS Veterans’ Home is currently being utilized for rehearsals by the Chenango Community Players (CCP) who are in production for the comedy, “Harvey.” “Harvey” is a Pulitzer Prize-winning play, turned hit movie, written by Mary Coyle Chase back in 1944. The comedy will be performed, with 1940’s style and delicate humor, at the Chenango Council of the Arts’ Martin W. Kappel Theater, April 20 and 21, in Norwich.

The Chenango Community Players are a non-profit, community-based volunteer theater group, committed to bringing high-quality performing arts to Chenango County. Located in Norwich, the CCP have been in existence for over 30 years. Recent productions include: “Annie,” directed by Gail Murphy; “Oliver,” directed by Mark Sands; and most recently, “The Sound of Music.”

The cast of “Harvey” is made up of several Oxford and Norwich residents. The Director is Fred Dankart of Oxford. Fred is responsible for the resurrection of the Players 10 years ago. He is a playwright and artist as well as a fine director.

The basic plot of Harvey is about a friendly inebriate named Elwood P. Dowd and his invisible pal, a six-foot one-and-a-half inch white rabbit. (The writer Chase based the giant rabbit on the Irish folklore of “pookas” or mischievous spirits.) Elwood is the only one who sees the human-sized rabbit named Harvey (and a few privileged others). Is Elwood’s imaginary rabbit a spirit or is his consumption of spirits creating his rabbit-friend? His concerned sister Veta Louise Simmons tries to have Elwood committed to a mental institution to prevent future family embarrassments, and a comedy of errors ensues.