January 6, 2016
Chuck Wilkins
"Angus"
The Drawer Boy

In all the many years I have been involved with Market House Theatre, I have to say that I feel the most comfortable on stage when doing a comedy. There’s something about hearing the laughter of the audience that makes all the rehearsals worth every single hour!

The Drawer Boy is a play that I thought would be definitely outside of my comfort zone. I play the part of Angus in this show with just three actors. My best friend, Morgan, and I live on a farm where he takes care of the farm and I take care of the books for the farm, do the cooking and bake bread. Morgan and I have grown up together and lived life together. What makes Angus different is that due to his injury in the war, he can’t remember from one minute to the next.

We all have friends that we feel close to and probably would do anything for them. The bond of friendship that Angus and Morgan share goes beyond the normal realm of friendship. The short term memory loss of Angus and how Morgan handles it is something that has hit home with me. My dad suffered with Alzheimer’s before he passed away in 2012. His loss of memory was so hard to witness because in my mind, I was thinking this man isn’t my dad. All the memories I had of him were good memories. But this man didn’t even recognize me, his own son.

I believe every one of us know or have known an Angus. Yes, you may chuckle from time to time during The Drawer Boy or you may even shed a tear or two. But I honestly feel that you will leave the theatre with that warm, fuzzy feeling that only a true, heartfelt friendship can give you.

(Middle and lower right photos: Chuck in rehearsal for The Drawer Boy, and with Jonathan Woods—who played Miles, the actor/writer who comes to live on the farm with the two friends in order to write a play about farming and farm life.)