Players in Sarasota stage bewitching ‘Bell, Book and Candle’

It’s almost certainly one of the inspirations for the classic TV situation comedy “Bewitched.” It also may be a metaphor for the secret world of lesbians and gay men in 1950s New York City, and for the McCarthy “witch hunts.”

But Helen Holliday, who’s directing the new production of “Bell, Book and Candle,” says the show isn’t as bouncy as the sitcom it spawned.

“It’s still a light, fluffy romance,” Holliday said. “But it’s a bit darker because if she falls in love she has to give up her powers.”

The undertones of a gay theme and the commentary about McCarthyism, she said, won’t keep the audience from enjoying the show on its primary level of a charming romantic comedy. They’re the kind of subtle themes that critics have written about over the years, and that the director and her cast notice when they’re working intensely on the script.

“It actually helped me give them something they could relate to, something other than these witches and warlocks.”

The Players Centre production opens with a preview performance on Wednesday, Aug. 10. Official opening night is Aug. 11.

The 1950 play was written from John Van Druten, who was himself a gay man. The story concerns a group of witches living in Greenwich Village. One witch casts a love spell on a publisher who is engaged to a woman she dislikes. But she finds herself falling in love with him, and she’ll lose her magical powers if she does.

Van Druten also wrote “I Remember Mama” and “I Am a Camera,” the play that became the basis for the musical “Cabaret.”

“Bell, Book and Candle” was three hours long in its Broadway incarnation, which starred Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer. Holliday has pared it down to about two hours, including intermission.

“Audiences today don’t want to sit in a theater for three hours,” she said. “Especially in the summer. There’s a lot of editing, but I think we’ve kept the integrity of the script.”

It’s apparently possible to cut the original script by more than a third and still end up with a solid entertainment. The 1958 film version of “Bell Book and Candle,” with James Stewart, Kim Novak and Jack Lemmon, was about the same length as the Players’ version, and it was even more well received than the Broadway play.

Holliday, whose last directorial project with The Players was last season’s “Master Class,” said she’s having an especially great time with “Bell.”

“I love these characters,” she said. “They’re so much fun. They’re witches and warlocks. There’s magic, and there’s a cat.”

The cast for the Players production includes Amanda Heisey, Craig Weiskerger, Ann Gundersheimer, Tanner Holman and John Tyler. Holliday said they’re excelling at making the broadly drawn characters realistic and believable.

“It’s basically my dream cast,” she said. “They’re so talented. They’re all pros.”

Details: Aug 11-21, preview performance 7:30 p.m. Aug. 10, The Players Centre for Performing Arts, 838 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday 2 p.m. Sunday. 941-365-2494, theplayers.org.

This story was originally published August 3, 2016 at 5:15 PM with the headline "Players in Sarasota stage bewitching ‘Bell, Book and Candle’."