ONCE I SAW A BOY
LAUGHING . . . [Drama/Military/War] A: Scott Mansfield; D: Gail Mansfield;
S: David Chapman; C: Ann Kelleher; L: Martin Aronstein; P: Lawrence E. Davis
i/a/w Jolandrea Productions, Inc.; T: Westside Theatre (OB); 2/21/74-2/24/74
(5)
Scott Mansfield, Jerry Plummer Chesnut.
A poorly written drama (with music) about a half-dozen GIs
cornered in a jungle hut (“on a piece of land in nowhere . . .”) who are killed
violently one by one until only a single soldier remains alive. That soldier
was played by the author, whose sister directed the play.
Despite the intensity of the situation, the work seemed
plotless and lacking character development. The dialogue offered little more
than wisecracks. A number of songs were interpolated into the action. Russ Thacker was the best-known of the six actors trapped in this quagmire.
Clive Barnes disparaged the script, approved the set, and
accepted the acting. He concluded, “this is a patrol that can only be regarded
as missing.”
