Caught In The Net
By Ray Cooney
May 7-29, 2004
Directed by Doobie Potter

If you think your life is complicated, imagine the life of two-timing taxi driver John Smith who keeps two separate families!

When his teenage children (a girl from one family and a boy from the other) meet in an Internet chat room and are anxious to meet in person, John's already hectic life shifts into high gear as he tries to keep his double life a secret.

Ray Cooney's fast-paced farce was nominated for the 2002 Olivier (Britain's Tony Award) and the 2001 Evening Standard Awards for Best New Comedy, and Carpenter Square Theatre is staging its Oklahoma premiere.

CAUGHT IN THE NET is actually a sequel to Cooney's popular RUN FOR YOUR WIFE that ran in London for 9 years. Carpenter Square presented RUN FOR YOUR WIFE in 1993 and the Pollard Theatre most recently performed it in 2003. It was the story of John Smith, a London taxi driver with two wives in different parts of London and a very tight schedule to keep. An accident disrupted his careful schedule, but after a lot of hijinks, he managed to keep his secret from his two wives.

Now, 18 years later in CAUGHT IN THE NET, modern technology is about to lead Smith's two families into a head-on collision. The show opens on a set that represents both homes, which allows for simultaneous action in both locations. Enter son Gavin Smith with his mum Barbara and daughter Vicki Smith with her mum Mary. Both teenagers are discussing having met in an Internet chat room. They are amazed that they both have fathers named John Leonard Smith who are London taxi drivers, and since romance has blossomed, they are determined to meet in person. The audience soon learns that the "amazing coincidences" are due to the fact that they indeed have the same father, but the characters are still in the dark.

When Dad gets wind of their plan to meet, chaos ensues as he tries to keep the teens apart and keep his dual life secret from both his wives and kids. John quickly enlists the help of his dopey boarder Stanley, which only leads to hilarious lies, mistaken identities and mysterious phone calls. When Stanley's senile father arrives for a holiday, it stirs up the antics even further. Without giving away any more details, the audience is assured that in a Ray Cooney farce, if something can go wrong, it will go ... berserk!

Ray Cooney, a recognized "master of farce," has been one of Britain's most popular playwrights where he has had 18 shows in London's West End. After his smash hit RUN FOR YOUR WIFE came to New York, he has become more familiar to U.S. audiences. Carpenter Square audiences have previously enjoyed four other Cooney farces, including RUN FOR YOUR WIFE, FUNNY MONEY, IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY (produced in 1994 and 2002) and OUT OF ORDER, (the latter also directed by Doobie Potter).

"Cooney's plays are not high brow literature," remarks Carpenter Square artistic director Rhonda Clark. "He sets out to entertain with zany characters that he puts in even zanier circumstances. Our audiences get the treat of a night filled with laughs. Also, although this play is a sequel, it stands on its own. Audiences will not be confused if they missed the first story."

Carpenter Square Theatre gratefully acknowledges the assistance of the Oklahoma Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts for this production.