Still making a play at it

Lolita Harper

Joe Schulein looks darn good in a pair of tights and a floral-rimmed

hat.

The actor and director of the Oasis Players said he doesn’t

usually sport women’s clothing but an actress was sick and, well, the

show must go on.

Although he was slightly uncomfortable in his womanly wears, he

delivers a humorous performance this month in the one-act play, “Will

the Ladies Please Come to Order?” that brought smiles to the

residents at Crown Cove senior living home.

The audience was one of the Players smallest but it was nice to

perform for an intimate crowd, the actors said. The play was about a

meeting at the July 1952 meeting of the Center City Ladies Cultural

League, in which the four officers’ true feelings are revealed and

they clash in a very “lady-like” way.

The Oasis Players are a group of senior citizens who meet every

week to study acting methods and have a go at various monologues or

characters. Once proficient in their character of choice, the group

takes the show on the road, entertaining fellow seniors, high school

students and, basically, anyone who will book them.

The group bills its performance as comedy entertainment and offers

witty monologue such as, “In the Money” -- about a get rich quick

scheme, “Women’s Urges” -- about a longtime wife who is left home

alone for an extended period of time for the first time in 40 years,

and “Centerfold,” -- about a senior woman’s appearance in “Playboy.”

Members of the Oasis Players must be at least 55, but the

membership ranges in age from 69 to 84, Schulein said. Acting is a

challenge for many seniors because of the memorization involved,

Schulein said.

Christa Long, 68, said she very much enjoys her role in the group.

The soft-spoken Long, who was a professional dancer in Europe and

still carries with her a German accent, performs a monologue in which

she applies for a job with Santa.

Schulein said it was funny to watch her cultivate her character as

a Swiss reindeer, especially because her monologue had a four-letter

word in the script. During weeks of practice, sweet little Long

omitted the expletive. Once on stage, however, she blurted it out,

just the way it was scripted -- much to the shock of her theatrical

colleagues.

She was so into her character, she felt she needed to stick to the

original dialogue, Schulein said. He knew all along she was capable

of a great performance and was proud.

“People usually don’t think old folks can do things like this but

we folks do,” Long said.

And although they study seriously and perform top quality

entertainment, the goal is to have a good time.

“If all they say is, ‘Boy are we having fun,’ then that’s OK,” he

said.

The Oasis Players have been booked in Costa Mesa, Tustin and

Newport Beach and are continuously looking for more gigs. The next

performance is at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the Costa Mesa Senior Center.