You Can’t Take It With You
By George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart
Produced by Lubbock Community Theatre
You Can't Take It With You aims to remind people to slow down and enjoy all the wonderful things life has to offer. When the radically-opposing lifestyles of two families come to a head, shenanigans ensue and in the end everyone learns valuable lessons in love, acceptance, and gratitude.
The largest creative inspiration for this show was classic films from the 1930s-1940s. This greatly influenced the underscoring and pre-show music choices, as well as sound effects, especially concerning tone and historical context. The best examples of this would be the electric buzzer, the large firework sequence, and the underscoring of the dinner scenes.
Audio Samples
Partway through the show, an incident occurs wherein a “year’s supply of fireworks” is ignited in the basement and all of it explodes while everyone in the living room panics. Using just a handful of firework sounds, I layered them and repeated them to create nearly a minute-long sequence of skyrockets igniting, exploding, and subsequently igniting more skyrockets.
Throughout the play, many guests visit the Sycamores’ home. To help reinforce the time period setting, that being the 1930s, I chose to implement an authentic 1920’s electric buzzer that goes off anytime someone arrives at the Sycamores’ front door. The clapper doorbell was another option, but I felt that tonally the buzzer was more appropriate for the zany and absurd atmosphere of the world of the play.
There are a couple of scenes in which Grandpa says a prayer before the Sycamores begin eating dinner. I saw these moments as a great opportunity to both enhance the existing layer of humor and highlight Grandpa’s key role in the family. His opinions and wisdom are highly valued by the others, and he serves as the top authority and voice of reason. He guides the others through their troubles and he is the biggest representative of their lifestyle. I found that dramatic church-style organ music served this dual purpose satisfyingly well.