Events/Courses - Event View

“Wit ought to be a glorious treat like caviar; never spread it about like marmalade.” Thus spoke the master of wit on the British stage during the first half of the 20th century. Who better to shine a light on the theatrical humor of the period than Noël Coward, the man whom Time magazine once called “a combination of cheek and chic, pose and prose.” In his career, Coward wrote more than 65 plays and musicals and appeared in approximately 70 stage productions. More than 20 films were made from his plays and musicals, either by Coward or other screenwriters, and he acted in 17 films. This course shall begin with an introductory session on the life of the man himself, his charm, his confidence, his image and his doubts. “Why am I always expected to wear a dressing-gown, smoke cigarettes in a long holder and say ‘Darling, how wonderful’?” The study will continue with three of Coward’s greatest hits: Hay Fever (1924), Private Lives (1930), and Blithe Spirit (1941). The immortal words of the Roman poet Horace, carpe diem (seize the day) once faced up to Coward’s sense of poetic license resulting in a joie de vivre call in his personal translation: “present mirth hath present laughter.” Come! Be mirthful with Noël and me!

Instructor Joseph Coté has led explorations into the late 16^th and early 17^th century dramatic writings of William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, and Christopher Marlowe for Coastal Senior College. He has also focused attention on the late 19^th and early 20^th century plays of Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw. His monthly CSC program, “Journeys with Will Shakespeare” — free for CSC members — shines a spotlight on the journey of a single character through a Shakespeare play in a laser beam “150 minutes with the Bard.” Joseph graduated in classics and theater from the University of Maine, Orono in 1971 and holds a master’s degree in clinical psychology from Washington University, St. Louis. Coté has been a longtime amateur actor and a short-time professional actor (while also starring as a gourmet waiter). His consulting career in the international hotel industry spanned 32 years in 23 foreign cities. CSC Joseph serves on the CSC Board, with assignments on the Media Outreach and Activities committees.