By Judy O’Gorman Alvarez
MIDDLETOWN – It was the opportunity to play a 300-pound man – with no costume – that inspired actor Duane Noch to bring radio drama to more audiences.
“It allows actors to be anything,” said Noch, who is nowhere near tipping the scales at that weight. “It’s so freeing, practically speaking. No elaborate scenes. I loved that idea.”
As founder and artistic director of Classic Radio Road Show, Noch, of Middletown, and his team enact shows – classic and original ones – enhanced by sound effects, music and the talented actors’ voices.
Radio drama, an oft-forgotten mode of entertainment, is a dramatized acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story.
In addition to the cast – or “radio warriors” – a Foley artist is essential for radio shows. Foley (named after sound-effects artist Jack Foley) artists reproduce everyday sound effects that enhance the performance, such as footsteps, videos, Foley sounds can also cover up unwanted noises, such as traffic.
“Radio plays were extremely popular in the ’30s and ’40s,” Noch said. “They went across all genres. It was initially movies for your ears.”
By the 1940s, it was a leading international popular entertainment. When television entered the picture in the 1950s, radio drama began losing its audience.
With Classic Radio Plays, Noch hopes to introduce the medium to a new audience and reacquaint those who recall those golden days of radio.
“It brings back something I think we lost,” he said. “Everything in movies and TV is visually oriented – trying to wow people through their eyes. With a radio play, we have the audience do the heavy lifting.”
Noch started Classic Radio Road Show in 2017.
Since then they have produced more than 45 radio plays, such as Abbott & Costello’s “Who’s On First,” Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Telltale Heart” and “Gift of the Magi.”
They’ve appeared at theaters, schools, libraries, reunions and assorted gatherings. During the pandemic they brought a sketch from the comedy duo Burns & Allen to the Two River Theater, where Noch is the lead carpenter.
This season Noch and his team recreate the holiday classic “It’s a Wonderful Life,” the 1946 rected by Frank Capra. Based on the short story “The Greatest Gift” by Philip Van Doren, and loosely based on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” the film tells the story of George Bailey who has given up his dreams to help his town.
The audience is invited to watch the live radio show – a rare entertainment event for many – at four different venues.
With only a handful of actors to play several characters in the fictional town of Bedford Falls, there are slight costume changes, using aprons, hats and hand props, and actors use a range of voices.
Each show will feature an “It’s a Wonderful Life” trivia game after the performance for the audience to play.
Classic Radio Road Show will present the play in four locations this season:
• Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. at Center Players in Freehold
• Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. at Middletown Arts Center in Middletown
• Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. at Middletown Township Public Library
• Dec. 18 at 2 p.m. at Cross of Glory Lutheran Church in Aberdeen
Tickets are $20; the library’s show will be free. Visit classicradioroadshow.org for information or reservations.
The article originally appeared in the November 24 – 30, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
