Weather permitting

Pass the mittens, honey. And put the tire chains in the trunk.

Foothill Theatre’s season-opening farce, Noises Off, is meeting an icy reception in Nevada City. Not from audiences, mind you. It’s the unseasonably cold weather that’s dropping snow as low as 1,000 feet and requiring chains on Highway 49.

“This is my 12th season with the Foothill Theatre Company, and I can’t remember ever having snow conditions like this for two weekends in a row—not even for the Christmas show,” said actor Gary Wright, who’s in the Noises Off cast.

A bit of the winter white stuff is not uncommon in Nevada City, with an elevation of 2,525 feet. Foothill Theatre has learned that many patrons prefer to avoid icy roads, so the company takes a break during January and February. But this year, the white stuff’s falling in mid-March.

“If the actors can make it, we’re going on—and we haven’t canceled any performances,” Wright said, though he acknowledged many people have called and asked.

Some subscribers have traded their tickets for other weekends, but others tough it out. “There seem to be a lot of people willing to risk life and limb for a good laugh—for which we are grateful,” Wright said.