It was the Four Old Broads Christmas Extravaganza, an extravaganza if ever there was one, a production from The Purchase Players, who perform at the Community Performing Arts Center in Mayfield. There were bawdy senior citizen lady jokes, prank calls, nativity scenes gone way wrong, a runaway rabid pig, a llama with a scarf popping up in backstage windows and chasing characters across the stage, an angel in pasties, a deceased Santa Claus, and a Scrooge character dressed, inexplicably, as the cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. And throughout it all, the character Eaddy Mae Clayton was offering prayers of forgiveness to the Lord Almighty. It certainly felt as if we all needed them. Despite a script packed full of surprises, jokes, and chaos, at its heart, it was just another show in the theatre that has hosted hundreds of them since its inception in 1979. But, this one felt different. Because, even though it was just a show, it was different. This show was the culmination of a set of circumstances that sometimes mirrored the script. There were lucky coincidences, chance encounters, and shots in the dark. This show was a world premiere - the first time the show had been performed by any actors, for any audience, on any stage in the world. And, with the playwright sitting front and center in the front row. It wasn’t the first time that this group of actors and actresses had performed a play written by playwright Leslie Kimbell. In 2024, the cast had staged The Miss Magnolia Senior Citizen Beauty Pageant. During that production, the first domino fell. Jessica Gong, who played Martha Parcell, had a question about the script and she reasoned that who would know the answer better than the playwright. So, she looked her up on Facebook and dropped a note in her box. To Jessica’s surprise, Leslie not only answered her question, but she began a dialogue, first over Facebook, then over the phone and, eventually, in person when Leslie traveled to Mayfield to see the show in person. Hoping to capitalize on the massive popularity of the first show, in spring 2025, the “broads” donned their wigs and muumuus again for Four Old Broads on the High Seas. With the same energy, the ladies took their brand of comedy on a senior citizens cruise, encountering drag queens and gigolos, eventually solving a “murder” and finding forever happiness. Leslie Kimbell watched the success of the second show as well. She saw the actors and actresses settling into the characters, bringing their own personalities and enhancing her words with their actions. She saw actresses willing to flash their granny panties on stage and actors perfecting Elvis impersonations. Somewhere along the way, Kimbell decided that Mayfield was the perfect place to debut her newest show, Four Old Broads Christmas Extravaganza. She called Kyler Danowski, the director who had brought the two previous Broads shows to life on stage. “I was in shock - honestly disbelief - as we had just closed Four Old Broads on the High Seas and didn’t expect to see this group together so quickly - especially in the same year,” Kyler says. The veteran cast and crew would soon learn that, though this was just another show with the same characters they knew and loved, debuting a world premiere was very different. Leslie Kimbell with the cast of Four Old Broads Christmas Extravaganza 58 FEBRUARY 2026 | INTHEVUE.COM
