Swell Party

It’s 1932, and 20 year-old orphaned tobacco heir Smith Reynolds has returned from New York to his family’s Winston-Salem estate with a surprise souvenir: a wife. The new Mrs. Reynolds is notorious Broadway star Libby Holman- a dozen years older than Smith. She arrives with a trunkload of gin and an acting coach who is quite possibly insane. Smith’s guardian, Kate Reynolds, attempts to manage the scandal- giving Libby a crash course in Southern decorum. A party is thrown to introduce the newlyweds to society, but it’s flat-out ruined when the groom turns up dead. The guests are gathered to reconstruct the evening’s events for a beleaguered County Solicitor, but they fail spectacularly, which shouldn’t be a surprise.

For Southerners, the truth isn’t nearly as important as a good story.

A Brief but Necessary Disclaimer: SWELL PARTY is a work of fiction inspired by newspaper accounts and recorded inquest testimony surrounding the events of July 4-6, 1932 at Reynolds Estate. Some names, identifying characteristics, and events drawn from public record have been faithfully reproduced within. Most, however, are purely products of the author's imagination. This play does not purport itself in any manner to be a comprehensive portrait of these public figures, or a factual representation of the events which transpired. It would be impossible to craft such a work, since no one could ever agree what happened. It's just my best guess.

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