Spitfire Super Quiz

August 21, 2017

The actors in The Spitfire Grill have had a grand time playing together this summer, so we asked a few insider questions (and edited out the spoilers). Read how their responses stack up, and see who's possibly gotten a little too close for comfort...

Who's Playing Who? (A short guide to names mentioned below)

  • Alixandra Cowman - Percy
  • Elinor Holt - Hannah
  • Cassia Schmidt - Shelby
  • Nathan Schmidt - Eli
  • Marie Russell - Effy
  • Travis Friesen - Sheriff Joe  
  • Paul Muir - Caleb

Who’s the Spitfire in The Spitfire Grill?

ALIX: Elinor Holt, OF COURSE!

NATE: I’d have to say Hannah is the Spitfire, she named it after all.

CASSIA: Hannah – for sure!

TRAVIS: Hannah

ELINOR: Shelby! And in the band, Julie!

MARIE: The fierce spirit of compassion that is brave enough to start and continue the journey of forgiveness and acceptance.

PAUL: Percy! No question, it’s Percy! She’s the catalyst for the whole story!

Alixandra Cowman whips up her speciality. Photo by Morris Ertman.

What’s the secret in the sauce?

ALIX: It ain’t called SPITfire for no good reason.

ELINOR: Wild Turkey

TRAVIS: Ketchup/mayo/lemon juice

CASSIA: Rosebud water

MARIE: Understanding how little we have to lose when we leap and make the choice to love...

NATE: You know, I think it’s pickles and chipotle peppers.

PAUL: You add a dash of love and a pinch of forgiveness, and YUM!



What’s the worst thing on the menu?

ALIX: Anything that Percy has made. Don’t let her in the kitchen.

ELINOR: The coffee. But it’s the only grill in town, so put up and shut up!

TRAVIS: Jellied Hotdog Salad

CASSIA: The corn beef hash. Even when Hannah makes it.

MARIE: Percy’s sunny-side-up eggs. They have instantly grown a velvety mould on their surface, thanks to the genius of props people! Ewwww.

PAUL: Caleb!

NATE: The spelling

Cassia Schmidt and Alixandra Cowman cook up magic and... mystery meat. Photo by Morris Ertman

What song got cut from the play?

ALIX: The one that ends with a kissing scene.

CASSIA: All of Eli’s solos.

TRAVIS: “I can’t quit you” – Caleb sings to Joe.

MARIE: Effy’s Revenge – a little dream sequence piece about catching everyone in a fraud ring and being awarded The Spitfire Grill as an annex to the post office (secretly a CIA outpost).

NATE: Shelby had a bluesy song about how she wishes she was single again.

PAUL: A song got cut from the play? Crap! Why didn’t anyone tell me? I’m still doing them all!

Paul Muir, singing solo. Photo by Morris Ertman.

What crime would you commit if you could get away with it?

CASSIA: It’s not a hard core crime – but there are a lot of places I would trespass.

ELINOR: Hm. Tough one. Can one ever get away from something? With something?... Maybe… so, I would like to get away with Travis’s old truck… or Cassia’s vocal chords so that I could be an amazing belting soprano with cool wheels! Grand Theft/Throat Auto!

TRAVIS: Jay-walking

ALIX: I would love to rob a casino, Ocean’s Eleven style. I want to be cool like Brad Pitt and George Clooney!

MARIE: What’s the legal term for opening other people’s mail?

NATE: Stowaway – jumping on a boxcar and go where it goes for as long as it goes.

PAUL: Oh Heavens, I think I’ve committed enough crimes in my life already. I’m ready to retire from my life of crime!

Marie Russell, Paul Muir, and Travis Friesen keep the town under control. Photo by Morris Ertman.

Who has a secret they aren’t sharing? What is it?

ALIX: Definitely Joe and Effy. Have you SEEN their relationship on stage? Seems fishy to me.

CASSIA: Shelby. Ha! Sneaky! Still not telling. But there's a reason her dress is so baggy.

NATE: The cellist, Julie. She'd rather be dancing.

PAUL: Ummm, who doesn’t have a secret they aren’t sharing?

Everyone has a mystery. Elinor Holt and Alixandra Cowman. Photo by Morris Ertman

Favorite moment in the show that the audience doesn’t see?

ALIX: The choreography of ‘Diggin’ Stone’ that happens behind the flat. Elinor and I are the best back-up dancers to Paul Muir’s rocking song.

ELINOR: The backstage choreography for ‘Diggin’ Stone'. It is a sight to behold, even if I do say so myself.

CASSIA: Choreography for 'Diggin’ Stone'.

TRAVIS: Behind the flat choreo for 'Diggin’ Stone'.

NATE: I get to make eyes, across the stage, with my beautiful wife, during the woo-ing between Sheriff Joe and Percy.

MARIE: One of my favorite moments happens at the top of Act 1 before my first entrance. We’re like a team… coming out of the shoot – first Travis, then, a bar later, Paul, then at my time, me. I love love love being a small player in a great story alongside others. I’m not sure why that moment always heartens me.

PAUL: Oh gosh. At some point we [gotta] make a video of all the action that happens with the musicians. The 4-person guitar playing dance, Kait going back and forth between piano and accordion, it’s really active!

What’s the password to get into the after-hours Spitfire?

ALIX: “I brought applejack.”

ELINOR: Scrabble

NATE: B@c0N&3gg5

CASSIA: You can just open the door. It’s never locked.

TRAVIS: New England Clam Chowder

MARIE: The secret password passes by word of mouth and also continuously changes. Effy knows that the tactic is called “permanent transitionalism” and was a favorite method used by Sadam Hussein.

Nathan Schmidt and Alixandra Cowman share a secret... or two... photo by Morris Ertman

What’s the town of Gilead’s tourism motto?

ALIX: Gilead: Do our balms make you whole? See for yourself!

ELINOR: Gilead: A little piece of heaven right here on earth.

NATE: Gilead: What’s yours is Mine!

PAUL: Gilead: Home of the Colours of Paradise! (But they probably spell it the American way.)

CASSIA: Gilead: Your forgotten holiday

MARIE: Gilead: Miserable but Safe!

TRAVIS: Gilead: If you don’t have time to stop, smile as you drive by.

Friendship and Forgiveness in The Spitfire Grill. Cassia Schmidt, Elinor Holt, & Alixandra Cowman. Photo by Morris Ertman

Spitfire Super Quiz

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