Announced at last Monday evening’s Batavia City Council meeting by City Historian Larry Barnes, a play about the story behind the Brisbane Mansion has been created and is going through rehearsals currently.
Barnes says the cast of five will present “Brothers at Odds” to the community beginning June 3, 2022, at the First Presbyterian Church, at 300 East Main street in Batavia at 7:00p.m. A second showing is scheduled on June 11, 2022 at the same location and time. On June 15, 2022, the show will move to the GCC Campus, Room T102 in the Conable Building.
The project came about after Barnes and the Landmark Society wanted to show the importance of the building to the community as the City of Batavia Police Department will soon be moving to a new location near Bank an Alva Place.
Derek Maxfield, an Associate Professor of History at Genesee Community College and a playwright, created the script. Maxfield will play the role of George Brisbane. His daughter, Quincy Maxfield, will play the role of Sarah Brisbane, George’s wife. Maxwell’s wife, Jessica will play the role of the servant of the house, Anna. Dan Snyder will play the role of George’s older brother Albert and there will be a guest appearance by General Emory Upton, played by Michael Gosselin.
The play is set in the late 1870’s, according to the prologue written by Larry Barnes. George Brisbane built the mansion with money he inherited two years after his father’s death. George and his wife Sarah, whom he married in 1848, have one son, who they name James, after his grandfather. Grandpa James Brisbane was a pioneering resident of Batavia, he first was a merchant and then served as the first Postmaster. He invested in prime real estate, making him and his wife Mary Stevens very wealthy.
The highlight of the play is a visit from George Brisbane’s only sibling, Albert Brisbane, his older brother. Both are very different, and their relationship is filled with tension, especially when it comes to the wealth that was left to the siblings after their father’s death. The subject of how to handle the wealth ruins the relationship between them.
As the years go by, Sarah Brisbane starts to wonder what will happen to their home when their only son decides not to live in Batavia or retain the mansion. The discussion with her husband George leads to the possibility of City Government using the mansion, which eventually happened with the mansion becoming the home to City Hall from 1918-2004, and currently the City of Batavia Police Department.
So just as George and Sarah Brisbane wondered what would happen to their home in 1918, the question has now come up again, what will happen to the Brisbane Mansion after the City of Batavia Police Department moves to their new location, leaving the building in need of some attention and care.
Barnes and the Landmark Society hope the performances will leave community members with questions and thoughts on what to do after the building is vacated. There will be a panel discussion following each performance.
Look for a future announcement on ticket availability.
The production of “Brothers at Odds” is made possible through a $5,000 grant provided by the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council, Restore NY Regrant program, funded by the NYS Council on the Arts.