Éclat, élan,
and earnest elegance
by
Michael Dresdner
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| The cast Photo by Dean Lapin |
The Importance of Being Earnest, which opened last night at Lakewood Playhouse, is
undoubtedly the best of Oscar Wilde’s biting satires. It is, by any reckoning,
an outstanding and completely enjoyable play to watch; flawlessly written,
hilarious, and just dripping with those questionable British values Wilde saw as
the underbelly of Victorian society, and skewered mercilessly.
I adore
this play so much that I watch or read some iteration of it several times each
year, both to bolster my own moral turpitude and to remind myself to always
keep a sharp tongue in my head.
Or is
that civil?
Whatever.
The point is that a play of such perfection demands a director and cast equal
to its brilliance. That is precisely what director Marilyn Bennett and her
superb cast have given to us lucky Lakewood Playhouse patrons; a shiny, perfect
apple of a comedy just bursting with juicy delight.
Ah, yes;
you need a short synopsis, right? Trust me, it’s the amazing characters and
gleefully funny dialog that makes this play, not the plot, but here goes.
Two
elegant bachelor pals discover that they both engage in elaborate fictions to allow
them to escape societal demands and instead pursue pleasure. They both pine for
well-born young ladies, and thanks in part an inexplicable allure of the name,
both insist they are called Ernest.
There
are some serious obstacles, beyond the obvious fact that neither is actually named
Ernest. One yearns for the cousin of the other, who is saddled with a gorgon of
a mother blocking the way because of the suitor’s lack of any apparent parentage.
The other yearns for the young, pretty ward of the first, but unless both are happily
paired, neither will be. A lost cigarette case, a lost satchel, a lost novel, a
lost baby, and a once careless former nursemaid help make a complete scramble
of this Mexican standoff, but don’t worry. At the end, all is resolved in a comically
unlikely manner, and everyone ends up happy.
Now for
the good stuff; the lead actors.
The Hon.
Gwendolen Fairfax (Deya Ozburn) is the daughter of Lady Bracknell, the inamorata
of John Worthing (Bryan K. Bender), and the cousin of Algernon Moncrieff
(Andrew Kittrell), who in turn pines for Worthing’s ward, Cecily Cardew (Cassie
Jo Fastabend).
Ladies
first, gentlemen!
Ozburn
is amazing, adroitly donning the imperious, duplicitous mantle of Gwendolen with
flawless timing, an unerring balance of coy sweetness and cutting innuendo, and
a set of postures and mannerisms that make her the very best Gwendolen I’ve
ever seen, on stage or screen. It was an absolutely perfect performance.
Did you
catch all that? Good, because I am about to repeat exactly the same thing three
more times, for Fastabend’s Cecily, Kittrell’s Algernon, and Bender’s John
Worthing. Each actor crafted the epitome of Wilde’s characters with the same
flawless timing, balance, delivery, and physical mannerisms.
 |
| Fastabend (L) and Ozburn spy on a seated Kittrell photo by Dean Lapin |
Fastabend
gave us a Cecily bursting with both kittenish enthusiasm and womanly wiles, her
sweet innocence hiding the razor sharp claws of cutting verbal retort. Kittrell
was a joy to watch as the suave, slightly foppish, thoroughly hedonistic
Algernon. And last, though anything but least, was Bender, an actor who has
consistently created some of the best performances we’ve seen on these local
stages (Mozart, Benedick, Macbeth). His John Worthing was simply perfect; the
ideal balance of refined, responsible landowner, and earnest, love-struck
suitor.
The rest
of the cast, Lady Bracknell (Syra Beth Puett), Rev. Chausuble (Aaron J. Schmookler),
the butler, Merriman (Tony Onorati), manservant Lane (Michael Sandner), Miss
Prism (Lee Ryan) and the housemaid, Felicity (Laura Shearer) are also quite
good and definitely hold their own, but the leads set the bar impossibly high,
and to be honest, those four love-struck leads both steal and make this show.
It is a
credit to both director and cast that every word, every nuance, and every
bitingly funny line was crisp, clear, and perfectly understandable. That should
be taken for granted, but becomes a problem surprisingly often. The director’s pacing
was so wonderful that the time flew by, and as it should be, we were left
wanting more.
Let’s
not forget the splendid costumes by the always excellent Alex Lewingon, a
cleverly simple set by Robin Dean, Larry Hagerman, and Hally Phillips, lighting
by Alex Smith, sound by John Burton, and props by Patrick Casados. And, because
they invisibly keep things running like a well-oiled machine, a nod to the
stage manager, Kali Raisi.
Even the
seating deserves an honorable mention. Lakewood is partway through the process
of replacing the seats in the entire theatre, and we had the good fortune to
sit in the new ones. They are sinfully luxurious and unjustifiably comfortable.
Patron sponsorship is helping to pay for them, so we dutifully “bought” a seat,
which will now sport a plaque with our august names engraved on it. Fairly few seats
are left unsponsored, so if you want to be a theater immortal, talk to the box
office.
The
Importance of Being Earnest is the final play of the season, and I can think of
no better way to go out in a blaze of glory than with a production that is so
superb, so funny, and so thoroughly delightful. Go see it; I can confidently
guarantee you an evening of pure, unadulterated pleasure.
The
Importance of Being Earnest
June 14th
to July 14th, 2013
Lakewood
Playhouse
