Noises Off at Lakewood

 …and a plate of sardines as The Beaver.

 by Michael Dresdner

   Shelleigh-Mairi Ferguson     All photos by Tim Johnston

The rollicking Michael Frayn comedy Noises Off, directed by John Munn, opened last night at Lakewood Playhouse to a house filled with both patrons and laughter. There’s a good chance you know this play, since it is done very frequently by school and community theatres because it’s a fine excuse for physical comedy, scantily clad bawdiness, and over-the-top acting, three things such folk seem to adore.

The opening music (sound designer Nena Curley) is a foreshadow of the sort of entertainment you are about to see. It’s the theme from Fawlty Towers. And to cap things off, the play music ends with Liberty Bell, the theme from Monty Python. Yep, it’s that sort of comedy.

   L to R, back row: Ferguson, Chambers, Rogers, Davy, Bury, Fitzgerals, George. Front: Tarry 

The premise, with its play-within-a-play double character list and both backstage and onstage personality quirks, is so complex that I’m likely to lose you by outlining it, but I’ll try anyway. Fortunately, it hardly matters if you catch it all, since the real hilarity comes from the manic farce that unfolds. Think of it as a three ring circus that gets progressively more inane as it melts down further in each act.

The play opens with droll and frustrated Lloyd Dallas (Jonathan Bill) trying to direct the dress rehearsal of the first act of Nothing On, a comedy that is nowhere near ready to open. Lloyd is secretly canoodling with both Brooke and assistant stage manager (ASM) Poppy.

   L to R: Bill, Davy, George, Rogers, Chambers, Ferguson, Tarry

Stage manager and all around handyman Tim Allgood (Nick Fitzgerald) also understudies several roles, and is assisted by Poppy Norton-Taylor (Ana Bury) who is far more unstrung and histrionic than real ASMs usually are.

Dotty Otley (Shelleigh-Mairi Ferguson), who has a thing for cast member Garry but plays up to Fred to generate envy, is scattered both on and offstage, unable to remember proper exits and prop handling, in particular the constant movement of a plate of sardines that probably deserves its own billing. She plays Mrs. Clackett, the housekeeper, in the play, Nothing On.

   L to R: Chambers, George

Garry Lejeune (Gary Chambers), whose name is an apt play on jejune, is inarticulate offstage, but not on, and plays Roger, a real estate agent. Brooke Ashton (Jennifer Davy) arrives with Roger playing the quick-to-undress but clueless Vicki, an amorous tax agent.

Frederick Fellowes (Jim Rogers) and Belinda Blair (Diana George) play Phillip and Flavia Brent, the husband and wife owners of the home where this all takes place. While Blair is stolid and mature one who tries to keep everything together both on and off stage, Fellowes, who also plays a sheik in the play, is timid and so unstrung that he gets constant nosebleeds from any stress. Finally, there’s an aging booze-hound of a once great actor named Selsdon Mowbray (Steve Tarry) who plays a burglar.

Got it? I thought not.

   L to R: Tarry, Bury, Ferguson, Rogers

In each act we see a repeat of Act I of the play-within-a-play. First we see a not-ready-to-open dress rehearsal where we meet the quirky characters and their characters. In act two, the stage spins around and we see the same act later in its run, this time from backstage. By now, things have deteriorated and injuries, mix-ups, jealous actors sabotaging one another, and problematic sets help derail the play. Act three is from the front again, where we see the same Act I later in the run, this time so riddled with inter-actor contention and mishaps that the whole thing has devolved into a maelstrom of non-stop inanity.

In this play, the set (by Larry Hagerman and Dyan Twiner) is a critical element, since the whole thing must spin around from front to back for each successive act. It also must be two stories tall with a very functional staircase and an abundance of sturdy, slamming doors. While it worked great, its painting and appearance was definitely on the drab side for such an upscale country home. Perhaps that was intentional, to get us to ignore the set and focus on the action. Then again, perhaps not.

Props, including more sardines than you think should ever appear on stage, were nicely done by Karrie Nevin, quite appropriate costumes were by Diane Runkel, and lighting was by Brett Carr.  

Like all ensemble plays, the whole cast must work together to make it all gel, and therefore all deserve the same level of praise. However, I’ll admit that my personal favorites were Steve Tarry, Jonathan Bill, Jim Rogers, and Diane George. Oh, and Nick Fitzgerald. And…, oh, forget it, go back to what I said before. It’s an ensemble cast and they all sink or swim together.

The last word? This is the epitome of what farce is all about, and one of those shows every theatre goer should see at least once and, if you actually want to catch all the action and nuance, more than once.  

Noises Off

April 15 to May 8, 2016

Lakewood Playhouse

http://www.lakewoodplayhouse.org/

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at TLT

The Divine Miss M

by Michael Dresdner

     L to R: Sonia, Masha, Vanya  (Childs, Leeper, Larson)            photos by Dennis K Photography 

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, directed by Frank Kohel at Tacoma Little Theatre, may well be one of the best comedies you have never heard of, in part because it debuted only four years ago. Funny, fast-paced, and rich with enormous personalities, it’s both a dream and challenge for the right cast of actors, and this production definitely has the right cast of actors.

   L to R: Sonia, Vanya  (Childs, Larson) 

Gay, tranquil Vanya (Martin Larson), lives with his sister Sonia (Dayna Childs) in a gorgeous Bucks County, PA house. After caring for their parents until death, they’ve hit middle age with no jobs and not much of a life to speak of outside their comfortable digs amid a cherry orchard. Named by parents who were fond of Chekov, they bemoan their rather pointless life and comically argue about trifles while Sonia frequently reminds us she alone is adopted. They’re attended by a flamboyant cleaning woman named Cassandra (LaNita Hudson), who, like her namesake in Greek mythology, uses her gift of second sight to make constant dire predictions that no one believes.

   L to R: Spike, Masha, Cassandra (Tse, Leeper, Hudson)

The siblings are supported by their movie star sister Masha (Stephanie Leeper) who owns the house and whose very successful career as an actress is starting to wane. Having blown through five failed marriages, she shows up to visit accompanied by her latest boy toy, Spike (Freddy Tse), a preening, lusty youth deeply enamored with his own well-toned physique. He brings a neighbor’s visitor to the house, a young aspiring actress named Nina (Leena Lambert) who inadvertently inspires envy in Masha, whom she idolizes, and lust in Spike, whom she doesn’t.

    Masha (Leeper) 

Masha, grandiloquent and controlling, decides they should all go to a costume party with her dressed as Snow White, Spike as Prince Charming, and the others as dwarves. Sonia alone balks and dresses in a sequined purple gown which inspires her to break out of her shell and channel “Maggie Smith going to the Oscars.” After the party, a frustrated Masha, who failed to be the center of attention, announces she’s selling the house, making the jobless siblings homeless and adrift. 

    L to R: Vanya, Nina, Sonia  (Larson, Lambert, Childs) 

Cassandra, who has more or less predicted this, decides she should change bad tidings instead of merely warning of them, with, among other methods, a voodoo doll. Eventually, calm is restored, a happy ending ensues, and all three siblings discover the peace they can give one another.  

While the play is admittedly short on plot, it is very long on character development, and all of the outstanding actors in this ensemble cast get their chance to shine. Leeper’s Masha is a sweeping, stage commanding divine Miss M sort, a grand hurricane of a character. It’s the best work yet I’ve seen by this fine actress. 

    L to R: Masha, Spike  (Leeper, Tse) 

Larson’s charming, mild mannered Vanya gets his chance to break out in act two, where he brilliantly erupts into a long tirade about the decay of society as seen through a staccato litany of dozens of lost cultural references. His wonderful performance hit home with references all too familiar to people my age.

      Vanya  (Larson)

Childs, whose Sonia is initially mousy and self-questioning, does her delightful character change as Maggie Smith cum Norma Desmond, but returns only partially to her other persona once the purple dress comes off. Hudson, who always commands the stage whenever she steps on it, crafts a Cassandra that is exotic, riveting, and just intimidating enough to be thrilling. Tse makes Spike everything the older generation loves to hate about the younger; flip, insensitive, selfish, and phone-tethered. Lambert, as Nina, contrasts them all with ineffable sweetness and youthful purity.

    L to R: Nina, Vanya  (Lambert, Larson)

  

The production crew is equally deserving of accolades. Michele Graves did a wonderful job of costumes, both normal and party version. Lighting by Niclas Olson and sound by Chris Serface were, as they should be, appropriately right and unobtrusive. The stunning set built and painted by Blake and Jen York and propped by Jeffery Weaver was dripping with stone work, wood beams, and just the right furniture and knickknacks to satisfy those of us, like me, who’ve actually lived in Bucks County.

Though the pacing is brisk, this is none-the-less a very long play, about three hours with intermission. It’s also one that is heavy on Easter eggs and theatrical and literary references, including a dose of Chekov, but don’t worry, everything you need to know is cleverly explained in exposition by the characters. 

In the final analysis, this is a terrific ensemble cast and crew, both separate and together, bringing a delightful and richly crafted play to life. On top of that, this is a rare chance to see a great work by a fine cast before it becomes a well-known classic.

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

April 8^th to 24^th , 2016

Tacoma Little Theatre

www.tacomalittletheatre.com