Bugged...
Equity Agreement (closing December 21)
by Louis Lopardi . . . December 6, 2001
The Pulse Ensemble presented Georges Feydeau's best known farce (to English speaking audiences) in the Houseman Studio, a larger venue than their own, giving this frenetic play room to breathe. It is a sprawling octopus of theatre, with plots and sub-plots and counter-plots to delight the most ardent fans of screwball comedy. As the playwright aged, his plays increasingly dealt with innocent husbands beleaguered to the point of paranoia; he himself died in an asylum quite mad. In Feydeau's particular theatre of cruelty the innocents are punished, much as they often are in real life.
The prime innocent here is Victor-Emmanuel Chandel, the husband, - yet another unique creation by Pulse regular Michael Gilpin, who also played the twin role of Pooch the porter with relish. The innamorati in intent if not in deed, are comprised of Chandel's wife Yvonne and her lover Tournel. Yvonne was played with a matronly lilt by Elaina Wahl - a strong actor, but one who too rarely allowed the zaniness of her character to come alive.
And what is a French farce without doors? In this play which surely must set a record for numbers of entrances and exits, Zhanna Gurvich delivers a set which raises the bar forever for so-called black box theater. It has more exit points per square foot than has perhaps ever been seen in this town. There are no less than seven in the famous hotel sequence - all deliciously used by Alexa Kelly's well-trained "corps de ballet". Ms. Kelly directed all with the manic intensity required by this farce, adapting well to the difficult two-sided stage of the Houseman Studio Theater. A delicious costume design by Terry Leong grabs the 1940's updated theme and has riotous fun with it.
There were wonderful surprises to be found in the well-trained supporting cast. Christopher Daftsios played the Spaniard, a jealousy- (and cliché-) ridden manic; doing an exhilerating job of brilliantly and dangerously just skirting the edge of being over the top. Natalie Wilder as his wife, graciously subdued her own comic gifts so as to support rather than cover. The family valet was perfectly played by Byron Loyd with a skilfull comedic flair, always balancing his energy to others in the cast. Pulse member Glen B. Stoops played the sadistic hotel owner with comic bravura. In the obligatory if small coquette role (less important here than in other Feydeau plays) of Olympe, Amy Dickenson revealed a rare comic gift: the ability to maintain a near balletic command of exaggerated comic movement while creating a consistent commedia-like characterization. This, combined with her vocal control, will make her a formidable talent to watch as her career develops. And looking astoundingly like a young Hans Conreid but even more talented, Joel Leske played the thankless role of Tournel to the max, giving it a rarely seen depth and richness. I recognize in him a talent that can achieve greatness in either comic or dramatic roles.
Also appearing are James Cleveland as a strong Finache the family doctor, Francesca Marrone as a luscious family maid, and Paula J. Riley as "the decoy". Rick Coons did a fine comic turn as Camille, the secretary with a bizarre speach impediment. Pulse regulars Linda Past and Steve Abbruscato are hilarious in bit parts as the hotel chambermaid and a "peculiar" English guest of the hotel; More peculiar in this production than in most- but I shouldn't give too much away, since this Pulse production is a must-see. Lighting by Brian Keller coped well with a difficult space and sprawling set. Sound design uncredited. The translation (uncredited) is a rather gifted updating, but it sometimes falters; for instance it has Victor-Emmanuel refer to an "ideé fixe" as a "fixed idea", which is simply wrong, in any period.
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