I enjoy Ken Ludwig's "Lend Me a Tenor" so much that I'm almost afraid that indulging in it isn't good for me. All that seductive wish-fulfillment, all that fluffy sweetness -- does it go straight to my hips? I've seen an upscale romantic version at Trinity Rep, two low budget community theatre mountings (one earnest, one over the top) and now The Lyric Stage of Boston's, and every time it charms and amuses me. Much credit must go to the Ludwig script, but the Lyric gives a masterful demonstration of how to make the most of its comic possibilities. The spirit of Feydeau, with a hint of the Marx Brothers, is alive and kicking up its heels.
Guest director Jack Neary marshals a crackerjack company of local comedians, starting with Richard Snee and Bobbie Steinbach as the Cleveland Opera's stalwarts, General Manager Saunders and his very good friend "Aunt" Julia, who presides over the C.O. Guild. This pair handles Ludwig's door slamming and mistaken identities with consumate ease. Joe Smith and Laura Napoli are the young lovers, Max and Maggie, each frantically in search of an improbable dream. Fortunately, in a sentimental Ludwig farce, improbable and even impossible dreams can come true. Robert Sauod and Cheryl McMahon are tastefully over the top as the famous tenor "Il Stupendo" and his long (but not silently) suffering wife, Maria. Sauod and McMahon play together like an old married couple who have an entire repertoire of passionate dysfunctionality -- could this have anything to do with their having worked together most recently in Wheelock's "Tuck Everlasting"? Many members of the Lyric's cast have worked together before, on local stages or in cabaret, and the familiarity breeds teamwork which breeds audience contentment. When Sauod's superstar takes the nerdish would be tenor Max under his wing for a singing lesson, the whole theatre seems to be flooded with generosity, and in the warmth of it the buried dreams of everyone who has ever admired his own voice in the shower are reawakened.
After her sojourn in the 17th century as Molière's wife (playing Elmire) in the time traveling "Tartuffe" at the New Rep this winter, Rachel Harker alights in the 20th century with panache as Diana, an ambitious (and gorgeous) soprano on the prowl. Brian Nash, who was also in "Tuck...", rounds out this hilarious ensemble as a star-struck singing Bellhop. Gail Astrid Buckley's 1930 couture, especially on these two, shows why she deserved an 2001 IRNE for Best Costume Design. Costumes -- and the taking-off of costumes -- are very important to the plot of "Tenor"! Most of the comic changes were handled very gracefully: my only quibble would be with the blackout near the end, when a life-altering once-in-a-lifetime experience happens in the time-lapsing dark, and then the lights come up to reveal that the actors are scarcely mussed.
Robert M. Russo's second set for the Lyric -- he did "Nuncracker"'s for the holiday season -- should insure that he is in the running for the IRNE awards next year. Russo has carried the hotel suite's elegant eggplant wallpaper WAY up past the proscenium, and the gleam of his polished Deco wood paneling rivals the Queen Mary's. A stylish metalwork divan offers opportunity but neither comfort nor a place to hide. The doors slam with a very satisying Ka-Chunk!, resulting in only the tiniest bit of wall wobble. Pusso's sight lines are neatly arranged to make the most of the counterpoint between the action in the suite's bedroom and sitting room, and thanks to Jack Neary's experienced direction, which doesn't miss a trick of the trade, the actors are able to exploit all the comic implications of their compromising positions. This show gets gales of laughter and earned the standing O -- after the 2nd finale! -- that greeted Sunday's press opening. "Tenor" is a blockbuster wrap up for a really great season at the Lyric.