Reviewed by Judy Richter
Mistaken identities, chases and a
closet for hiding all contribute to the laughs in "See How They Run," a 1940s British farce
presented by Hillbarn Theatre.
Playwright
Philip King set
the play (later made into a movie) in the vicarage of the fictional village of
Merton-cum-Middlewick. The action takes place over the course of one afternoon
and evening, starting with the arrival of the village gossip, Miss Skillon (Helen
Laroche), who
complains to the Rev. Lionel Toop (Taylor J. Smith) about the conduct of his wife,
former actress Penelope Toop (Maureen O'Neill). In short order, Penelope
herself appears, as does the couple's Cockney maid, Ida (Lauren Rhodes).
After
her husband leaves for the evening, Penelope receives an unexpected visitor,
Cpl. Clive Winton (Adam Magill), an American soldier stationed nearby. The two are old
friends, having appeared together in a long-running production of "Private
Lives."
They decide to go see a performance of the Noel Coward play at a nearby village, but
Clive can't be seen there in his uniform. Therefore, he changes into one of
Lionel's suits, complete with clerical collar.
By
the time the play ends, there are four men in clerical garb, including Clive,
Lionel, the visiting Rev. Arthur Humphrey (Scott Solomon), and an escaped Russian spy (Dominic
J. Falletti).
Trying to restore some sort of order are Penelope's uncle, the Bishop of Lax (Scott
Stanley), and a
police officer, Sgt. Towers (Robert James Fairless). There's far more reason for
hilarity and confusion what with Miss Skillon getting drunk on cooking sherry
and Lionel running around in his underwear, but suffice it to say that all gets
sorted out at the end.
Director
Ron Lopez Jr. has
assembled a talented group of actors who create believable characters with
sharp comic timing. This latter quality is especially notable since the
reviewed performance was the preview, which usually is the last best chance for
the cast and crew to make sure everything's running smoothly. The only problem
during this performance was that some of the actors, including Magill as Clive
and Smith as Lionel, became too shrill. Since the director was in the audience
taking notes for the cast, one assumes this problem will work itself out in
subsequent outings.
The
handsome set is by Robert Broadfoot, who also did the lighting. The period costumes are by Shannon
Maxham with
sound by Valerie Clear. Greg Sudmeier composed some of the music.
Nevertheless,
the show was most enjoyable with lots of laughs. Even though it's three acts
with two 10-minute intermissions, the show clocked in at a crisp 135 minutes.