The Slapstick is Popping in Keegan’s ‘Noises Off’ (Review)
Keegan's "Noises Off" hits its marks with zeal, yet doesn't achieve the high-flying heights of truly hilarious farce.
The set’s the star in Keegan Theatre’s nimble production of Noises Off. Serving as the country home setting of the play within the play — Nothing On — Matthew J. Keenan’s nifty multi-level cottage, with several doors to swing and slam, plus one large French window and a winding staircase, atop a revolving stage, stands out as perhaps the most vital character.
The cast’s interactions with the scenery tend to be as comically compelling as their rapport with each other, or their way with the repartee of Michael Frayn’s quintessential farce. Faced with a flock of stumbling, tumbling, prat-falling performers, Keenan’s faux-brick and wood-paneled set elegantly helps facilitate the physical comedy, from front to back.
As per the requirements of the plot, the audience for Noises Off is privy to the frantic shenanigans both onstage and backstage at the harried production of Nothing On.
Watching the entire set revolve, making its smooth switch from front of house to backstage, then back around again, provides a modest thrill that cements the dynamic role of scenic design in staging this door-slamming audience pleaser.
There also are countless props, knobs, cords, and costumes the actors must handle with the dexterity of cardsharps, while also delivering wordplay and marking sometimes perilous blocking. Director Mark A. Rhea has his cast well-timed to cover those changes and exchanges with aplomb.
Portraying Dotty Otley, Nothing On‘s star player and lead investor, Susan Marie Rhea adroitly balances, for three solid acts, Dotty’s bit of business about bringing or leaving a plate of sardines. Dotty is also balancing a complicated relationship with costar Garry LeJeune, played with leading man rizz and slapstick skills by Ryan Sellers.
Valerie Adams Rigbee makes her mark relaying Nothing On supporting player Belinda Blair with such expressive verve that she elicits chuckles with nearly every line.
But generally, we’re looking for belly laughs not just chuckles, as Nothing On director Lloyd Dallas (Jared H. Graham) sees his production go from bubbly dress rehearsal, to troubled month-in performance on the road, to utter disaster near the end of its run.
Director Rhea marshals a swift momentum for the first act, depicting Nothing On‘s “happy company” on the night before their opening night. The second act, set backstage at a performance and marked by silent comedy and effective sound design, nails a well-choreographed sequence of a whisky bottle quickly changing hands.
The momentum dips a bit, but then, with the third act, careens towards the chaos that engulfs the play within the play. The entrances and exits are fast and furious, while the plotting behind the slapstick and door-slamming loosens and frays. And, as backstage romances turn sour, and the characters’ worst habits and insecurities supposedly consume them, their mounting frustration should be to our delight — but the laughs weren’t there for me.
The emotion isn’t in it. The secret lovers inflamed with lust don’t really sizzle. The jilted lovers burning with jealousy don’t really seethe with anger. The desperate lover compromised doesn’t seem distressed.
Throughout, the timing is on, and the movements precise, but the sex underlying the slapstick isn’t registering. It’s execution minus subtext. The Nothing On players are flipping, and double-taking, and slamming doors, making a joyous but faint-hearted noise.
Noises Off (★★★☆☆) runs through September 1, at The Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church St. NW. Tickets are $50, with discount options available. Visit www.keegantheatre.com.
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