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Don't Dress For Dinner: Theatre Sarnia |
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by Marc Camoletti |
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Directed by Jay Peckham |
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Don't Dress for Dinner: Theatre Sarnia Sarnia's Imperial Theatre, Saturday June 12, 2010 by Brian Hay This production thrived on the timing of the performers involved. Andrew Hiltz (Bernard) seemed nervous at the start of the show but put it behind him quickly and turned in some stellar work. His delivery during some of the key moments was great. Doug Murphy (Robert) improves with every performance. His delivery was good. His command of the character's physical gestures and consistency with them was good. And his ability to handle sight gags was great. His 'drop to the knees' moment in the first act was one of the funniest moments in the entire show. Saying he ran with it is an understatement. Nick Menard turned in some hilarious work in the small but important role of 'George'. As 'Jacqueline', Jennifer Murray projected a persona that was laconic on the surface and a conflicted mass of seething passions below it. She was moralistic, hypocritical, sensual, prim and loving but also vicious. Kathleen Smith projected the superficial shallowness and the emotional depth of the persona of 'Suzanne' nicely. Her episode with the sauce was played beautifully by everyone involved. Joann Rutherford stole most of the scenes she was involved in. As 'Suzette' one-liners and small asides drifted off of her as naturally and easily as autumn leaves fall from trees. Her physical mastery of the sight gags was superb and her timing was stellar. Her ability to "dress down" and hide within a character was stellar. Throughout much of the first half of the play she was almost unrecognizable from her previous appearances on this stage. The wardrobe created by Lynn Kershaw-Smith and Jean Dowswell played a huge role in that part being so effective. The outfit they created along with the eye glasses Joann suggested made her look 'bookish' and even nerdy. The transformation was incredible. The rest of the characters looked like what they were supposed to be. 'Jacqueline's' first outfit stated 'matronly' without going to extremes. Her later ones emphasized her passionate side. 'George' looked like a rough character. 'Suzanne's' clothing looked sexy without falling too far into stereotypes. 'Bernard' and 'Robert' both looked like moderately successful individuals in their mid-thirties. Bill Allingham's set looked like the sort of inviting country home that transplanted city dwellers would inhabit. The woodwork and the stucco walls were good touches. The furniture, draperies and paintings selected by Drew Caldwell (Set Decor) rounded out its appearance nicely. Four strategically placed doorways and an entrance to a staircase left plenty of room for the performers to work. It also minimized the work involved in scene changes. In the hands of Stage Manager Dan White, those flowed seamlessly. The rest of the technical aspects were executed equally well. Brian Austin's lighting design was straightforward but there were some subtle shifts used to keep the eye moving. The sound effects set in place by Allan David Hill always came in at the right time. Director Jay Peckham did an excellent job on this production. He kept Marc Camoletti's story moving at a good pace. He kept the physical action moving easily and also kept things clear, no mean feat given the convoluted nature of the plot. He paid great attention to the way the performers delivered all of their lines, not just the way they handled the funny bits. Their execution of the dialogue and the way they stayed in character was generally good. Their execution of the sight gags was very good. There was obviously a great deal of time and effort spent getting this right because this was one funny show. It was a good way to spend an evening. Theatre Sarnia's Production of 'Don't Dress for Dinner' runs at the Imperial Theatre until Saturday June 19, 2010. There are no performances on Monday and Tuesday. This review pertains to the performance that took place on Saturday June 12, 2010. This line acts as a spacer. |
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Don't Dress for Dinner |
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