James Lyle, Lorrena Magaña and Peter Cook
From a Production Staged by
The Next Step Theatre Group
Photo Not Credited

Imperial Theatre:
Offical Site

Norm Foster:
Official Site

Opening Night: Outrageously Funny Production from Theatre Sarnia

by Brian Hay

This is a hilarious show!

But this play is also very much character driven. Each of the cast members had several demands placed on them. Karoline Lobsinger (Cilla) delivered that of a woman with an austere presence. Shaun Hood (Tom) painted the picture of an atypical star-struck hopeful. Dan White (Richard) cut a self-involved and acerbic figure. Jay Peckham (Jack) captured the essence of a sports fan more concerned with the World Series than his anniversary, his wife's desires or anything else. But there was more to all of them. Karoline Lobsinger's character carried a boiling cauldron of passion and emotions under her cool demeanor. Shaun Hood's aspiring hopeful was also a shrewd observer willing to dare everything. Dan White's persona concealed a sense of compassion and ideals buried but not lost. Under his facade of obliviousness Jay Peckmam's character carried the deepest sense of love and devotion for his wife. The performers all captured these nuances well.

Jo-Ann Rutherford played an aspiring actress with little talent but great charm (or loose morals depending one's outlook). Her portrayal of her stage and "on stage" personalities was very good. And her delivery of the physical aspects of the comedy was fabulous. Joe Agocs had a complex role. He used two distinctly different dialects and portrayed two very different personas. His control of the diction (particularly his "deep south" drawl) was excellent. The empathy he brought to the role of the fading romantic was particularly moving and his portrayal of the "simple farmer" had the audience in stitches. It was amazing that anyone on the stage could keep a straight face.

The one character that was written (and played) completely straight was that of "Ruth". Adrienne Hughes brought her (seemingly) simple hopes to the surface and allowed her other facets to evolve subtilely as the story progressed. Her performance was a model of restraint and understatement. The widest spectrum of demands were placed on Gord Bristo. His character (Michael), a temperamental gay actor, was, at turns, arrogant, insecure, drunk, needy and coming apart at the seams. Bristo captured it all brilliantly. His performance has to be seen to be believed.

The Staging and Direction were excellent. Bill Allingham's designs allowed a variety of uses with a minimum of movement. Attention to detail made them convincing while economy of design allowed changes to happen with minimum of interruption to the story. The Stage Management team of Judy Richardson, Mary Lou Parizeau and Claire Ross had the transitions set up in a way that was near to seamless. Paul Richardson's lighting designs kept the viewers eyes focused in the right places. It was particularly strong during the segments that occurred on and around the 'players' stage. The actors under Director Jane Janes all gave performances that demanded a lot from them. They all took chances and it worked to the advantage of the production.

The play itself is classic Norm Foster. The characters are all multi-faceted and the situational comedy is outrageous. The story concerns a (really bad) play within the play being played on the stage. The "external" segments develop the characters and the flow of the story. The "internal" sections generate hilarious chaos. The way the people of Theatre Sarnia handled this concept was brilliant. The "Daisy-Mae" (Li'l Abner) type bumpkin (portrayed by Jo-Ann Rutherford) who introduces that story is too funny for words. The southern-fried codger butchering philosophy and struggling with a tree stump (played with gusto by Joe Agocs) is one for the books. Shaun Hood's and Gord Bristo's actions blew the stage apart with laughter. The reactions of the "audience" watching all this are hilarious. The (real) audience was in stitches. This is the type of stuff that leaves people rolling in the aisles. It had me in tears.

This is definitely the funniest production of the season, one that's not to be missed. A great way for Theatre Sarnia to close their year.

Theatre Sarnia's Production of 'Opening Night' by Norm Foster runs at Sarnia's Imperial Theatre from Friday June 5, 2009 through to Sunday June 7, 2009 and again from Wednesday June 10, 2009 through to Saturday June 13, 2009. All performances are at 7:30 P.M. with a Matinee performance at 2:00 P.M. on Sunday June 7, 2009. This review covers the performance that took place on Saturday June 6, 2009.