"Urinetown"

August 27, 2015 — The last time I was at the Barnstormers in Tamworth, New Hampshire, artistic director Bob Shea addressed the audience as usual before that night’s show, “The Hollow,” and promoted their next show, which he described as “the unfortunately titled ‘Urinetown’.” Well, that’s exactly how I felt about it. In fact, I had been avoiding “Urinetown,” which has played somewhere every summer for the past dozen or so years, because I was put off by the title. But it was the Barnstormers’ final show of their 85^th season, there’s only one more show on my schedule, and I was reluctant to let go of this summer that seems to have gone by in a flash. So I made a reservation for the musical comedy “Urinetown.”

With music and lyrics by Mark Hollmann and book and lyrics by Greg Kotis, "Urinetown" opened on Broadway in 2001 and was nominated for ten Tony Awards and won three. The Barnstormers production was directed by Clayton Phillips. Here's the plot in a nutshell: a 20-year drought has caused a terrible water shortage making toilets unusable. California should take note. Only public pay facilities may be used, all controlled by a megacorporation named “Urine Good Company” (ouch!).

I was wrong to avoid this play. It has terrific musical numbers and biting satire attacking everything from corporations to the police to big government, and yes, even itself. The cast of seventeen, led by Jordan Ahnquist, Rachel Alexa Norman, Cheryl Mullings, Tony Edgerton and Dale Place wrapped the Barnstormers' season with arguably the year's best show. So if "Urinetown" comes to your town, get over the title and see it. You won't regret it.

"Accidental Death of an Anarchist"

August 13, 2015 — In 1969, Italian railwayman and anarchist Giuseppe Pinelli fell (or was thrown) to his death from the fourth floor window of a Milan police station. He was being interrogated for bombing a bank but was cleared of the charge. Not the sort of event you would expect a playwright to base a comedy on, but that's exactly what Dario Fo did in 1970 in "Accidental Death of an Anarchist," just one year after the incident, portraying the police in very unflattering light and bringing threats of violence against his theater company. But he soldiered on, staging his play all over Italy, and it became a worldwide hit.

The Winnipesaukee Playhouse in Meredith, New Hampshire, has staged an excellent production of Fo's play, translated by Ed Emery and directed for the Playhouse by Matt Cahoon. A. J. Ditty is the whole show in his over-the-top performance as 'The Maniac." An inmate of a series of mental institutions, he has the inept police department flummoxed as he poses as a judge investigating the death of the anarchist who mysteriously plunged from the police station window. Appearing as the police are Jason Plourde, Richard Brundage, Nicholas Wilder and John-Michael Breen. Rebecca Tucker appears late in the final act as a journalist.

The 45-year-old play, although uproariously funny, contains some sharp social commentary that could still make some uncomfortable today. It's not above employing occasional slapstick, and breaking out in song and a brief dance now and them.

The play traditionally has two endings, and the audience is invited to choose the one they like best. The Winnipesaukee Playhouse has chosen not to give the audience this choice, and the play stops short of the two endings, giving it a slightly abrupt finish and a feeling of incompleteness. But up until then, it's a tour de force.

"The Hollow"

August 6, 2015 — I love the Agatha Christie mysteries, so I had been looking forward to "The Hollow," one of the few Christie plays I hadn't seen, directed by Robert Shea for The Barnstormers in Tamworth, New Hampshire, now in its 85th season. Dr. John Cristow (Blair Hundertmark) and his wife, Gerda (Dee Nelson) have accepted an invitation from the Angkatells (Robert Bates and Vinette Cotter) to spend a weekend at the Hollow, the Angkatells' country estate. Dr. Cristow has jumped at the opportunity upon hearing his mistress, Henrietta (Anne-Marie Cusson) will also be present. Cristow's clueless wife is seemingly unaware of the affair. What Cristow doesn't expect is that a former mistress, Veronica Craye, a famous Hollywood actress (Madeleine Maby), will show up before the first evening is over. Also invited for the weekend are Midge (Anna Marie Sell), a distant cousin of the Angkatell's, and Edward Angkatell (Doug Shapiro). Also present are the butler, Gudgeon (Frank T. Wells), and a servant, Doris (Elizabeth Henle).

You just know this volatile mix can only mean trouble. At the end of the first evening, Dr. Cristow is shot dead. In typical Dame Agatha fashion, most of the large cast of characters is under suspicion. Each had motive and opportunity. The many rooms, doors, windows and surrounding woods make it easy for a killer to be undetected. An inspector (Dale Place) and his assistant (Greg Pike) are stymied by the conflicting witness accounts and confusing evidence. An inquest is inconclusive.

Could the killer be Cristow's wife, discovered standing over the body with a gun in her hand? Seems too obvious. What about Edward, who is known to have detested Cristow? Then there's that former mistress, the actress. Furious when Dr. Cristow spurns her advances, she makes some veiled threats. And what about the servant girl's account of seeing the butler standing outside a window holding a gun? The perpetrator won't be revealed until the final minutes.

Regrettably, I can't give this play unconditional praise. It seemed overlong, and the acting was a bit stiff, surprising since the large cast included the Barnstormers' best actors. They weren't really on their game for this first-night performance. The long play needs some fire and passion to keep the audience involved. Hopefully, the actors can put a little more life in their performances before the play ends its run.

"Charley's Aunt"

August 5, 2015 — For the fourth time, The Peterborough Players in Peterborough, New Hampshire, offered "Charlie's Aunt" by Brandon Thomas, a highly popular play ever since it first opened in London in 1892. Almost everyone has heard of it. I was seeing it for the first time. It's a hilarious farce where the laughs are non-stop.

Jack (Steven Walters) and Charley (Alex Bodine) are rehearsing how they're going to declare their love for Kitty (Karen Peakes) and Amy (Alycia Kunkle). But first, they have to get them alone. This is dependent on Charley's aunt, Donna Lucia d'Alvadorez, a rich widow (Lisa Bostnar), arriving from Brazil to act as the girls' chaperone before they can be in the presence of the two young men. This is 19th Century England, after all. Their plans appear to be dashed when they get word Charley's aunt has been delayed indefinitely, and the girls are scheduled to leave for Scotland the next day with Stephen Spettigue (Michael Page, in one of his patented curmudgeonly, sputtering roles), uncle of Amy and guardian of Kitty.

Enter Lord Fancourt Babberley (Kraig Swartz, perfectly cast in a role that seems made for him). While visiting Jack and Charley, he leaves the room to try on a costume he's wearing in a play he's appearing in. The costume happens to be a woman's black gown with white lace and a wig. This may be the solution to Jack and Charley's dilemma. They convince the reluctant Babberley he can pose as Charley's aunt. Are you following this so far?

Many complications ensue, all uproarious. Colonel Sir Francis Chesney, Jack's father (Patrick Reynolds), bankrupt after paying off his debts, is urged to seek Charley's millionaire aunt's hand in marriage. Unfortunately, Spettigue has the same designs on her (him). Things get even more interesting when Charley's real aunt shows up while Babberley is still impersonating her. The real aunt plays along with the charade, at least temporarily. If that isn't enough, Charley's real aunt is accompanied by her adopted niece (Bridget Beirne) a former love interest of Babberley's.

I should also mention Tom Frey as the butler, Brassett, a small role but not an insignificant one. This production was directed by Charles Morey. Scenic designer Roger Hanna's work earned a round of applause when a completely new set was revealed when the curtain rose on the third act.

"Lost in Yonkers"

July 30, 2015 — It was the closest to a full house I've seen in a long time. I couldn't spot an empty seat anywhere in the Winnipesaukee Playhouse in Meredith, New Hampshire, at their afternoon performance of Neil Simon's "Lost in Yonkers," directed for the Playhouse by Marta Rainer. The capacity crowd had much to be happy about by the end of this funny, poignant play.

Winner of both the Tony and Pulitzer Prize, "Lost in Yonkers" has a fascinating cast of diverse characters. Set during World War II, it's the story of Eddie (Jason Plourde), who has slid deeply in debt to a loan shark who financed his wife's treatment for cancer up until she died of the disease. With payback due in less than a year, Eddie has given up their apartment to leave  his two teenage sons (John-Michael Breen and Jordan Quisno) with his mother, the boys' grandmother  (Donna Goldfarb) and his sister, the slightly whacky Bella (Molly Parker Myers) while he goes on the road across America to collect scrap iron to come up with the cash.

Grandma was born Jewish in Germany and escaped to America before the rise of the Nazis. Her harsh life has left her cynical, incapable of affection, intolerant of what she perceives as weakness in others, striking fear into the rest of the family. Suffering the most is Bella, left to care for her. Bella is the most interesting character, flighty, excitable, by turns upbeat, angry, funny, depressed, starved for love, a challenging role well-played by Myers. She has a clash with Grandma that's a dramatic high-point of the play.

Later, another son, Louie (Nicholas Wilder) shows up. A gun-toting, street-smart bag man for the mob, the only one of the family not intimidated by Grandma, he earns the two boys' admiration. A threatening phone call and strange men hanging around outside lead them to wonder if Louie is in danger. "Are you in trouble?" asks one of the boys. "I've never not been in trouble,'' says Louie. The small role of Gert, another daughter with a really strange speech impediment,  goes to Rebecca Tucker.

Laughs, sadness, joy, pain, intense drama all come together in this play. It's a great theater experience.

"Relatively Speaking"

July 28, 2015 — Mistaken identity is one of the oldest plot devices in literature. Shakespeare used it to great effect, and many others have had varying degrees of success with it. British playwright Alan Ayckbourn's experiment with it in "Relatively Speaking" is highly original and very entertaining.

This production at The Barnstormers in Tamworth, New Hampshire, directed by Blair Hundertmark, is an audience-pleasing presentation. Greg (Buddy Haardt) and Ginny (Amanda Huxtable) share an apartment in London in the late '60s. Ginny is getting ready to leave for a visit with her parents at their countryside home. Greg wants to accompany her, but Ginny is insistent he stay home because her quirky parents needed to be prepared for him in advance. While they debate this, a couple of strange phone calls and a pair of slippers, owned by neither of them, found under the bed lead to raised eyebrows. In spite of all this, Greg proposes marriage, which Ginny seems agreeable to.

Ignoring Ginny's warnings, Greg travels to her parents' home and, due to a delay in Ginny's travel arrangements, arrives before her. Now things get interesting. Sheila (Dee Nelson) and Philip (John Schnatterly) have no idea who he is, but Sheila is cordial and welcoming, Philip not so much. But why has Ginny never told them about him? Why do they seem so indifferent to Ginny, almost as though they don't know her? Finally, Ginny shows up, and things get even stranger. I don't think I'm giving away too much by telling you Ginny has been secretly playing a charade, and it's about to unravel on her

The play has a lot going for it: Ayckbourn's famous comic dialog, delivered by the Barnstormers' fine cast, along with a skilled stage crew that pulls off a major scenery change at intermission, swapping one of set designer Emily Nichols' sets for something completely different.

"Table Manners"

July 23, 2015 — It's been a summer of Alan Ayckbourn plays. It wasn't planned, but I just happened to have seen two Ayckbourn plays so far and at least one more is on my schedule for this summer. The prolific British playwright has written 79 plays which have been translated into over 35 languages, are performed on stages and television throughout the world and have won countless awards.

The Winnipesaukee Playhouse presented Ayckbourn's "Table Manners," directed by Neil Pankhurst, at their theatre in Meredith, New Hampshire. A family and their spouses get together for a weekend at the home of an unmarried sister, Annie (Rebecca Tucker) who lives with their invalid mother who is never seen in the play. The fact that certain family members can't stand each other makes for fiery, and hilarious, dinner table conversation. The table manners of the title are not the sort of manners you would want to teach your children.

The loud, flamboyant, disruptive Norman, husband of one of the sisters, in an over-the-top performance by Nicholas Wilder, had a past fling with Annie. When he's unsuccessful at rekindling the romance, he tries to seduce Sarah, played by Molly Parker Myers, equally over-the-top. His pretext is to take her away from her boring life with her husband and children for a holiday, of course in separate bedrooms, separate baths, separate everything. "I'll make you happy" in his words.

Jason Plourde, Richard Brundage and Suzanne Kimball, all excellent, fill out the cast, abetted by Meredith Brown's beautifully designed set. I can't wait for the next Ayckbourn play, which will be "Relatively Speaking" at The Barnstormers. Then it will be back to the Winnipesaukee Playhouse for "Lost in Yonkers" by Neil Simon.