While corporations and politicians spend millions of dollars onfocus groups and polls, controlling a group of people really isn'tall that complicated. As the drama department's production of"Noises Off" makes clear, gaining the favor of a fickle audiencetakes only some covertly tied-together shoelaces and a tremendoustumble down a stairway. Gather some willing victims, a flight ofstairs, and a few props, and the magic of theater and comedy cometo life.
Admittedly, other elements are involved in creating a greatcomedy. First comes the writing. "Noises Off," a farce about farcesand a play-within-a-play, follows the action of a theater companyon-set and behind the scenes as they rehearse and tour theirperformance of a nonsensical play entitled "Nothing On."
Written by esteemed British playwright Michael Frayn, "NoisesOff" premiered in London in 1982 and has since won a Tony Award.Mr. Frayn's skill as a writer is obvious in the play, particularlyin his perfect balance of physical comedy, situational comedy, andsexual innuendo. Never does the viewer feel that the lines havebeen dumbed-down or are overly clever. Instead, the lucky audiencegets to see a work of rare comedic integrity that never threatensto cut them off at the knees with an overwrought line ordirection.
Tufts' production of "Noises Off" is admirable because it takesthe quality of the material at hand and runs with it. While Dr.Luke Jorgensen, the play's director, describes "Noises Off" asextremely detailed, any theatergoer knows that well-written workscannot survive without a dedicated and talented company. That typeof company is precisely what the Tufts production of "Noises Off"has to offer.
"Noises Off" is a comedy stocked with physicality and motion.With three acts, the play requires two intermissions and a massiveset change that involves completely reversing the positioning oflarge, walk-on backdrops. At the Sunday matinee performance, theset crew strode around with so much purpose and skill that manyaudience members were actually as attuned to the action on thestage during intermission as they were during the play itself. Andwhile many theater productions these days seem to relish theSpartan set, the physical presence of the well-appointed set for"Noises Off" -- especially the keen use of doors -- provided asolid background for the physical activity of the actors and thekinetics of their lines.
Adding to the structural support the set offered was thecostuming, designed by Grace Muron. Each actor's attire added justthe right spark to complete the stock portrayal of character thatis so key to a successful farce. Vicki's tart pink ensemble gaveher just the right visual tone, while the fitted black turtleneckand khakis that Lloyd sported spoke perfectly to educated,high-brow directorial type.
Armed with such promising technical aspects, the actors strodeonstage and began jockeying about lines like, "Darling, this stuffthat eats through anything. It doesn't eat through glue... It justeats through trousers!" and "You're some kind of sex criminal!You've done something to Vicki! I'm going to come downstairs andsort you out!" While at times the British accents of theplay-within-the-play were unintelligible and the speed of thedialogue exchanges somewhat too practiced, by the end of the play,all the elements had fallen into place.
Since a farce is populated by stock characters, it is thus veryimportant that each actor carry his own weight. In the Tuftsproduction of "Noises Off," no actor fell short of this challenge.Brendan Shea, as Selsdon/the Burglar, played a hilarious drunkShakespearean actor, and the other actors also contributed to theoverall success of the performance, notably with small,skillfully-performed one-liners.
Graham Outerbridge, as Garry/Roger, brought down the house withhis pitch-perfect characterization and timing, especially with thephysical comedy.
The Tufts Drama Department's production of "Noises Off" isrunning for a second weekend, April 22-24, at 8pm, at the MarstonBalch Arena Theater. Tickets are $1 Thursday night and $6 withTufts ID Friday and Saturday nights.
