Theater Reviews

Nov 14, 1999 - Gothic' North's "Man Who Came to Dinner" a Tried & True Farce

By Jack Neal

With a run-of-the play that embraces Thanksgiving, the Gothic North Theater Company's "The Man Who Came to Dinner" is an apt reminder to hosts expecting guests: Clear the ice from your doorstep.

For anyone unfamiliar with this hit Moss Hart-George S. Kaufman comedy, the disruption to the indelibly mid-western Stanley family when the famous and demandingly unpleasant New York critic Sheridan Whiteside slips on the family's icy front stoop during a publicity stop over then stays on for months nursing with what passes for a broken hip, is not just extensive it's hilariously devastating. The good news is that this Gothic North reincarnation of the play is a solid introduction to farce a la the late 1930s (the play) and early 1940s (the film) that's as entertaining as it's farfetched.

So entrenched is the play in another world of psuedo sophistication most modern theatergoers will need a glossary of players to figure out who the play's characters are, and then once that's found out, who they were. Sheridan Whiteside - played on stage and screen (eventually both large and small) by Monty Woolley - is really Alexander Wollcott, the powerful New York critic who lovingly and not so lovingly blackmailed via his radio show and newspaper column the rich, famous, and most particularly the stars of Broadway and London stage, into paying him homage.

Beverly Carlton, given a marvelously carictured turn here by Tony DeGeiso, is really Noel Coward, the darling of the first half of the 20th century's upper crust's snooty and glib. Banjo, dazzlingly played here by an exuberant Michael Peters, is really the outspoken Harpo Marx who consistently applied layers of wit via his zany persona to the early days of talkies and TV. Lorraine Sheldon, given a truly splashy Lesley Ann Warren kind of sendup by the rubber faced and energetic Kimberly Golish Gibbons, is really the larger-than-life musical stage star Gertrude Lawrence.

Having a nodding acquaintance with that irreverent list of notables is but one of the advantages of having been an avid theatergoer for over half a century. Add the one-time first lady of American theater Katharine Cornell and the real ZaSu Pitts (the vulnerable actress and deadpan comedienne not the rock band who stole her name), neither of whom appear but who are talked about a lot, and the play's penchant for glitterazzi and the three fine performances of DeGeiso, Peters and Gibbons make a visit to this fun-filled reunion more than worth the price of admission.

When I saw the play opening night (11/12/99) all was not yet smooth as silk. There are bushels of lines to remember and not all of them are rolling as trippingly off the tongue as need be to give this production the timing it must have as a gloss over to laughter. That should come in a matter of but a few performances.

A generous actor, Steve Pearson is generally amusing as Whiteside, although he does not entirely fill out the role's necessarily grandiose proportions. Then there's all those lines of Whiteside's Pearson must remember. Once they settle in, timing should make Pearson's Whiteside much more amusing. Among the play's other major characters, Julie Douglass's flippant version of Whiteside's secretary, Maggie, is a standout. When Maggie wants to leave her grumpy employer for a local newsman, well - that's where the plot gets sticky. What makes the plot roll smooth as molasses whenever he delivers aline is Kirk Gardner's splendid take on newsman Bert Jefferson. Karen Torres is believeable as Whiteside's long suffering nurse. Richard Szitar and Terri Gray are quite good as the Stanleys' butler and maid, respectively (yes, even in the midwest). Phil Harriman does a fluttery cameo as Professor Metz and Steve Brecher does a nervously insistent Dr. Bradley that are worth a mention, but then so are everyone in this large and well-groomed cast.

Director Julie Robertson has done the grooming and she keeps her charges charging in most all the right directions. The result is a show in which every character has so many tics thay are all veritable feasts of humorous possibilities. Robertson's handsome set design is terrific as is the execution by the Gothic North construction team. The collection of costumes fit the time period much like a proverbial and still elegant elbow glove. Rick Patton's lighting and Gary Helmers' sound are both excellent and always professional fixtures at Gothic North.

Gothic North's "The Man Who Came to Dinner" is as top drawer as the egos of its characters are highfalutin and endearingly and enduringly memorable.

"The Man Who Came to Dinner" plays Thursdays at 7 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. And Sundays at 2 through November 28 at the Gothic North Theater, Viewcrest Center, 3697 Kings Row, Reno. For information call 775-329-PLAY or check out the company's website at www.gothic-north.org.