New Production Play " Private Fittings "

[Guest rohale]

There is nothing like and old fashioned, door slamming, speed-of-light bedroom farce to give a stage a thorough workout. Which is why a George Fedeau play is a splendid way to to show off the La Jolla Playhous's new shiny new toy, the Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre in San Diego. Being part of the audience over a week ago with four close friends was absolutely wonderful. Since " Private Fittings " is a Des McAnuff production, you can bet it will be a farce squared, with lots of opportunities for the veteran director to indulge his penchant for " holy cow!" stagecraft.

 

The result is a little frentic at times, like an overachieving child trying too hard to show everyone he's having a good time. But overall, the effect is devastatingly hilarious. McNuff is exactly the right talent for this kind of nonsense, and he'd be a fool to open his new theatre with anything other than his strongest suit.

 

" Private Fittings " is a based on Feydeau's first full length play " Taileur pour dames ", which rightly so shot him to the top of the Parisian Theatre firmament in 1886. The irony was that he was only 24 yrls old at the time. It has been translated and adapted by Mark O'Donnell, a remarkably talented comedy writer best known for his Tony-winning work on " Hairspray ". This is the new version's premiere.

 

Fedeau's story has been modernized and unfortunately by stupidity California-ized. Apparently not really much of a stretcha as it seems, since late 19th-century Paris was just as trend-crazy as 21st century La La Land. Woops, oh deary me, I meant to say California.

 

Now lets get to the peformers, Kyle Fabel plays Eric who is a therapist for the rich and self-absorbed. He's a charlatan by nature and a budding philanderer. Though his character has only married for six months, he plans on stepping out on tiptoes on his wife, Yvonne, played by the gorgeous and talented Stana Katic. The character of Eric quite fancies the dim-bulb Suzanne ( Jessica Boevers ). There's one problem , Suzanne's possessive husband Conan Bond ( Chris Kipiniak ) follows her everywhere.

 

Meanwhile Eric's nudnik pal Drew ( Chris Hoch ) refused to remove his nose out of Eric's business as well as making a sales on his shabby mold-infested condos. Let's have a look another performer, shall we. Now, for all you eye candy guys out there. Here's a character in the form of a surfer-dude servant generally known as Steve ( Eric Wippo ). A really good looking guy. This particular character is the script's slyest creation, I would tend to say a slacker whosle lobotomized persona hides a shrewdly calculating schemer.

 

Other supporing players round out this three-couple or douple roundelay. Conan has a secret lover named Rosa ( played by the stylish Lucia Brawley, a great lady in her own right ). From Knotts Landing, the reappearance of Joan Van Ark, plays Yvonne's mother. Joan's performance is a bit knotted, but at least it lands somewhere, one dear old Joan. Offcourse Harriet, a battle-ax-dressed in the trappings ofa cossetted La Jolla housewife.

 

In this production, there's plenty of deceit, naughtiness, and tearing around on Neil Patel's set, which looks as though it was stolen from MOMA's collection of mid-century furniture. The energy is dissipated by the sheer size of the playing field. McNuff uses the entire length of the theatre's long stage and the audience sits on each side, somewhat stadium sized.

 

To be fair, the performers have the energy to fill the space. Wippo zips around on roller skates between scenes. There is even a little bit of Groucho Marx style, Kipiniak barreling over furniture without even breaking a sweat.

 

Fabel holds everything together as Eric. He plays the duplictous therapist will all the force required of the farc's leading actor, and he's a gifted physical comic ( he reminds me so much of the late great Benny Hill and the one and the only in modern tradition, Mr Lenny Henry ). Eric is often in physical pain, as it the act of unfaithfulness is tearing him apart, making him relive every moment one second at a time, and Fabel's collection through the character of tics, winces and contradictions is a little symphony all it's own.

 

Hoch has a nice bead on Drew, who like all the nerds is blissfully unaware of his of his dangerously annoying personna. Kipniak plays Conan with the barely controlled menace of a trained killer who'll never retire.

 

Miss Van Ark has fun with Harriet. who in my case reminds me of every Mercedes-driving Newport Beach housewife who will beat you to a parking spot at Bristol Farms. The younger leave less of an impression though Boevers has the best lines of the bunch as ditzy Suzanne ( not to be confused with Three's Company ).

 

It's really a total tossup as to who steals the show. Some will definitely favor Wippo or Steve, as he has the goofy, loose-limbed cool of a beach boy nailed to a fault. Others will prefer the robotic dog who can do anything, even break dance if given the chance. A suggestion to McNuff and crew. Let the pooch take his own bow. You'll get a standing O everytime. I apologise to John Leeson for my sentence if you were to ever read this in this life time.

 

O'Donnel's adaptation may take too many liberties for some, but he's a keen observer of our time and place in all it's fatous, sun-soaked glory. Even the sternest Fedeau purist will break into giggles hearing lines lines such as " Did the Botox Freeze Your Face Again ". The master would have approved. Heck he would have bloody written the dialogue if he could. Who knows only time would have told.

 

It was a wonderful production to watch and what could be more fun than lots of laughter, maybe peach juice and champagne. I know Mr O'Donnell has hinted that he might take this production to Britain with Hugh Laurie in mind alongside Bernard Cribbins. It'll be nice to see good old Cribbs back where he first began on stage in 1952. Still watching this play in San Diego was absolutely worth the drive. I'd see it again and very highly recommend it because a production doesn't come down the pike very often and when it does. It get's the audience to pay attention and provide a few chuckles for some, but for most a good hearty laugh to end a perfect evening. I hope this production can be taken nationwide and make some money. It'll be a terrible shame if more people didn't give this production a look at. This is a wonderfully done play and in my own opinion, at best it really deserves a chance to succeed. I rest my case.

 

Rohale