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Nov. 10, 2006
Laughs in the bedroom
Arts Club farce brings the 18th century to life.
BAILA LAZARUS
If I had to pick one truly outstanding star in the Arts Club presentation
of The School for Scandal, it would have to be Rebekka Sorensen's
costumes.
While all the actors, save one or two, are outstanding in this Dangerous
Liaisons-meets-Desperate Housewives Restoration comedy,
the brocade and gilt and bustles and petticoats in the perfectly
designed couture really steal the spotlight (along with one Bard
on the Beach artistic director, who will be discussed later). And
as the large cast of 14 dress up as a total of 20 characters, it
was always fun anticipating what type of 18th-century clothing creation
would manifest itself on stage and how it would add to this comedy
of manners.
Essentially, Scandal is a bedroom farce where one Lady Sneerwell
plots with the sordid Snake to drive Charles Surface out of his
love Maria's arms and into her own. Brother Joseph Surface, meanwhile,
is out to seduce Lady Teasle away from husband Sir Peter. And the
Surfaces' uncle, Sir Oliver, has come from India to test his nephews
to see who is deserving of inheriting his money. Throughout it all,
there are lessons about malicious gossip, relationships and trust,
most of which I didn't get, as I didn't have my Coles' Notes handy.
The acting, save for a stiff performance by Kevin James, is bang-on,
with noteworthy accomplishments by Scott Bellis as Joseph Surface,
Christopher Gaze as Mr. Crabtree and the hilariously deadpan butler
Humphreys and David Marr as Sir Peter Teasle, who tries to make
his new wife fall in love with him and grant him some sexual favors
(or at least do one or two things he asks).
"If you wanted authority over me, you should have adopted me,
not married me," Lady Teasle pitilessly quips.
The brusque banter between the husband and wife is some of the funniest
in the play, with Sir Teasle playing the hapless older man who married
a country wife who now spends exorbitant amounts of money on staying
in fashion and demonstrating to everyone that she has good taste.
"But you had no taste when you married me," laments Sir
Teasle.
The dialogue, like that of a Shakespeare comedy, is incredibly fast
and often convoluted, and the heavy British accents make it hard
to make out what's being said, but, as with the Bard's work, it's
possible to enjoy the play for the performance and (most of) the
story, without getting every word that's spoken.
Indeed, there were some words I wished had not been spoken at all.
The shrill voice of Lady Candour (so named because she thrives on
gossip) was so annoying, it made me cringe. And while I know this
is exactly in the style of how her character is supposed to sound,
it was only slightly more tolerable than nails on a blackboard.
Also questionable was the way director Dean Paul Gibson instructed
Wendy Gorling (the actress who plays Candour) to play the Jewish
money-lender, Moses the Israelite. She (he) struts around the stage
as though he has a broken spine and emotes in a voice and manner
that seem completely without reason.
I wasn't too impressed with the decision for the rather surreal
set, either. Set into the stage were huge, gilted picture frames,
varying in sizes up to 20 feet high, partially sticking out of the
stage at odd angles. They serve the practical purpose of creating
entryways and hallways, but they looked like they belonged more
in a scene from Alice in Wonderland.
Also, given the dialogue-heavy script and the difficulties understanding
a lot of it, I found the hour-and-a-half first act to be overly
long, and it had me squirming for the intermission. Still, once
you catch up on what's going on, the second half of the play is
quite hilarious, with damsels hiding behind curtains, more mistaken
identities and a larger dose of Bard on the Beach artistic director
Gaze, who can make the audience convulse with laughter laugh with
a simple stoop of his shoulders.
Scandal plays at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage until
Nov. 26. For more information, call 604-687-1644 or visit www.artsclub.com.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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