Jest Barely
Reviewed
12/19/04
by James Sherman
Directed by Bob Sorenson
Arizona Jewish Theatre Company
Viad Playhouse on the Park, Phoenix
(602) 264-0402
December 18th, 2004 - January 9th, 2005
$26.00 - $28.00 ($7 Student Rush half hour before curtain)
Repertory theatre is a difficult proposition. It involves the same cast having to learn two completely different scripts and sets of blocking. It’s double the rehearsal and double the memorization. When producing classical repertory theatre, actors are usually given smaller roles in a few shows and a lead in one. When Arizona Jewish Theatre Company decided to mount both of James Sherman’s comedies Beau Jest and its sequel Jest a Second!, Director Bob Sorenson knew that he was going to have to depend on a very professional cast to play the same roles in both plays and the strong stage management of Anne Dean Schindler. Whether it was the strain of having to perform Beau Jest as a matinee after its opening night on Saturday and then mount Jest a Second! later that Sunday after not having rehearsed it since the Thursday dress, both productions proved to be low energy affairs with seemingly sleep-deprived hesitations in the first part of the day and insecurity with the text later that evening. The normally powerful and professional cast just didn’t seem to be into it, which was a shame as Sorenson’s direction offered some very nice bits and stage pictures.
Sarah Goldman (Natalie Messersmith) is a nice
Jewish girl who happens to be dating a guy by the name of Kris Kringle
(Christopher Mascarelli) to the horror of her mother (Jan
Rothman Sickler)
and father (Benjamin Stewart). Her bright idea to hide the fact from her
parents is to create a Jewish doctor beau. When pressed, she calls an escort
service to gain the help of Bob (Christopher M. Williams), an out of work
actor who looks Jewish, but is as much of a Gentile as her real boyfriend.
With little warning, he is thrown into a Shabbats dinner with her brother
Joel (Dominik Rebilas) warily scoping him out. Complications ensue as Sarah
finds herself drawn to Bob. In the second play, the roles are reversed
when Joel lies to cover up his current paramour, and Bob finds himself
once more dressing up to fool Sarah’s parents.
Thom Gilseth’s set is very traditional and works well as the unit for both plays with only a few changes in between. On this set, Sorenson keeps the action moving through clever moments and movements that keep the evening on the edge of reality but always about to tumble into farce. During some of the longer periods of discussion, he sets everyone in very interesting observational positions that comment nicely on the situation.
The problem comes when the actors interact. Messersmith is ordinarily electric, but here she seems to be withdrawn. There’s never a strong connection with anyone around her. Equally disappointing is the performance of Williams. This is an actor who made magic last season at AJTC as Schmulnik, but here he seems to be going through the motions. He aces several comedic moments in both shows, but there never seems to be a transcendent moment between himself and Messersmith.
Sickler’s mom is fun, but her choices become stale as the evening wanes. It’s hard to come up with a lot of different things in the role, so it’s probably not her fault, but her voice and idiosyncrasies make her more annoying than loveable in the end. Stewart is quite loveable as the put upon dad, but some of the hesitancies in scenes seemed to come from his problems remembering which play he’s doing. That’s understandable: despite some changes to the plot, both shows feel very similar, and one can see why lines might become blurry.
The strongest performance in both shows comes from Rebilas, who is always in the moment and the height of energy. He’s one of those actors who does just as powerful acting when he’s reacting, and he is intensely involved in each scene, whether he’s in the middle of the action or to the side. Mascarelli switches roles between the two shows, but it’s more about clean-shaven versus mustachioed than about real character differences. His stronger role is in Second when he’s a Mohel with an agenda, but that is because he has more with which to work. He seems to be more presentational than realistic in voice and movement.
Jeff Brown’s lighting is as conventional and straightforward as Gilseth’s set. Cari Smith’s costumes match character well and even have a few comedic moments of their own. Bill Osborne’s sound design includes a lot of traditional Jewish music during the pre-show and intermission.
Perhaps on a single evening the energy levels rise and connections occur, but that was rarely in evidence their first Sunday with Beau Jest at 2 and Jest a Second! at 7. The potential is there and the talent level is high, so there’s always hope.
To purchase a copy of these playscripts from Amazon.com, click the links for Beau Jest or Jest a Second