I wonder who is getting produced more this season, Shakespeare or Simon. Without actually counting, it seems the Swan of Avon is being edged out by the Bard of Brighton Beach. This months Simon at least has the honor of being one that almost no one performs as The Ensemble Theatre offers the 1969 script Last of the Red Hot Lovers. The reason that this three-act rarely sees the footlights is because it is dated, obsessed as it is with the long defunct sexual revolution. That doesn't mean that it doesn't have its merits, such as being a vehicle to highlight a top comedic actor. It still has all of those patented Simon one-liners and zingers. Even it's basic theme of a basically good man trying to have just one sexual tryst before he dies can transcend its groovy late 60s roots. It's just that when it is performed in the present day without copious cuts and consistent revisions to bring it forward, one can't help but notice basic problems with the reality of the piece.
Such is the case with Director Kindra Steenerson's production, which features a solid performance by Kenny Brodie as Barney, the happily married restaurant owner who wants just once to be naughty. While some bits have been modernized, many more pop out, such as songs of a bygone era and dates that don't mesh. Another problem rests in the jumpy pacing of the three pieces. Steenerson seems to have asked the cast of four to keep a brisk pace, one that causes the audience to have to catch up with the action at some points. Despite these problems, and a first act that bucked and lurched until it found its footing, the show succeeds.
That success was not guaranteed by the end of the first act on the Friday night I attended. This introduction is full of exposition and bravado, not an easy mix to accomplish. Brody seemed to be floundering in the face of DeAnna Robbins' brash portrayal of the explosive Elaine. While Barney is understandably awkward attempting his first ever one-night-stand, Brody was all fumbling and intimidation, sounding as if he was fighting a bad cold on top of wrestling with Robbins' aggressive tendencies. The result was a success in terms of getting out the necessary information that carries the next two attempts, but mixed in establishing the audience's connection to either character. The next two acts, though, made up for this awkwardness.
In his interactions with first the unbearably perky and psychotic Bobbi, performed with infinite gusto and unending energy by Tianna Tagami, then with depressed family friend Jeanette, presented with much angst by Rebecca Siegel, Brody is able to win the hearts of the audience with his kindness and growing desperation. His timing with these two actresses improves tremendously, and he seems more comfortable with the discomfort of Barney. Tagami gives him a lot to play off of, bouncing around Barney's mother's apartment with a great mix of enthusiasm and paranoia. Siegel goes in the opposite direction, using her character's bleak view as a wall that Brody must tear down before making a connection. By the resolution, the audience has been treated to many laughs that make up for any textual or pacing problems.
Craig Steenerson's set is very well done, constructed and furnished just like an elderly woman's studio apartment in Manhattan's East 40s. Starla Brodie's props are all appropriate and well-considered. The unbilled lighting is also solid.
While this season's Simon-fest is starting to get to me, I do take solace in the fact that most of the productions have been of his rarely produced works, and have been generally consistent. TET's production may have problems with accuracy and pacing, but it brings across Simon's broad characters and humor in an enjoyable way.
Production Details:
Last of the Red Hot Lovers by
Neil Simon
The Ensemble Theatre
The Metro Theatre, Scottsdale (For a
map to this location, click this
link)
(480) 874-0806
January 11th - 27th, 2002