When a theater company announces that they’re going to do “Noises Off,” they might as well declare that they’ve become a comical ballet troupe. The second act of Michael Frayn’s frenetic farce is an intricately choreographed series of sight gags that, if pulled off with precision, is a wonder to behold.
“Noises Off” is a send-up of cheesy low-brow comedy, but one which requires extraordinary skill and timing. Connecticut Repertory Theatre has assembled a confident, contortionist cast to attempt this high-wire act of low-brow high jinks.
Vincent J. Cardinal, who until last fall was CT Rep’s artistic director (and is now on the faculty of the University of Michigan), has returned to helm “Noises Off” for the theater’s Nutmeg Summer Series. He’s enlisted many actors he’s worked with before, including a few from last year’s Nutmeg series (Steve Hayes and John Bixler from “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” and Michael Doherty, who played Black Stache in “Peter and the Starcatcher”) and a couple of recent UConn dramatic arts grads, Gavin McNicholl and Curtis Longfellow.
The show’s set-up is that a bunch of actors, a fussy director, a mousy stage manager and a dogsbody tech worker are embarking on a British tour of a quintessentially British sex farce called “Nothing On.” Frayn — an intense and detail-oriented playwright who crafted the much more sober play “Copenhagen” (about atomic-science anxiety) and is renowned for his translations of Chekhov — provides a multi-angled view of what goes on onstage, and especially behind the scenes. He makes every element as funny as possible. The first act is about the actors’ unreadiness at the dress rehearsal. Act Two is about how their personal squabble upend their professionalism, during a performance. The third act is about how sick they get of “Nothing On,” each other, and themselves.
The pre-show and intermission music is ’60s British pop, from The Rolling Stones to The Yardbirds to Herman’s Hermits. This is curious, since “Noises Off” was first performed 15 years after those songs were hits. The hilarious fake cast bios in the playbill have references to the 1970s. The clothing and hairstyles — especially Longfellow’s feathered tresses — scream ’70s as well.
Of course plays like “Nothing Done” still get done all the time. Playhouse on Park staged a present-day American equivalent, “Unnecessary Farce,” in November.
This production would work better without its time warp, and also without layering on stereotypes and mannerisms too thickly in the behind-the-scenes scenes. Jayne Ng does a sweet job of deliberate bad acting as the show’s lingerie-clad Vicki, but doesn’t get a whole lot more real backstage. The characters go from over-the-top to over-the-topper. The lack of a fluid style often means that the show is only as good as its last joke. Luckily, there are many inspired and beautifully executed bits: Broadway veteran Jennifer Cody slowly slipping on sardines into an acrobatic split; McNicholl pratfalling around a mop bucket. Longfellow bounces down stairs with cartoonish aplomb.
Even an uneven “Noises Off” is an exceptional treat. Lines like “I can’t walk around in front of a sex maniac wearing a bathmat!” and “The sardines! They’re gone!” lead to wondrous leaps of hilarity. Farce is a summer sport, and seeing this farce about farce can be like attending the Summer Olympics.
“NOISES OFF” by Michael Frayn, directed by Vincent J. Cardinal, produced by Connecticut Repertory Theatre as part of its Nutmeg Summer Series, runs through June 25 at Harriet S. Jorgensen Auditorium, 2132 Hilliside Road on the University of Connecticut at Storrs. Tickets are $12-$55. Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. 860-486-2113, crt.uconn.edu
