Brunswick Times Record

Rollicking ‘Irma Vep’

Special to Ticket
By Elizabeth Lardie, Times Record Staff

PORTLAND — Something’s rotten in the estate of Mandacrest. The late first lady of the manor, Irma Vep, died under mysterious circumstances. The grounds are frequented by a frightening wolf. And the lord of the manor, distant from his second bride, appears to be hiding something.

Portland Stage Company’s production of “The Mystery of Irma Vep,” however, produces far more feelings of mirth than melodrama. In playwright Charles Ludlam’s Victorian-set spoof, two actors play, and play-up, all eight quirky characters as they blunder through the English moors near Hampstead Health as well as exotic Egyptian sands to uncover the most peculiar of puzzlements.

Very much in the style of an English pantomime, the campy and comical romp features over-the-top gestures, humor in the form of anything from flatulence jokes to highly literary puns, and the regular presence of players in drag. Simultaneously high- and low-brow, this has the potential to appeal to a multitude of tastes.

There are gags and asides for everyone — except, perhaps, for kids. While harmless and campy, this is a “penny dreadful” (a reference to the cheap melodrama novels the play in part pays homage to) intended as an adult indulgence.

“The Mystery of Irma Vep” demands little of the suspension of disbelief so crucial in most productions. In fact, it is when the production was at its most self aware — including self-reflexive writing and a generous supply of deliveries straight to the audience — that it was at its most irresistibly hilarious.

Even pauses as the actors suppressed their own laughter were great fun to witness. A frantic scene between groundskeeper Nicodemus Underwood and the Lady Enid Hillcrest (both played Portland Stage veteran Tom Ford) that deliberately plays up the comical limitations of a two-man cast had the audience gasping in laughter.

Ford, last seen on the company’s stage in “Iron Kisses,” (another strong two-player production that also showcased his diverse range) showed a Vaudevillian side of his skills that was in high contrast to the subtle and poised presence he last revealed.

Steven Strafford excels at his own brand of camp as well, particularly as the effeminate Lord Edgar Hillcrest. His physicality, accentuated by his modest frame, was always on point.

Sunday’s matinee performance was mildly detached at curtain’s rise. The ensemble, including lights and sound in this case as the technical timing was just as critical as the actors’, was so close to seamlessly gelling yet was ever so slightly off.

That being said, the play still had the audience in steady bursts of laughter (and perhaps the occasional playful groan for the worst of the puns).

By the time Ford and Strafford hit their stride in the second act — sweat dripping down their temples as they raced about the stage for rapid-fire costume changes and ridiculous confrontations — it was absurdly delightful.

The rather musical turn the production takes in the second half (likely to buy time for set or costume changes) seemed out of place by the second or third abbreviated song, but was none the less entertaining as both actors certainly didn’t hold back.

At worst, “The Mystery of Irma Vep,” offers no shortage of fun. At its best, Portland Stage’s mid-winter offering is a prime example of how “bad” theater can be so exceptionally good.

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Review of The Gin Game
Game of life plays out onstage

Review — Special to Ticket
By Elizabeth Lardie, Times Record Staff
Published:Thursday, November 5, 2009 2:09 PM EST

PORTLAND — In many card games, there are two primary elements that factor into the outcome: Strategy and luck.

Like a game of poker or gin, one’s success in life often requires a focused mind and strategic moves. Organization and an awareness of the others around you is key. But even more like gin, sometimes, it simply boils down not to how well you play your hand, but to the cards you are lucky enough to be dealt.

Fonsia (Cristine McMurdo-Wallace) and Weller (J. Patrick McNamara) have reached the later years of their lives, and find themselves as fellow assisted living home residents. Over a well-worn card table on the cluttered porch of the home (the set exquisitely designed and executed), the two spend time reviewing the rules of gin and assessing just how well they each played their game — at the table and otherwise.

Sally Wood made an impressive effort when directing Portland Stage’s “The Drawer Boy” last year, and does not disappoint in her next directorial effort with the company. D.L. Coburn’s solid play has the risk of going static in a full production — the two-man show is, after all, a story that all takes place on the same porch and centers around two retirees and 52 cards.

But every high and low of emotion is touched upon, sometimes in the matter of minutes, making the experience range from humorous, endearing to outright uncomfortable, painful, frightening and even desolate.

McNamara portrayed Weller with an effortless manner, remaining charming even while flippant. “I have one of the most advanced cases of old age in the history of medicine,” he deadpans to Fonsia when discussing what brought him to the home. In those lighter moments, he is the weathered grandfather figure many would recognize.

The familiar and warm aspect of his presence only made increasingly frequent moments of utter rage all the more disconcerting. Weller’s deep-seated anger hides like a rabid ace up his sleeve, and the opening night audience let out collective gasps on more than one occasion in reaction to his outbursts.

McNamara’s rapid-fire flips from emotion to emotion, without losing any sense of sincerity, displayed a high level of dramatic agility.

Portland Stage regular McMurdo-Wallis manages to convey Fonsia’s polite and conservative nature, and even her appeasement of Weller’s frequent demands, without becoming weak or submissive. Fonsia may be less fiery than Weller outwardly, but she held her own cards with an unassuming confidence.

A constant attention to detail kept the entire production in sharp focus without overwhelming the  more subtle moments — the steady blue flicker of light behind a curtain indicating a TV perpetually on inside, the simple drip of a leaky roof, stage hands dressed (and indeed performing) as nursing assistants.

This production keeps its cards close to the chest at first, but places them down on the table confidently with a loaded hand that strategy had far more to do with than luck.

“The Gin Game”

Where: Portland Stage, 25A Forest Ave., Portland.

When: Through Nov. 15. Performances are  Wednesday-Friday, 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 p.m.

Tickets: Wednesdays-Fridays, $32, and $29 for senior citizens and $16 for students. Saturdays-Sundays, $36, and $33 for senior citizens and $18 for students.

Call: 774-0465.
Online: www.portlandstage.org/
elardie@timesrecord.com