LEND ME A TENOR -- Gilmore Creek Summer Theatre

Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

playwright: Ken Ludwig
director: Steve Snyder
scenic designer: Kit Mayer
costume designer: Janis Martin
lighting designer: Matthew Albrecht
cast: Andy Greene, Ashley Dillard, Chris Kernan, Stephen DiBlasi, Mariah Ciangiola, Danny Pancratz, Augusta Lane Hefti, JoLeen Davis



A modern-day farce in which a visiting opera star gets sick and the nerdy theatre assistant fills in.

#####

While much better than their previous offering, this Gilmore Creek production lacks nerve.

The biggest problem was pacing. A fast-paced comedy needs action, and lots of it. It does not need to dwell on dialog. The idividual performances seemed adequate, though they often looked as though they lacked direction. Zany comedy needs careful direction so as to appear wild and uncontrolled. When actors are turned loose to do it themselves, it never feels safe or real.

Mariah Ciangiola as "Maria," the opera star's nagging Italian wife, seemed over-the-top, but perhaps only because the other performances were under-played. DiBlasi as the opera star was good, and Andy Greene as the nerdy assistant did fine, but he seemed the least controlled or directed. The women did nothing to stand out. Perhaps one of the better performances was Chris Kernan as the "Saunders," the owner of the theatre that was bringing the opera star in. He was brief and believable, and had an energy that could be felt in the theatre. However, he was also staged with some of the oddest moments ... in his occassion mock speeches to a pretend audience, the director chose to bring down the lights and bring up a spotlight on Saunders. Why? These are not actual speeches he is making to a crowd ... these are "what if" speeches! Don't confuse the audience! There was no need for this! Then, when we really were seeing what was going on at the theatre, we weren't sure any more.

The set was nice (the the hallway entrance seemed to have gotten knocked askew during intermission and was never fixed, so every entrance showed the false wall). The costumes were fine, but the lighting was distracting. I understand that we're separating the two areas of the stage and that we don't need to light both sides all the time, but a good lighting designer knows that a slower count to bring the lights up is less apparant. Leave them up, leave them down, or change it slowly so that we don't really notice it, please!

Although a favorite script of mine, this production is not recommended save for the heartiest theatre-goers.