By Joel Applegate
Despite contending with electrical power outages in the city’s grid, Utah Rep’s company of What the Bellhop Saw gave its opening night audience a vigorous jolt. I had to hold my laughter so I wouldn’t miss the next gag. And folks – that’s all this is – but let me tell you why that’s important.
First, it makes you listen. This show is just for laughs as the program says. Be that as it may, it’s the sure-footed performances that make this production work – and worth your time. You will be impressed with the high level of skill shown by each of the actors.
As the lights go down, the cast parades their characters in a furtive skitter across the front of the seating area. The tone is set. Jack Kyle Oram starts the action as the titular bellhop, Wally, boogying to the radio in a posh hotel suite. He sneaks Georgie, his accountant brother played by James McKinney, into the room for a tryst with a secretary. Their professional voices sounded great right off the bat. Both Oram and McKinney are precise in expression and professional in delivery, and made it look easy – even though it’s not – bringing silliness to such a fine edge. They established a polished breakneck pace. Indeed, from there on out, the whole cast barely catches their breath. That’s great, but it created a small problem for the audience. We are left to catch as much as we can of the hilarity as one bit overcame another before the previous laugh could land.
I found out why this was so in the Q & A with the actors after the show. They rehearsed it that way! Director Chase Ramsey locked them in a closet making them run lines to exhaustion, before opening the door to toss in water bottles which they fought over. OK, I made that up. But not entirely. It’s an exaggeration of what the cast themselves described. In speaking with the dramaturg, Ariel Mitchell, I learned that once they moved to the performance venue, the cast knew they had to even the pace a bit in some places, but were still learning on opening night where to hold for laughs and to make sure that all lines are heard. The cast was still making adjustments for the “bouncy” acoustics of the space. The running time isn’t long, so they can afford to indulge themselves a bit. (In passing, couldn’t we as a community of artists and performers have come up with a far better word for that thing they do than “dramaturg”? I shudder in deep places whenever it’s uttered.)
“Arlene is not a terrorist”, says George, of his mannish wife. “She’s not a picnic, either, “ says Wally, who’s seen this woman in action. Well, she’s un-pretty, too. But Jake Ben Suazo’s natural sweetness wins us over as Arlene with vivid descriptions of how he will disassemble your anatomy if “she” doesn’t get what she wants. Namely, a half million bucks. For which she is willing to terrorize the terrorist, the CIA agent, the hunted author and his daughter, the sex-pot maid, the hotel manager, a love-sick secretary and an unfortunate guest all crossing paths in a plot so convoluted and hilarious you will not care how it all fits together in one suite.
Here are some of the pieces. In the the Q & A, the aforementioned Jake Ben Suazo said “This is nonsense, and [the play] celebrates that.” He should know, decked out in pumps the size of canoes and false bazooms that made his struggling buttons sweat. The real ladies, with Bethany Woodruff in the larger role as the hotel maid, all have their timing down and their perky turned up. Woodruff has fun lusting after anyone who can get her a ticket to tabloid fame. Maddy Belle Forsyth belies a certain slyness as the secretary and Aubrey Bench focuses on being Daddy’s girl. The only thing missing was a lollipop.
Jason Sullivan is the “beneficiary” of CIA protection as author-in-hiding and the target of Robbie X, Pierce’s preening and prattling terrorist. Pierce’s parody on the stereotype is hardly a threat since he joins Sullivan and others in a very funny harmonic ode to mac and cheese. (Kudos to the director for managing to insert that bit of fluff seamlessly into the narrative.) Sullivan as Roger is the only character trying to play it straight, but he’s thwarted by others’ madness and dogged by law enforcement’s incompetence. It’s great watching him strive to hang on to his scholarly aplomb, only to collapse into panicked jousting.
CIA Agent Stan, played by Benjamin James Henderson, is physically hilarious. He’s re-wound Dirty Harry too often and you’d be well warned off this loose cannon. Daniel Whiting is slick and and ever-so-slightly smarmy as the game-show-like host of the hotel.
Although not much is seen of him – well, actually, almost ALL of him is, but not often – M. Chase Grant still makes an indelible impression. I’ll save his outfit for a surprise, but I have seen Chase before and it is apparent to me that he’s continuing to hone his peculiar craft of dropping an audience in their tracks without saying a word.Not only do you get to enjoy a great farce, but you will also enjoy visiting the Historic Murray Theater. The building is an Art Moderne movie “palace” built in 1938 that is charming to see. It was host to Salt Lake’s original run of Gone With The Wind. Kevin Dudley’s set is an homage to the space and is beautiful to look at and furnished with just the right accoutrements to make the action work.
Chase Ramsey’s direction is logistically sound and choreographed, pantless in places and breathless everywhere. He has succeeded in bringing “madcap” back to comedy for a too sophisticated 21st century. The production winds up sooner than you’re ready for it to be over. Before it is, keep in mind that Utah Rep’s run for this show is quite short, so put it on your calendar now. You won’t want to miss what professional comedy looks and sounds like.
Utah Repertory Co. at the Historic Murray Theater
4961 S. State St.
Murray, Utah
Performance Dates:
May 31; June 3, 7, 8, 10, 14, 15 at 7:30
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Matinee on June 15 at 2:00
Phone 801.358.9673
E-Mail: admin@utahrep.org
Tickets: $15-$18 in advance. Monday, June 3 is “Pay What You May Night” and student rush tickets for $5 are available at the door beginning 15 minutes before curtain.
Website: http://utahrep.org/tickets/
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