| Freud would certainly get a kick out of Morpheus Theatre’s production of Noises Off.
Director Sean Anderson has added a fascinating twist to Michael Frayn’s farce about farce, where a group of good actors in a good play play a group of bad actors in a bad play. Anderson has cast Diane Leblanc as Dottie Otley and Jay Newman as George LeJeune. They are ex-lovers battling over their relationship during the run of the play within the play, called "Nothing On." But here’s the catch: in real life, Newman is Leblanc’s son. How very Oedipal.
"Especially," points out Anderson, "when the line is, ‘She’s old enough to be his mother.’"
Leblanc and Newman are stage veterans, though, and they should be able to handle the onstage flirtations without racking up any post-show therapy bills. As Leblanc says, "We’ve done a number of shows together. And, hey, we’re actors, right!?"
Regardless of their past stage pairings, it will be fun to see what kind of chemistry a mother and son can generate as Otley and LeJeune.
But this Oedipus Redux isn’t the only case of Anderson’s inspired casting. Fans of community theatre in Calgary are sure to have seen at least one production helmed by Bill Torrie – he’s one of the most talented and respected directors in community theatre, but he hasn’t been onstage in 12 years. Anderson casts Torrie as Lloyd Dallas, the director of "Nothing On," a stereotypical womanizer who makes a mess of his show because he can’t keep his pants zipped. Ultimately, it wasn’t too hard to talk Torrie into taking the part – all the director had to do was beg.
But Anderson wasn’t content to just create clever subtext with his casting. He had to do something truly unique, and the complex set required by Noises Off gave him the perfect opportunity. Usually the set, which includes a full backstage and onstage to conjure the illusion of the actors’ entire performance world, is placed on a turntable and rotated during the intermission. In Morpheus’ production, however, the set has been built in the Pumphouse, where there is no turntable. Anderson’s answer: rotate the crowd.
"We decided to build the set right in the middle of the Victor Mitchell Theatre, so it’s a permanent set. We can actually build it more sturdy, add more to it, decorate it up because it doesn’t have to move. We’re going to move the audience instead," he explains.
The set, an intricate mix of doorways, windows and stairs, cost Morpheus the bargain sum of $2,500. And that savings is important, considering that the usual Victor Mitchell seating capacity has been cut in half due to the requirements of Anderson’s intermission game of musical chairs.
Despite the intricacies of the set, Anderson’s kooky casting and the abundant in-jokes geared toward theatre folk, Noises Off is a play for everyone. Seating is understandably limited for this unique staging of the play, but once you secure your admission you’ll have an opportunity to do something you’ve never done before – score a better seat for the second half. If the guy behind you talks during Act I, you can dodge him in Act II, or if the lady beside you wears too much perfume, you can sneak away during intermission, or if you just want to get closer to the action you can lurk around while everyone else runs to the bathroom.
You’ll probably never get this chance again – at least not in a theatre. |
