By Shari Barrett
In 1970, Michael Frayn, the English playwright who would go on to write Noises Off, was standing backstage in the wings watching a performance of The Two of Us, one of his other farces. Of that performance he said, “It was funnier from behind than in front, and I thought that one day I must write a farce from behind.” And by the late 70s, Frayn had created the hilarious three-act farce Noises Off, whose title is taken from the theatrical stage direction indicating sounds coming from offstage.
It’s been called the funniest farce ever written which presents a manic menagerie of itinerant British actors rehearsing a flop called Nothing’s On. Doors slam, sardines fly, and trousers drop in Michael Frayn’s side-splitting British farce about a theater company desperately trying to get their act together. Both onstage and backstage, chaos reigns for a troupe of floundering actors whose forgotten lines, misplaced props, and steamy romantic entanglements make it nearly impossible for the show to go on. An uproarious love letter to the theater, Noises Off is a peek behind the curtain—where everything that can go wrong, does!
And for those never involved in putting on a theatrical play, I can tell you there is more than one show going on at each performance, especially backstage where the stage manager must not only wrangle the cast to be ready to enter at the right time but to also check props, costumes, lighting and sound cues, and basically make sure the performance is presented as the director intended it to be seen. And it’s a fact that given all the things that can go wrong backstage, it’s often a miracle the performance makes it to its curtain call.
But it is those instances of pure pandemonium both onstage and backstage that create laugher from start to finish in Noises Off, presented at the Geffen Playhouse under the brilliant direction of Anna D. Shapiro who shares her real flair for comic timing with more perfectly staged entrances and exits than I could count, quick costume changes designed by Izumi Inaba, perfectly matched and often comical sound effects designed by Cricket S. Myers, lighting designed by Josh Epstein, and tons of props, all managed by an energetic cast who can run around like lunatics and still be able to remember all their lines!
Featured in the cast are Ora Jones as dedicated but forgetful actress Dotty Otley who portrays the housekeeper Mrs. Clackett whose main function is to remember when to bring on and remove plates of sardines; Rick Holmes portrays the womanizing director Lloyd Dallas who is often seated within the audience; David Lind as leading man Garry Lejeune who portrays Roger Tramplemain; Amanda Fink as Vicki who steals many a scene as the lingerie-wearing ingénue Brooke Ashton; James Vincent Meredith as health-challenged actor Frederick Fellowes who portrays Phillip Brent but gets a bloody nose each time any violence occurs, either planned or unplanned; Audrey Francis portrays Belinda Blair, who takes on the role of Flavia Brent, who considers herself the most “professional” actor in the troupe and takes it upon herself to hold things together with her over-the-top melodramatic acting; Francis Guinan portrays washed-up by booze Shakespearian actor Selsdon Mowbray who portrays the Burglar; Vaneh Assadourian portrays the put-upon and stressed-out Stage Manager Poppy Norton-Taylor who has a big secret herself; and Max Stewart as the Set Designer/Tech Manager Tim Allgood who is called upon to take on several roles when actors are no-shows.
Each of these actors is to be commended for their boundless energy and great skill at physical humor, especially with all the dual-level entrances and exits at breakneck speed through the eight doors on the set, and props to remember. Timing is everything in this farce and this cast never misses a beat – even when we are supposed to think they have. Pure pandemonium perfectly staged!
Act One takes place onstage at the final dress rehearsal of “Nothing’s On” with the cast hopelessly unready, although we are given a peak at how the show is supposed to go, especially their entrances and exits and how many seemingly meaningless plates of sardines are to be carried on and taken back off stage. The act ends with the first intermission, after which Todd Rosenthal’s remarkable double-sided set is completely turned around to allow Act Two to take place backstage a few weeks into the show’s run, which allows the audience to see behind the scenes. And trust me, with all the actors’ antics going on, it’s every Stage Manager’s nightmare about losing control of the show! Act Three takes place at the final matinee performance of the run when personal friction and liaisons between the actors reaches the breaking point, with their frazzled nerves and desire for revenge getting the best of them.
So, in essence, we watch as “Nothing On” is staged three times with each performance sinking lower into the depths of a theatrical nightmare generating laughs galore, even as the plot breaks down in the process. As the shenanigans mount and the play begins to unravel, it is the actors, each one of them incredibly agile, who make this farce come alive and generate hysterical laughter that fills the theater!
Noises Off continues through March 9 as a co-production with Steppenwolf Theatre Company at the Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Avenue, L.A. 90024. Run time is 2 hours and 30 minutes, including two intermissions. Tickets online: https://secure.geffenplayhouse.org/overview/noises-off Please note this production contains sexual content and is recommended for ages 12+ with children under 10 years of age not admitted. The Geffen Playhouse invites firefighters, first responders, those providing wildfire support, and anyone personally impacted by the wildfires to reserve complimentary tickets by calling the box office at (310) 208-2028 or emailing boxoffice@geffenplayhouse.org
Rogue Machine’s West Coast Premiere of Bacon by London-based playwright Sophie Swithinbank takes an unflinching and sometimes heartbreaking look at power and sexuality through the dizzying lens of youth. Directed by Michael Matthews, the play stars Wesley Guimarães as Mark, who is new at school and too scared to make friends, and Jack Lancaster as Darren, who is out of control and too scary to make friends. Worlds apart, but more similar than they realize, the pair form a complex and friendship performed to the hilt by these two incredibly talented actors. Before they know it, they’re embarking on a dangerous experiment that will alter the course of their lives as they learn to bully and humiliate each other before they learn to love and accept themselves.
Playwright Swithinbank shares that her play “also explores the binaries of class in relation to sexuality, and how confidence and acceptance can be closely related to social standing, from family to family.” As such, Mark has been raised with manners and respect for others by a loving and understanding Brazilian mother, while Jack lives with an abusive father who beats him, causing Jack to act out and get in trouble since he associates violence with love.
Focusing on a modern relationship of two young men learning about their own sexuality and experimenting to see if their sexual vision suits their reality causes dire problems for the two young men. For while Mark accepts who he is, as does his mother, he has never acted upon in, substituting porn rather than acting on it in real life. Jack cannot accept his true nature, especially since his father beats him to the point of unconsciousness when Jack reveals his true feelings for Mark. Unfortunately, since violence is all that Jack knows when it comes to love, he soon turns his anger and frustration into a brutal sexual attack on Mark, one that shreds any chance the two of them could ever be in a loving, mutually-fulfilling relationship. It’s a realistic outcome for the two, reflecting the type of heartbreak so prevalent when two souls cannot find a middle ground that will allow their love to blossom.
Technical credits in the intimate theater space include Scenic & Lighting Design by Stephen Gifford. Sound Design by Chris Moscatiello, Costume Design by Christine Cover Ferro, Scenic Painting and Murals by Jenny Flack Murals, with special kudos to Fight Coordinator Jen Albert and Intimacy Coordinator Joy DeMichelle for keeping the action authentic through all the bullying and brutality.
Directed with realistic emotional intensity by Michael Matthews, produced by Justin Okin and Guillermo Cienfuegos with Associate Producers Mark Giberson, Lexi Sloan, and Betsy Zajko, Bacon continues through March 30 on Monday and Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday at 5pm at Rogue Machine (Upstairs at the Henry Murray Stage in the Matrix Theatre) 7657 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles 90046 (Street parking only). General admission tickets $45, Seniors $35, Students with ID $25. Shows4Less: Fridays, February 14th ($15+), 21st, 28th ($20+), March 7 ($25+) For reservations https://www.roguemachinetheatre.org/ or call (855) 585-5185.
