"Noises Off" a Hoot of a Farce — Be Prepared to Howl

Behind the stage in Act II, the performers "quietly" act out their own drama. Photo courtesy of Chris Thomerson.

In the howling, romping fun of “Noises Off,” at the Orcas Grange, it’s easy to forget about the painstaking work of timing, blocking, memorization, and characterization that go into the portrayal of comedic characters.

But, two days after seeing the Actors Theater of Orcas Island present “Noises Off,” I’m still grinning and shaking my head in wonder and admiration for what Doug Bechtel and his troupe of actors has pulled off in this quintessentially British farce, which plays again this Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings at the Grange.

The structure of the play needs to be understood to fully appreciate what the Actors Theater have achieved: in Act I, our Orcas Island cast portrays a troupe of actors in final rehearsal of a play called “Nothing On,” placed in a country home where “no one is in residence,” but all kinds of characters appear; in Act II, the Grange audience sees a “live” performance of the play a month later – only from the backstage perspective, so the “actors” are frantically miming backstage as they call out their lines to the audience; finally in Act III, we are at the final performance of the play, again from the audience perspective, when everything that can go wrong, does go wrong (and you get the feeling that everything that CAN’T go wrong, still does go wrong).

This play involves the most complicated set I’ve ever seen, and huge kudos go to Bill Westlake, Vince Monaco and Doug Bechtel (and his crew) for envisioning, designing and building the set. It’s constructed in three parts, and watching the set’s reversal during intermissions is an added spin-off  to the value of the performance.

The actors are true to their quirky characters as written:

• Patty Monaco portrays “Dotty” the housekeeper, lost at the onset, who only becomes increasing flabbergasted as the play goes on
• Frank Michels as “Lloyd” the director, in a state of high anxiety throughout the rehearsals and performances of “Noises On,” as he struggles with timing, lines, and his cast, not to mention the two love affairs he is conducting on the side
• Nick Hershenow as “Garry” the clueless rental agent, who couldn’t explain the most straightforward situation, which is not the case in either the play within a play or the play itself
• Kaityln Richards as “Brooke,” the vapid doxie who shines in her confusion
• Dove Dingman as “Poppy,” the stage manager who is powerless to bring organization to the production, or recognition to her lovelorn condition
• Ron Herman as “Frederick,” the home-owner who is evading his taxes and is forever whining “You know I’m no good at …..”
• Cele Westlake as “Belinda” the innocent-natured wife who sees the good and sweet in all situations
• Freddy Hinkle as “Tim” the stage hand who may or may not be called to the rescue or disaster of the production
• Tony Lee as “Selsdon” the dipsomaniac actor whose rubber-faced expressions give credence to the cast’s doubts about him.

In short, this is a 3-ring circus of a performance, with each actor fully “on” at all times. The lickety-split nature of “Noises Off” demands energy, control, and ultimately, the confident freedom of actors flying through their hilarious parts. My neighbor in the audience was literally falling out of her seat, laughing so hard at the broad British comedy.

It’s a little strange to use the word “heroic” in describing the performance of a comedy, but that is really the word for it, from director Doug Bechtel’s vision and ambition, to the set construction, to each actor’s commitment to an ensemble tour de force.

With three productions still to go this weekend, there has been demand for an additional performance, rumored to be either Thursday night or Sunday afternoon. Be sure to treat yourself to a performance. Tickets are at Darvill’s or at the door.