Celebrating "Noises" Produced by Delaware Theatre Company

By Mike Logothetis

Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

Noises Off at Delaware Theatre Company.
Photo by Matt Urban.

Delaware Theatre Company (DTC) opens its 2023-2024 season with the zany British comedy Noises Off. Nominated for multiple Tony and Drama Desk Awards including Best Play, the show lampoons the life behind the scenes of a theater production during its 10-week run. 

Creator Michael Frayn wrote his “farce from behind” as a one-act play before it was commissioned as a full-length version. Obviously, the laughs were extended across the current three-act production.

Each of the three acts of Noises Off contains a performance of the first act of a fictional sex farce (Nothing On), which is ridiculous in its premise. The audience experiences insider viewings of this “play within a play” at three distinct times: Act I is a technical rehearsal; Act II is during a matinée one month into the run; and Act III happens near the end of the production tour. 

But the twist in this tale is that the viewpoint changes from the front of the house to the back (Act I to Act II) before reverting to the front again (Act III). If that sounds confusing, it makes more sense to the audience than to the characters on stage. Those poor souls have no clue what is happening — except spinning comedic gold!

The ability to experience the front and the back of things is due to the brilliant work of Colin McIlvaine. His wonderful set demonstrates why he is a Barrymore-nominated scenic designer. The bilevel, multi-door set works (and “doesn’t work”) in clever ways, including rotating 180 degrees so the audience catches the action behind the (stage) action.

In Act I, Nothing On actors Belinda (Karen Peakes), Brooke (Elise Hudson), Dotty (Grace Gonglewski), Freddie (Ian Merrill Peakes), Garry (Justin Jain), and Selsdon (Anthony Lawton) cannot seem to follow cues, remember lines, or hit their marks during a tech rehearsal from Hell which makes director Lloyd (David Bardeen) more fraught by the moment. Bardeen is wonderful in slowly swallowing his building rage and providing notes to his troupe as they flub scene after scene. Assistant Stage Manager Poppy (Bi Jean Ngo) must obediently clean up the messes and do Lloyd’s bidding to keep things rolling. The overworked Stage Manager Tim (Brenson Thomas) does everything from fixing sets to running surreptitious errands to making PA announcements to performing understudy duties.

All the characters have their personality flaws up front for all to see — on stage and backstage. Garry can’t state anything definitively; Freddie falls to pieces when things get hairy; Brooke sticks to the script too closely; and Selsdon is a hard-of-hearing alcoholic with a penchant for forgetting his closing line. Speaking of mangling dialog, Dotty’s character changes a somewhat standard line so badly over the course of the show, it ends up as: “It’s good I can’t see far with this leg.”

Most theater productions have their share of infighting and clandestine romances. Acts II and III reveal souring relationships between the Nothing On cast plus the set and props failing. In Act II, the audience sees how the fallout of numerous romances and off-stage problems affect the action on both sides of the stage. 

While the actors remain determined to cover up the mounting chaos during Act III, it’s not long before the players must invent some hysterical ad-libs to reach a new ending. Let’s hope Noises Off director Jennifer Childs didn’t have to deal with Lloyd’s problems while wrangling her actors.

The show is somewhat dated, but still timeless in its cleverness and originality. The dialog is tight and the physical comedy will draw plenty of chuckles. Who knew that looking for a lost contact lens could bring down the house? Sometimes things get a little confusing, but stick with it and it’ll start to clear up. Come to DTC for a hearty laugh at the theater and maybe score a plate of sardines!

The performance schedule of Noises Off is Wednesdays (2:00pm), Thursdays (7:00pm), Fridays (8:00pm), Saturdays (2:00 & 8:00PM except September 23 for Opening Night – 8:00pm only), and Sundays (2:00pm) through October 8. 

Tickets start at $32, and discounts are available for students, groups, and military members/veterans. The show is roughly 2.5 hours long with one 15-minute intermission plus an entertaining pause between Acts II and III. 

There will be pre-show Viewpoints on Wednesdays at 1:15pm during the run plus talkbacks after Thursday performances. Call 302.594.1100 or visit DelawareTheatre.org to purchase tickets or for performance information. Delaware Theatre Company is located at 200 Water Street in Wilmington.

Theatre Review: One Man, Two Guvnors | Delaware Theatre Company

By Mike Logothetis
Theater reviewer Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

If you’re searching for an energetic jolt of live entertainment, look no further than the Delaware Theatre Company (DTC) and its production of the hilarious One Man, Two Guvnors. It’s a romp wrapped in a musical farce. And, if you’re lucky (or unlucky?), you may end up on stage as part of the action.

DTC's production of One Man, Two Guvnors.
Photo by Matt Urban/NüPOINT Marketing

One Man, Two Guvnors is an English adaptation of Servant of Two Masters, a 1743 commedia dell’arte work by Italian Carlo Goldoni. In 2011, English playwright Richard Bean replaced the Italian period setting of the original with 1963 Brighton, added original music by Grant Olding, and created a worldwide hit. The play was the launch vehicle for James Corden in America. In June 2012, Corden won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play.

In this DTC production, the lead role of Francis Henshall is played skillfully by DJ Gleason. The easily confused Henshall makes his own life complicated by taking on more than his simple mind can handle. Gleason masterfully dances between scripted lines and improvisation while his character tries to please all parties involved in his current predicament. An argument that Henshall has with himself — which somehow turns violent — is a highlight of the show.

In a nutshell, the always-peckish Henshall becomes separately and concurrently employed by two men: gangster Roscoe Crabbe (Karen Peakes) and Stanley Stubbers (Jake Blouch), an upper-class buffoon. Henshall tries to keep his “guvnors” apart to avoid each of them learning that he is also working for someone else. 

Muddling events, Roscoe is really twin sister Rachel Crabbe in disguise. Roscoe had been killed by Rachel’s boyfriend…who is none other than Stanley. Complicating things further is local mobster Charlie the Duck (John Bellomo stood in for Peter DeLaurier on Opening Night) who has arranged an engagement between his daughter Pauline (Renee McFillin) and Roscoe. But Pauline only has eyes for actor Alan (Dave Johnson), the son of her father’s attorney (Bruce Graham). Amongst the chaos, Henshall has his romantic eye on Charlie’s bookkeeper Dolly (Kelly McCaughan). With Henshall in the middle, the chaotic swirl of characters keeps missing each other’s actions and antics. Thankfully, the audience sees it all.

The snappy writing by Bean modernizes the classic farce and upgrades much of the humor for today’s audiences. Between the cleverly terrible metaphors, there is substance to the script, however wacky the plot may be. For instance, the virginal Pauline so often misses the point that she is described as “unsoiled by education.” The second act’s deep discussion of debilitating and deadly diseases has more alliteration than this sentence…and is hysterical.

But, as in any farce, stage timing and physical comedy must shine. They do. Trembling octogenarian waiter Alfie (Brian McCann) steals a riotous lunch scene through physical humor alone. Feminist Dolly is overtly sexual and playful when being seduced. Alan’s passion for acting is so deep that he often prompts the audience to recognize his entrances before speaking or changes his spot mid-line to gain better light. The air of misguided entitlement around Stanley’s every movement is palpable.

Kudos to Colin McIlvaine for his inventive scenic design. His wonderful inside and outside sets allow for the wacky physical comedy to shine while keeping the world grounded in period reality.

Live music by Nero Catalano (Emmett Drueding stood in on Opening Night) and Andrew Nelson added a party atmosphere inside the theater. Scene changes meant live ditties with plot points mixed in with the song lyrics — not to mention guest musicians from the cast. Get ready for an energetic kazoo solo!

The cast regularly breaks the fourth wall with an infectious sense of wink-wink mischief. The audience seems to be intimately involved in the capers on stage, with the actors in on the joke. It’s as if everybody in the theater wants to squeeze one more laugh out of a gag. It’s all very, very funny.

One Man, Two Guvnors is the last show for outgoing Artistic Director Bud Martin. 

The performance schedule of One Man, Two Guvnors is: Wednesdays (2 p.m.), Thursdays (7 p.m.), Fridays (8 p.m.), Saturdays (2 & 8 p.m.), and Sundays (2 p.m.) through February 19. Tickets start at $29 while discounts are available for students, groups, and military members/veterans. The show is roughly two-and-a-half hours long with one 15-minute intermission. 

 There will be pre-show Viewpoints on Wednesdays at 1:15 p.m. during the run plus talkbacks after Thursday performances. Call (302)594-1100 or visit DelawareTheatre.org to purchase tickets or for performance information. Delaware Theatre Company is located at 200 Water Street in Wilmington.

A Dazzling ‘Circus’ Comes to Delaware Theatre Company

By Charles "Ebbie" Alfree, III

The Delaware Theatre Company (DTC) ends its 2016-17 season with the American premiere of the London smash hit family musical, Hetty Feather. Emma Reeves’ adaption of Jacqueline Wilson’s beloved book about a headstrong orphan girl’s adventure to find her true home will delight young theater goers. However, the mature themes of abandonment and loss in the story will also intrigue adult audience members.

The Cast of Hetty Feather. Photo by Matt Urban, Mobius New Media.

Hetty, played by the wonderful Clare O’Malley, is on a quest through Victorian England searching for her birth mother. Being an unwed woman during this time, Hetty’s distraught and sadden mother had no choice but to leave her infant daughter at London’s Foundling Hospital (a public institution for abandoned children).

Shortly after arriving at the hospital, Hetty is sent to a foster home in the countryside where she spends the first six years of her life. The headstrong heroine never loses her insatiable desire to find her birth mother, even though she forms a strong bond with her foster mother and three brothers. While living with her foster family, Hetty develops a keen imagination that will later serve her well.  

Hetty, like all foundling children, must return to the hospital following her sixth birthday. Under the stern supervision of Matron Bottomly (chillingly played by Michael Philp O’Brien), life at the hospital is cruel and unforgiving. Living in such harsh conditions, Hetty becomes even more driven to find her legitimate place in the world, but to get there she must go on a journey that will take her to bleak places where she must face tumultuous situations.

Photo by Matt Urban, Mobius New Media.

Director Bud Martin has created a charming, yet sinister, production that at times delights as well as frightens. His brilliant ensemble cast creates their characters on a circus set which provides a great juxtaposition to Hetty’s plight.

O’Malley and O’Brien — along with their stellar co-stars (Terry Brennan, Dave Johnson, Rachel O’Malley, and Karen Peakes) — have the daunting task to act their parts while performing circus stunts. For most of the show, the actors are hanging from flowing sheets or a ring that dangles above the center of the stage. It’s amazing how effortlessly they make it look to stay in character as they climb, swing and perform high above the stage.The cast is flawlessly costumed by Katie Sykes. Her understated costumes, some including a hint of a clown suit, not only capture the grim look of the poor during the Victorian period, but also let her circus set shine. The stage was built so the fantastic musicians (Liz Filios and Josh Totora) have an area to create mood music and flow easily in and out of scenes. In addition to playing their instruments, Filios and Totora provide the vocals for most of Bendi Bower’s score, leaving the actors to focus on their characters and circus stunts.

Hetty Feather isn’t your traditional family show or musical, but that makes it a special treat for the whole family. DTC recommends the show for children ages 7 and up. Hetty Feather runs through May 14. 

For tickets and additional information, call 302.594.1100 or visit www.delawaretheatre.org.