The evolution of comedy has become apparent over the years. From the usual physical comedy we see in Charlie Chaplin and even Dolphy classics, today we see a lot of theater productions, television shows, and movies that rely on cerebral wit for comic pull. Not that the evolution is a bad thing, of course. But every now and then, it is refreshing to see a decently staged production that treats its audience to the way comedy used to flow.
After opening with thriller Wait Until Dark and family melodrama August: Osage County, Repertory Philippines comes up with a farce/comedy show with Noises Off. If examined, the company seems to be giving its audience an elaborate class on genre in its 77th season.
A play-within-a-play, Noises Off revolves around a mediocre theater troupe as it riotously and hilariously struggles to stage their play Nothing On. Written by Michael Frayn, Noises Off is structured in three acts and shows how each staging of Nothing On progressively goes out of hand from a series of unexpected and illogical turn of events fueled by the actors’ respective personal quirks, conflicts, and issues.
They say comedy is the hardest to pull off; it requires immense discipline, timing, and precision. As such, there’s a lot of timing, demanding physicality, and precision in choreography warranted to each and everyone on stage.
Miguel Faustmann, along with assistant director Robbie Guevarra, directs the show with awareness of the requirements to translate the comedy well to the audience. The ensemble cast throws themselves completely to their respective roles with obvious dedication. Chinggoy Alonso plays the commanding yet confused director Lloyd, Frances Makil Ignacio is the ditzy actor Dotty, Paul Holme who played the director in the play’s first Philippine run takes on the alcoholic wildcard actor Selsdon, Lorenz Martinez is the lovelorn Garry, Carla Guevarra-Laforteza portrays the dimwitted cast member Brooke, Gerard Sison is the comically fragile Frederick Fellowes, while Nico Dans and Peachy Atilano assay the role of the quirky stage and assistant stage managers Tim and Poppy, respectively. Endurance is needed from the players to finish each production with vitality. And while the performances and execution tend to be shaky at times, the performers’ dedication still succeeds in delivering the laughs.
If there’s anything that is utterly jaw-dropping in Noises Off, it has to be the stage design. Aside from being the director, Miguel Faustmann also helms the show’s design with an elaborate set that they literally flipped in act two where the events take place in the backstage. The fusion of the stage design’s economy and complexity is both intelligent and mind-blowing.
Behind the show’s comedy is a glimpse of what occurs behind the scenes in a theater production. Granted that Noises Off is rich in exaggeration, quirky events, and hilarious coincidences, but it is a good representation of what it takes to stage a show – let alone an entire production run. In the end, Repertory Philippines gifts its audience with two treats in Noises Off — an entertainment-filled production and heightened appreciation for the medium.
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'Noises Off' runs at Onstage Theater Greenbelt 1 until April 27, 2014. For ticket inquiries, please call Ticketworld at (63 2) 891-9999 or call (63 2) 571-6926 and (63 2) 571-4941; buy tickets online here.
Ticket Prices (inclusive of service charge): Gold (Reserved Seating) – P625.20, Silver (Free Seating) – P521, Bronze (Free Seating) – P416.80.
For more details, please call (63 2) 843-3570, (63 2) 555-0082 or email: shows@repertoryphilippines.com
Images courtesy of Repertory Philippines.
