The Underpants: Underdirected and overacted!
Steve Martin’s adaptation is the clue to this essentially expressionist based comedy by Carl Sternheim written in German in 1910. Directed by Don Fex, the play concerns a husband drowned in the bureaucracy of the Monarchy echoeing Gogol’s wild Russian comedy The Revizor and foretelling Kafka’s alienation within the terrifying bureaucratic state in the Trial (1925). It even suggests tinges of antisemitism that pop up in the dialogue between Mr. Cohen and Theo, the tyrannical husband, an iconic pre-fascist bully typical of the prewar literatures of central Europe. However, once Steve Martin got his hands on it the time frame, the references all collapsed and gave rise to total chaos. We were left with something that is no longer linked to any particular historical period but that brings them all in as a hysterical salad whose ingredients are clearly left to the choice of director, Don Fex. In the background we hear Marlene Dietrich singing cabaret style songs from the 1920’s in the Blue Angel style; we hear military marches from the Austro-Hungarian pre WWI period, the suggestions lead us to believe we were in a pre-1914 period suggested by the women’s costumes which were quite beautiful . Although Gertrude’s bustle…which wasn’t really a bustle, was out of date already.
Never mind the contemporary props and touches to the set which were obviously flights of the director’s and set designer’s imagination, what annoyed us more than anything was the work with the actors. Apparently according to the American critic, Anita Gates who published her review in the New York Times (November 1, 2013) this play is no longer a French style farce in the strictest sense of the word where characters rush back and forth, slam doors, hiding in the bedrooms to avoid the husbands and bringing out much sexual innuendo which is fundamental to the farce. This is rather something closer to American burlesque she writes, “where course double-entendres abound” . . And director Fex pushed that aspect of It to its hilt to titillate his contemporary bourgeois audience, thus killing the truly stylish possibilities of the play.
However, more importantly, this sort of very physical and emotionally heightened comedy needs precise choreography and detailed direction of actors and a perfect sense of timing. All of that was missing here and that ruined the show for me. Entrances and exits have to be timed to the second, it all has to work like the proverbial well-oiled machine because almost anything goes as long as it is impeccably timed. But apparently , timing was not in this director’s vocabulary. .
Also difficult was the fact that this was a cast of actors who had different levels of experience but the director seemed to have no control over any of his actors. The only exception being the more experienced Lawrence Evenchick who developed an internal rhythm, impeccable style, perfect sense of timing and comedy, and a good expressive voice that distinguished his character all the way through.. He even reacted in the most appropriate way when faced with the anti-semitic innuendos of the landlord who tried to bully them all.
Chris Lucas as Theo the husband/landlord of the wife who lost her “bloomers”, appears to be new to the theatre scene in Ottawa and this is certainly a fellow with great potential. A magnificent voice, a commanding presence and a sense of irony that penetrates his performance, giving us the clear notion that he did not take himself too seriously . However, director Fex appeared to leave Mr. Lucas on his own, allowing him to overact atrociously and thus kill the comedy that could have come from the ridiculous posturing of this objectionable bully of a character.
Allan Zander as a sort of Kafkaesque comic creature out of films from the 1920s could also have been much better if the director had guided this actor into a direction that took into account an overall vision of the comic style of this play, which unfortunately appeared to be non-existant. This refers to the performances of most of the others because it was clear that the director had no global vision of what he was trying to show, especially related to a stage project where so much mixture was involved. When questions of stage esthetics, of acting styles, even if they are a breathless mixture of Austro-Hungarian/Weimar republic /American contemporary chaotic burlesque and silent film are not clarified, such a lack of stage vision is certainly the best way to condemn a play to death.
No doubt Mr. Fex undertook much more than he could handle here so let us hope that the next effort of Kraken Theatre finds a play within the possibilities of its artistic ambitions.
The Underpants plays until January 23 at the Gladstone Theatre.
Call 613-233-4523 for tickets and information.
The Underpants by Carl Sternheim, adapted by Steve Martin
Directed by Don Fex
Costumes: Aliine Fournier-Chalmers
Lighting : John Solman
Set design: Grace Solman
Props: Teresa Seasons
Sound: Don Fex
Cast:
Louise Chelsey Cowan
Theo Chris Lucas
Gertrude Krista Marchand
Klinglehoff Allan Zander
Cohen Lawrence Evenchick
The King Andrew Watson
A production of Theatre Kraken.