REVIEW: ALLERGIST’S WIFE at Fells Point Corner Theatre in Baltimore

               Anyone familiar with the Charles Busch canon might be surprised to walk into Fells Point Corner Theatre and find a traditional apartment set (meticulously designed by Richard Dean Stover).  I say that because this is the guy who brought us such gems as Psycho Beach Party and The Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, neither of which are remotely traditional in any way.  Even more surprising is that the majority of the comedy is played pretty much straight forward, with little sense of parody or even a wink to the audience.  This mainstream effort may be why it is Busch’s only Broadway success to date.  That is not to say, of course, that some of Busch’s signature mocking of the upper crust, thumbing of the nose to convention doesn’t happen.  The plot twist at the end of act one is pretty funny, and all of act two is one surprise after another, mostly to hilarious effect.

            The cast of this production is more than game for what Busch expects from his characters.  They rise to the occasion as the final scene of the first act steps up the pace, and they glide almost effortlessly through the twists and turns of the second.  You can clearly tell (and not just because the space is so delightfully intimate and cozy) that the entire ensemble is having fun, and is just “this close” to walking to the edge of the stage and yelling out, “Watch this!  You are going to howl with laughter!”  It is that kind of on-the-edge-of-your-seat energy that the entire play needs.  And here, when it is good it is very good, when it isn’t (like most of act one, and the final minutes of act two), it ranges from dull to painful to watch.

            As directed by Richard Dean Stover, the pacing, which should be brisk at least, frantic at most, is plodding and uneven during the first 45 minutes or so.  (The interminable scene changes don’t help, either.)  I suspect, though, that not all of this is his fault, as the first scene is quite dense with exposition.  And being the first performance after a five day break, I got the sense that the cast, feeling good about opening strong last weekend, might have let the self-assuredness go to their heads and not revisited the script or focused as much to prepare that evening.  The “second weekend effect” really isn’t that uncommon, but it really isn’t necessary; even Broadway shows rehearse midweek to keep things sharp.  The result of such a mindset was unfortunately obvious Friday night when I attended.  Many lines were started, stopped and restarted.  Others got lost in getting tongue tied, and still others were either strangely overlapping or the pauses between them came across like someone forgot their lines.  Add to that the pretty clear look of panic a few times by some of the actors, dropping character momentarily to regroup.  All of that can really mess up the timing and pace, and lines should be getting a laugh aren’t even getting a chuckle.  The good news is, and probably because they sensed that the best part of the play was coming up, the cast rallied and really let us see how wonderful the play can be.

            The title character, Marjorie, played with equal amounts of panic, self-loathing, and fierce family protectiveness by Maribeth Eckenrode, goes on the biggest journey here, and the actress is pretty good at letting us see that.  She is particularly funny at the end of act one when for a moment or two, she actually fears that she has gone insane, and later in the play when Marjorie’s world is put to the test in a bizarre, out of left field (and joyously Charles Busch) way.  Ms. Eckenrode also has a remarkable grasp on her accent, letter perfect throughout, and was a good choice in a role that carries the play.  As Ira, Marjorie’s husband, Dave Gamble is uniformly wonderful throughout the entire evening (he apparently warded off the “second weekend jitters”), as the patient, heroic, and marvelously befuddled husband.  It would have been easy for him to lapse into the stereotypical doormat of a Jewish husband, but he understands the text, and clearly believes that his Ira is as described – a good man doing good things.  In the small, but important role of Mohammed, an Iraqi doorman, Brandon Cater gives the most realistic whole performance of the evening.  You never once doubt if he is in character, and he plays his scenes with such an earnestness (and twinkle in his eye) one thinks that maybe his approach might be the way to settle the Israeli/Arab problems in the Middle East!

            Less effective, and unfortunately so, in the two most potentially fun roles, are Margery Germain as the elderly mother, Frieda and Susan Porter as Lee, the unexpected houseguest that sends the allergist and his wife on a trip of discovery and rediscovery.  Germain comes across as having forgotten her lines her timing is so muddy.  Some of that may be forgiven as part of her elderly character, but it says something when the character inserts a profanity in mid-sentence and later talks in very descriptive terms about that shape of her bowel movement that she only elicits a chuckle from the audience, when a loud guffaw should have been the reward for actress and audience alike.  To be fair, Ms. Germain’s Frieda is wonderfully strong when she becomes serious, which offers a terrific balance when the comedy really gets going.  As the catalyst for the main action, Lee should be slightly larger than life so as to be believable as she name drops and stuns her hosts with wild tales of adventure, but just enough to still be shocking as the plot twists start.  Unfortunately, Susan Porter only looks the part.  On sight, she looks sophisticated, modern, and slightly peculiar enough so as to be believed as a world traveler.  But when she speaks, in a mind-numbing monotone, one becomes nearly hypnotized as she drawls through her lengthier speeches.  The result is not the mesmerization she and the director (and the script) hopes for, it is, instead, that you lose track of where the conversation is going.  Even her mannerisms, a slow deliberate walk, subdued arm and hand gesture make the audience catatonic.  On the plus side, when she does finally give a little oomph to her performance, getting physical with the allergist and his wife; the result is jarring and even funny- a glimpse at what could have been.

            Overall, The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife is an uneven evening: at its best it is laugh out loud funny, particularly when the actors are more sure of themselves, at worse it plods along.  As I said, I bet a little refocusing and a visit with the script after a break in performances would probably clear up most of the timing/pacing issues.  In the balance, the show is still very much worth seeing.  Fells Point Corner Theatre is a charming, thoroughly professional community theatre.

To post a comment, you must register and login.