BWW Reviews: The Alley Theatre Puts A Fabulous Finish On A Great Season With THE FOREIGNER

THE FOREIGNER is a riotous, two-act comedy by American playwright Larry Shue. The story unfolds in a fishing lodge in rural Georgia where two Englishmen, Froggy and Charlie, arrive for some rest and relaxation. The sad and introverted Charlie agrees to accompany Froggy on the trip after his sick, yet philandering wife begs him to go. Froggy, in an effort to protect his suffering friend from having to engage with anyone, tells everyone that they shouldn't talk to Charlie because he is a "foreigner" from a faraway country and does not understand English. The lodge's guests assume that Charlie can't understand a word they're saying so they quickly begin to confide in him, and Charlie soon discovers that everyone is not necessarily as they seem.

Expertly directed by James Black, this Alley Theatre production of THE FOREIGNER is pure fun, with a silly yet ingenious plot and a handful of talented actors who have a sure handle on comedic timing. It's one of those rare plays that has a broad age-range appeal; take the grandparents, your teenaged kids, and your friends and prepare to laugh a lot.

Jeffrey Bean is exceptional as Charlie, taking on physical comedy and crazy mime, blurting out a strange, invented language, and regaling the lodge guests with funny storytelling. Bean can do it all, from deadpan to silly antics and back again. The revelations that Charlie accumulates from the other characters add tension to the plot that give a nice undercurrent to the more playful and fun aspects of the show. Charlie's friend, Sergeant "Froggy" Le Sueur is played winningly by Paul Hope. Hope ups the comedic ante by knowing exactly when to pause; it's in the spaces he creates within his lines that garner laughs.

Annalee Jefferies plays Betty Meeks, the proprietor of the lodge. Betty longs to experience new horizons in distant lands, but claims it's too late and she's too old for all that. The arrival of the "foreigner" delights Betty to no end, and Jeffries is adorable and hilarious as the childlike Betty, trying to communicate and connect with Charlie.

Catherine Simms is pregnant, engaged, and bored out of her mind when she and her husband-to-be, David, arrive at the lodge. Elizabeth Bunch is laugh-out-loud funny in the role, with lines delivered with perfect sarcasm and an electric stage presence. Jeremy Webb plays the dim-witted Ellard Simms, Catherine's brother. Webb is touchingly funny and unassuming in the role, and he and Bean have a great breakfast scene together that has the same slap-happy comedic verve as anything seen on an episode of I Love Lucy.

The play is not all warm fuzzies, however; a sinister storyline runs underneath the lighter, happier fare. Jay Sullivan plays a seemingly benevolent Reverend David Lee with plans to marry Catherine (and her money) and, unbeknownst to Catherine, start a life with a powerful connection to the Ku Klux Klan. Sullivan is generally compelling in the two-faced role, but when the truth comes to light at the end, Sullivan's David is whiny and dejected and it would have been more interesting to show a little more fight and arrogance as David's plan is blown to smithereens. Chris Hutchison plays the ignorant and cocky white supremacist, Owen Musser, intent on running "the furr-ner" out of town. Hutchison is appropriately obnoxious in the role, and his scenes with Bean are a delight as Owen is knocked off his game when Charlie messes with his rather dull mind.

THE FOREIGNER touches on themes such as prejudice and tolerance, but its greatest strength is the wacky warmth of the characters and the way they interact with one another with wit and an ecclectic comedic style. The set by Kevin Rigdon is detailed and rich, with a pretty forest set peeking through the windows, catering perfectly to the style and setting of the play. The Alley Theatre continues to be a front runner in Houston and THE FOREIGNER puts a fabulous finish on a first-rate season.

For tickets to THE FOREIGNER: http://www.alleytheatre.org/

THE FOREIGNER runs July 3-August 9 at The University of Houston's Wortham Theatre.

Photo Credits: John Everett

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