BWW Reviews: Theatre 40 Offers Funny Canadian Hit, OPENING NIGHT

Opening Night/by Norm Foster/directed by Bruce Gray/Theatre 40/through June 16

As backstage comedies go, Opening Night is not on a par with the farcical Noises Off or with the flamboyant My Favorite Year, but it is a sweet play just the same with uber belly laughs and miles of heart. Now onstage at Theatre 40, a fine cast and steady direction make the play within a play Opening Night a definite worth see through June 16.

Norm Foster is a prolific Canadian writer who is not afraid to make fun of his roots, and that in itself brings a certain charm to the play. The theatre is called The Piggery, amusing when you consider the choice of silly farm play being mounted. "Is it a comedy?" "No, it's written by a Canadian." Joke lines like this and "Writers, what do they know about love?" abound in Opening Night and give full steam ahead to its theme of second chance. Also quite alluring is the mix of characters within the theatre world - actors and director - with outsiders, who know literally nothing about it but at least bring an innocence and enthusiasm that is endearing. Ruth and Jack Tisdale (Gail Johnston and John Combs) are nice middle-class folks who, on their 25th wedding anniversary, venture out to the theatre. For both of them, it's a first time experience. He would rather stay home and selfishly watch the World Series on TV; she, on the other hand, would rather basque in some kind of newfound culture. At the core of the piece is Ruth's disconnection from Jack and her longing for a fresh start. Richard Hyde-Finch (Martin Thompson), the director of the play they're attending, not only has to contend with opening night jitters but startling words from his lady friend Cilla (Meranda Walden) who is also growing dissatisfied and lonely without enough attention from her beau. Two actors in the play Clayton Fry (David Hunt Stafford) and nubile Libby Husniak (Ilona Kulinska) are second-rate and horribly miscast, so has-been pro Michael Craig (Richard Hoyt-Miller), who is losing roles because he has more issues than one can count, and ambitious young actor Tom Delaney (Eric Keitel), trying desperately to get a break, want urgently to be noticed, by saving the play from impending disaster. Every character is desperate for some attention or love and I won't spoil the plot by giving any more details away other than to say there are some unexpectedly fun moments that generate a partial happy ending for most of them, thanks to Foster's keen sense of creating neatness from clutter and doling out a fair share of second chances.

The cast is uniformly terrific with a few standouts. Johnston is so sincere and honest in her efforts to improve the quality of Ruth's life that audience root for her from the start. Hers is a precious performance that steals the show. Equally fun to watch are Miller and Keitel, especially when they take the stage. Thompson plays the nervous, uncommiting Hyde-Finch to the letter and Stafford has never been funnier. Bruce Gray has directed superbly with just the right pacing and style. Jeff G. Rack's set design of the stage, green room and stage door of the theatre is simple and ultimately functional for quick scene changes. Small touches like the graffiti on the walls outside the stage door lend a laugh-out-loud quality of self-deprecation to the whole atmosphere.

I really liked Foster's scenes in the confines of the theatre where actors and audience become one, as everyone gets thrust into the chaotic mishmash of art and real life. As I mentioned at the start, Opening Night may not be the greatest backstage play I have seen, but its fun and heartwarming sense of human nature are enough to make it winning.

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