Review: Gaslight's BASKERVILLE is A Yawn

Ken Ludwig created one of theater's best-loved and critically acclaimed farces with Lend Me A Tenor, then updated the book of one of musical theater's most revered Gershwin titles (Girl Crazy) with the long-running and equally beloved Crazy For You. Since those two mega-hits, however, he's been less successful (although, inarguably, he's kept busy churning out scripts and cashing royalty checks) and perhaps no new script has proved that point more than Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery.

In an obvious attempt to capitalize upon the success of The 39 Steps - the wickedly fun and fast-paced play by Patrick Barlow, based upon John Buchan's 1915 novel and the subsequent Alfred Hitchcock film (from 1935) - which has played to critical and audience acclaim around the world since its 2005 premiere in Great Britain. Barlow's play has all the appeal of international intrigue and its English setting (at a time all sorts of machinations were at play on a worldwide basis) provides an ideal backdrop for the fun, hijinks and heart-stopping moments that audience yearn for every time they enter a darkened auditorium to be thrilled, entertained and enlightened. With a four person cast portraying all the characters from Buchan's novel, The 39 Steps provides seasoned actors the priceless opportunity to show off their dramatic chops, brush off their comic timing and to dazzle the people in the stalls with their versatility.

To say that audiences worldwide lapped up The 39 Steps like so many kittens surrounding a bowl of heavy cream is an understatement. Thus, is should come as no surprise that Ludwig would seize upon Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles as source material for another production of similar size and ilk. Baskerville offers up the same basic recipe for success: a murder mystery, a perilous journey across a dark and murky land, characters both threatening and whimsical and a convoluted plot that has inspired countless retreads since its first publication. Baskerville also features a protagonist - namely, the one and only Sherlock Holmes - who has captivated readers, viewers and followers since he first became part of the popular culture zeitgeist, as early as 1887.

Unfortunately, Ludwig's script for Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery lacks the verve and originality of The 39 Steps, and it appears he is trying so hard to ape the success of that play that it's more than a little off-putting, despite the efforts of director Greg Frey's five-person cast, now onstage at Dickson's Gaslight Dinner Theatre for a two weekend run through April 9.

Ludwig's attempts to wring every laugh out of the tale of the scion of the Baskerville family's arrival to claim his rightful place as heir to the title and its accompanying (and "supposed," I suppose) fortune results in an overbearing and often unfunny stage show, lacking in subtlety that negates any hopes of nuance to be found in the performances of the actors. Ludwig's laugh lines are disappointing and rely far too often on borderline offensive stereotypes (we're thinking of the Castilian hotel desk clerk who is fey and fabulous in the most gratingly obvious manner) and ridiculous situations that are often hard to follow.

Frey's ensemble features some fine actors forced to overact and overplay their roles in an effort to entertain: the comedy in Baskerville never comes smoothly and the story never plays in the easy way that truly excellent stage farces should. The play's pace is often lugubrious and treacly - although the curtain call is frenetic and fun, performed at a break-neck pace that shows what the cast is truly capable of delivering - and the plot becomes bogged down in too much exposition to engage the audience. Even the set seems dour and depressing, a black expanse of mostly vacant space that fails to visually stimulate or to suggest anything of a design aesthetic for a period piece that fairly demands a certain attention to detail. But there's a smoke machine! Meh.

B rett Cantrell is delightful as Sherlock and he has stage presence to spare, but he's given little to do in Ludwig's script (and, admittedly, Conan Doyle's penchant for having Mr. Holmes secret himself during the investigation of a mystery often did the same: Sherlock pops out like Bulldog Drummond or Nick Charles to reveal the culprit of the piece). Clearly, however, Cantrell's skills would make him an ideal choice to play one of the actors who takes on multiple roles in Baskerville.

Instead, those roles are assigned to Gaslight veterans Jenny Norris-Light and Curtis Reed, along with GDT newcomer Evan Taylor Williams, who tackle the list of supporting characters with earnest commitment and an overzealous never-say-die attitude that's essential to the success of a script like this. However, Ludwig's script can't shoulder its responsibilities to the actors and they are given little to work with in the plodding two hours of stop-and-go action that lacks suspense. Pacing is critical in making this script work and Frey's flailing direction seems unfocused. Nick Fair completes the ensemble as Holmes' close friend and accomplice-in-intrigue Dr. John Watson.

• Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery. By Ken Ludwig. Based upon the original story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Directed by Greg Frey. Presented by the Gaslight Dinner Theatre, Dickson. Running through April 9. For details, go to www.gaslightdinnertheatre.org. For ticket information, call (615) 740-5600. Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes (with a 25-minute intermission at the opening performance).

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