BWW Reviews: 'TIL BETH DO US PART at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre

At first blush, Beth Bailey - the anti-heroine of 'Til Beth Do Us Part, the new comedy from the crackerjack writing triumvirate otherwise known as Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten - is a Southern-bred, country-fried rube with questionable fashion taste and amazing organizational skills. Delve a little bit deeper and you'll find that she's a manipulative, conniving bitch of a 100% Maid of Cotton barracuda. And played by Kim Thornton Nygren, she's one heck of looker with a flair for over-the-top pratfalls and expert timing.

That pretty much sums up this Dixie-flavored comedy from Jones-Hope-Wooten, running through March 19 at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre, directed by Martha Wilkinson and featuring a cast of Barn favorites doing what they do best: Being funny and engaging while delivering their lines with relish (and a side order of corn pudding).

The plot is pretty convoluted, as most dinner theater farces tend to be: Suzannah Hayden (played with her typical quick-witted flair by the lovely and talented Tammie Whited) is a hard-working career woman who finds herself somewhat overwhelmed by her increasing workload (she handles the American accounts of Carmichael Chocolates - a British firm not unlike Cadbury - from her Cincinnati home) and the middle-aged marriage doldrums that typify life with her husband of 27 years, TV weatherman Gibby (played with an ample amount of confused charm by Charlie Winton).

Luckily, Suzannah's best friend Margo (the stylishly clever Debbie Kraski, in a wonderfully droll comic turn) has the answer to Suzannah's problems: Hire a personal assistant (the aformentioned Nygren, in an inspired portrayal) to whip the home and office into shape and give Suzannah and Gibby some free time to rekindle the dwindling fires of their romance.

Oh! - and then there's the subplot involving Margo's ex-husband (who's also Gibby's best chum) played with vigorous and riotous zeal by the very funny Warren Gore.

You're also treated to a wonderful cameo by the versatile Lydia Bushfield as the chocolate company's eccentric owner, clad in a beautiful Billy Ditty creation of peach and lavender that you'll just love!

Sounds perfectly plausible, right? Of course it does - and therein lies the basis for every farce ever written. Thankfully, plausibility quickly flies out the window and utter confusion and catastrophe reign supreme. In the hands of lesser mortals, of course, this could be a recipe for failure, but when handled by the comic brain trust at Chaffin's Barn, the result is a pleasantly diverting, often hilarious, two hours of theatrical hijinks.

Perhaps in the biggest surprise of all, the play's conclusion is not at all what you expect! And that's hard to achieve in stage farce, since the play's ending is almost always telegraphed from the first moments of the show. Kudos to Jones, Hope and Wooten for that! (But here's a note, guys: End the scene with the back-scratcher instead of the globe to pack more punch! I'm just sayin'...)

The playwrights deliver the goods with a script that's full of great one-liners, creating believable characters who make the wacky situations more palatable and accessible. Thanks to Wilkinson's top-notch direction, the amazingly character-driven and gorgeous costumes and wigs by Billy Ditty, terrific lighting design by Mary Jo Kilzer Weaver and David Compton, and Compton's set design, the stage is set for a rousing good time of the type expected by loyal Chaffin's Barn patrons. Of course, if you're just a theater aficionado out for a good time, you're in for a treat as well (plus there's a tasty buffet to sate your appetite before the hilarity ensues).

- 'Til Beth Do Us Part. By Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten. Directed by Martha Wilkinson. Presented by Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre, Nashville, through March 19. For further information, visit the company website at www.dinnertheatre.com; for reservations, call (615) 646-90077.

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