For some strange reason, after a highly successful run, the property was retired and has never been revived on Broadway. A 1934 film version re-titled the piece Where Sinners Meet, and since then little has been heard of the play. Thankfully, the folks at Amicus read the play, fell in love with it and present it as their final show of the season.
The premise is fascinating: a rich and somewhat eccentric gentleman intercepts eloping couples, making them prisoners in his mansion for a week to determine whether they really are well suited for one another.
As with most plays of that era, it is a little slow getting started, but once the basic premise is established we can sit back and watch the characters interact. As Mr. Latimer, the host at this Twilight Zone-like house, Stephen Flett employs a Noel Coward-like manner as he presciently anticipates his guests' every need.
Anne, the wife fleeing her husband for what she believes is a more romantic partner, is played with a haughty air by Amanda Skinner using a variety of facial expressions that are truly priceless. Watch how she looks as she delivers the word "kippers."
Even funnier is the singsong line delivery of Kim Harrington as Eustasia. It's as if some avant-garde composer set her lines to really angular music. It succeeds in making even the most ordinary statements drip wit comic invention.
The gentlemen are equally good, including Liam Doherty as the sniveling Leonard and Daina Hodgson as Nicholas. Best of all is the Lurch-like head butler Dominic as portrayed by Brian Ablett.
Director Jeff Burke has adjusted the piece to play two acts instead of three, as written. The transitions between scenes are staged to period recordings. While the staging could benefit from by being a little crisper, the overall effect is that the performers are relating to each other as 3-D characters bringing A.A. Milne's forgotten play to life. Do not miss this rare opportunity to see this charming relic from Broadway's golden age.
The Dover Road continues at Fairview Library Theatre, 35 Fairview Mall Dr., until Saturday, April 21 at 8 p.m. each evening. Tickets are available by calling 416-860-6176.
