LEND ME A TENOR


Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me A Tenor closes International City Theatre’s 2022 season on a farcical high note, directed to razor-sharp perfection by Todd Nielsen and terrifically acted by an all-around stellar cast.

Double entendres galore, oodles of physical comedy shtick, several cases of mistaken identity, plenty of doors to slam and hide behind, and intricate plotting add up to two hours of guaranteed laughs from the moment we first make the acquaintance of Cleveland Grand Opera general manager Henry Saunders (Grease legend Barry Pearl) and his long-suffering assistant Max (Nick Tubbs) circa 1934 as the twosome await the arrival of opera superstar Tito Merelli (Michael Scott Harris), aka “Il Stupendo,” to sing the title role in tonight’s performance of Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci.

Perhaps even more excited about Tito’s arrival is Max’s girlfriend Maggie (Bella Hicks), who wouldn’t mind a bit of pre-marital hanky-panky with a man whose kiss, unlike Max’s, will make her hear bells. Maggie’s boyfriend, meanwhile, harbors a wish of his own, to take Il Stupendo’s place centerstage and sing those Verdi arias himself.

Unfortunately for Max, Tito does at last arrive, accompanied by his raven-haired spitfire of an Italian wife Maria (Jade Santana), ever watchful for female fans who’d fancy a fling with her marito, women like soprano diva Diana (Kailyn Leilani), who’s got quite a thing for tenors (and baritones and basses).

Maria’s discovery of a starstruck Maggie hiding in Tito’s closet is all the hot-blooded Italiana needs to pack her bags and bid her philandering spouse addio, but not before scribbling down a farewell letter and leaving it on Tito’s bed.

Meanwhile, with Il Stupendo clearly in need of a pre-performance nap, Max takes it upon himself to spike the tenor’s wine with a sleeping pill or two, unaware that Tito has already taken a couple of Phenobarbitals himself … and the rest I’ll leave it to you to discover.

As both Leading Ladies and Lend Me A Tenor have made abundantly clear, nobody writes farce more cleverly than Ken Ludwig, and no one directs farce more skillfully than Todd Nielsen, who once again elicits performances blessed by pitch-perfect comedic timing and physical comedy galore.

SoCal musical theater star Tubbs has us rooting for Max from the get-go as the would-be Pagliacci juggles multiple females in various states of dress and undress while revealing tenor pipes that convince us he just might have what it takes to become a divo.

And speaking of divos, the big-voiced Harris (minus the wig he sports in production stills) milks every over-the-Italian-top Tito Merelli moment for what it’s worth, and just wait until Ludwig gives us (spoiler alert) not one but two Pagliaccis for the price of one.

Comic genius Pearl makes for a hilariously harried Saunders, Hicks is ingenue perfection as Maggie, Leilani vamps vivaciously as Diana, Santana gives Gina Lollobrigida a run for her lire as Italian firecracker Maria, Holly Jeanne is a Margaret Dumont-esque hoot as Cleveland Opera Guild grande dame Julia, and Matt Curtin makes the relatively minor role of Bellhop a major laugh-getter.

Scenic designers JR Luker and Destiny Manewal’s terrifically rendered hotel suite (adorned with plenty of Patty and Gordon Briles’ props) has been stylishly lit by Donna Ruzika, and Dave Mickey’s sound design not only gives Max and Tito orchestral tracks to back up their arias but some cleverly timed bells as well.

Kimberly DeShazo scores points for her Pagliacci wear, and her other costumes have mostly appropriate 1930s looks, but Anthony Gagliardi’s somewhere-in-the-mid-20th-century wigs look hardly at all like women cut and permed their hair in back in 1934.

Lend Me A Tenor is produced by caryn desai. Cris Quick is associate scenic designer. Randall Goldberg is music advisor. Harold Kast is technical director.

Donna R. Parsons is production stage manager and Maggie Franckhauser is assistant stage manager. Casting is by Michael Donovan, CSA, and Richie Ferris, CSA. Lucy Pollak is publicist.

As The Heir Apparent, How The Other Half Loves, and Tom, Dick, and Harry have proven in years past, when Todd Nielsen directs farce at International City Theatre, audiences are guaranteed a rollicking good time. Lend Me A Tenor is no exception.

International City Theatre, Long Beach Performing Arts Center, 300 E. Ocean Blvd., Long Beach.
www.InternationalCityTheatre.org

–Steven Stanley
October 23, 2022
Photos: Kayte Deioma

 

Tags: , ,

Comments are closed.