By Sandi Masori
SOLANA BEACH, California — Empty your bladder before seeing The Angel Next Door. That is probably the best advice I can give you about the world premiere at the North County Repertory Theater. Written by Paul Slade Smith and directed by Jewish community member David Ellenstein, this show will have you laughing and laughing.
Adapted from an old Hungarian play, Play At The Castle by Ferenc Molnar, it’s a play within a play about a play. I’ll give you a brief synopsis in a moment, but honestly, in this play, the plot doesn’t matter. Not to say that there isn’t one, but what it really delivers on is LPM- that’s laughs per minute. This over-the-top comedy does not take itself too seriously and even calls itself out on the things happening to move the action along. I don’t remember ever laughing so hard or often at a show. Every line landed. Every physical comedy bit hit. The absurd became plausible and wonderful.
So what’s it all about? In 1948 Newport, Rhode Island, Oliver Adams (Taubert Nadalini,) a young author, has written a novel that is being picked up by Simon and Schuster. Not only that but it’s being adapted into a play by husband/ wife writing team Arthur and Charlotte Sanders (James Newcomb and Barbara E Robertson). The only problem? The book is about a romance between Adams and actress Margot Bell (Elinor Gunn) that didn’t really quite happen. They met once and exchanged a bunch of letters and the rest came from his imagination. He meant to show her the novel before publishing and is wavering on whether to sign the lucrative contract with the publisher before getting her approval.
By some twist of fate and maneuvering by Charlotte, Adams ends up in the room next door to Bell in a mansion they are all staying in. The walls are paper thin and Adams overhears a private moment between Bell and actor Victor Pratt (Thomas Edward Daugherty). Lovesick as he is, he overreacts and eats the contract. (Yes, you read that right).
The Sanders are freaking out because no novel means no play for them to write which means no money. So Charlotte sets up an elaborate plot to get things back on track. Hilarity ensues.
One of the hilarious tactics used in the play is how the Sanders keep commenting “if this were a play, then the next thing that would happen is …” and then to the audience’s delight and merriment, that is exactly what happens next.
The show stealer is Erin Noel Grennan who plays the deadpan maid Olga Molnar who is of some unknown Eastern European stock- with a pronounced accent to boot. Her dry comments keep things moving along and giggles abounding. At one point Arthur even calls her out for stealing the show within the show, and recognizing her role in the larger show.
Actress Barbara E Robertson also stood out with her over the top portrayal of Charlotte Sanders, although really everyone in this cast seasoned actors played their parts perfectly.
The entire show is set in the bedroom of a mansion and the characters burst in and out through the many doors in the room. It’s a charming and cute set that looks far more serious than the action to come.
The theater itself is small and intimate. You feel like you could reach out and touch the stage from every seat in the house. The only complaint I have is that it seems to me the seats themselves are getting smaller and smaller. It may just be me, but if you are a patron of size, you may find yourself feeling a little squeezed.
The show runs through October 8. If you haven’t mastered the art of laughing yoga and need some giggles in your life, I highly recommend checking it out.
*
Sandi Masori is a food and theatre reviewer for San Diego Jewish World. When she’s not covering food or theatre, she helps authors self-publish, hangs out with her kids, and searches for the best sushi in town.
I agree! The play was a delight. I’d see it again!