"The Latest Mrs. Adams" a bargain of fun

ENFIELD - Bowling balls, mistaken identities, and ghosts have never been so funny as they are in the Valley Repertory Company’s production of "The Latest Mrs. Adams."

The play, written by George Tibbles, is kind of a combination of a television situation comedy and an homage to the 1930’s screwball comedies.

Set in a Connecticut town 59 miles outside of New York City, Sam Adams, has just married for the second time, to Lily - she being the latest Mrs. Adams.

They move into his family’s farmhouse, only to discover his deceased wife’s mother, Betsy Jefferson, is still living there, along with Sam’s uncle, the irascible John Quincy Adams, and perhaps the ghost of the first Mrs. Adams.

Sam, played with enthusiasm and appropriate exasperation by Mark Vogel, wants the in-laws out, but Lily, a New York City dress designer, has a big heart and wants to help them.

She even invites the homeless drunkard living under the bridge, Ethan Allen, played with delightful deadpan humor by Jason Fregeau, to come in from the cold and stay with them a while.

Complications ensue when Ethan Allen abruptly dies in his bedroom, and Betsy and John Quincy try to claim credit for murder, while bowling balls periodically roll down the stairs, and the ghost of the first Mrs. Adams, played with dancing grace by Elizabeth Mathieu, flits about the stage.

The cast is terrific and talented, from Lily, played with caring compassion by Patty Coope Piellucci, the grammatical perfectionist Betsy, played with ditzy confidence by Jan Albetski, the half-blind lecherous old grouch John Quincy, played to perfection by Jim Byrne, Jr., to the local constable, Enrico Rossini, played with silly officiousness by Logan Lopez.

From the first entrance of Fegueau’s Ethan Allen, where he is dressed like a giant ace bandage with a newspaper hat, he has the audience in stitches. Byrne’s John Quincy, with his hat with flaps, is quite funny too, not so much with one-liners, but with his timing and his conviction that the second Mrs. Adams is a hooker, and her daughter is one of her "girls."

The comedy has lots of sight gags, as well as some literary highbrow humor as well. While Ethan Allen is still alive, Lily’s daughter, Camille Littleton, played by Laura Wittenberg, says to her mother, that the old Connecticut farmhouse reminds her of something out of Balzac.

The local derelict Alan snickers and pleads with her to say something else lewd, to which she responds, "Charles Dickens," which really gets him going.

Lily figures out that Betsy misses her deceased daughter, the first Mrs. Adams, and so Betsy unconsciously becomes her and dresses up as her ghost, claiming that her daughter comes back because the doctor didn’t put the sheet over her face and her soul slipped out through her nose. Rather than treating the various characters with disdain, however, Lily shows them compassion and love, and they blossom under her caring affection.

The setting of the entire play is the farmhouse’s living room and dining area, solidly designed by Eric J. Albetski, however, there are a number of breaks between scenes as props are moved about.

It would be great to have some background music between scenes, rather than just dead silence. The scene changes don’t take all that long, but without any music, the time drags.

At $10 a ticket, the Valley Repertory Company’s production of "The Latest Mrs. Adams" is a bargain at twice the price, with just the right blend of comedy, mystery, and plot to keep you entertained all evening long.

THE LATEST MRS. ADAMS

Three Stars
Theater: Valley Repertory Company
Location: 100 High Street, Enfield
Production: Written by George Tibbles. Directed by Lisa Eaton. Produced by Celeste Estvanik. Technical direction and set design by Eric J. Albetski. Stage Manager Jason Fregeau. Lighting design by Ken Estvanik.
Running time: 2 hours, with one intermission.
Show Times: Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. through Nov. 22.
Tickets: $10, $8 for seniors over 60 and youth under 12. Call 860-749-4665 or visit their website at www.valleyrep.com

ACTOR...CHARACTER
Mark Vogel ... Sam Adams
Patty Coope Piellucci ... Lily Adams
Jim Byrne, Jr. ... John Quincy Adams
Jan Albetski ... Betsy Jefferson
Elizabeth Mathieu ... Abigail Adams
Jason Fregeau ... Ethan Allen
Laura Wittenberg ... Camille Littleton
Logan Lopez ... Enrico Rossini