“Noises Off!” farcical fun at the HSC

HARTFORD — Throw common sense out the door when you see this farce to beat all farces, “Noises Off!,” at the Hartford Stage Company.
The play is all sardines and doors on the surface and squabbling, gossip, and wacky situations under the surface.
Written by Michael Frayn, this English farce is a play within a play. It starts the night before the play, called “Nothing On” opens. The actors don’t know their lines, and even if they did, the play is clearly bad. The actors limp through their lines and complain bitterly about anything and everything, to which the director alternately yells, supports, or consoles, depending on the person.
The second act starts behind the stage, where you see the actors getting ready to make their entrance on tour, while having pantomimed screaming matches at one another.
Then, half way through the second act, the set reverses back to the front of the stage again, and the actors’ start the play within the play, which comes totally unglued.
In the slapstick tradition of Laurel and Hardy, the Three Stooges, the Keystone Cops, and Charlie Chaplin, this play escalates from the silly to the ridiculous, and some might say hilarious.
It’s the kind of humor that is based on character and situations, rather than just one-liners, and lots of slapstick humor. There is plenty of running into walls, tied shoe laces and conjoined costumes, missing and misplaced props, and lots and lots of sardines.
The cast who play the English-accented dual roles are in great shape, and they need to be, because there is much physical humor here, scampering up and tumble down stairs, fling themselves in and out of doors, and pretty much non-stop action throughout.
There’s the maid, Mrs. Cratchet, played by the actress Dotty Otley, who is played by the fine Johanna Morrison. Morrison, last seen at the HSC in “A Christmas Carol” sets the tone from the play-within-a-play’s opening, and from the start there is no looking back.
Noble Shropshire, who plays the alcoholic Selsdon Mowbray playing the burglar, seems a little frail for the roles, and is too soft spoken at times. He is enthusiastically driven to acquire a bottle of scotch that floats about behind the stage.
Bill Kux, also in “A Christmas Carol,” makes a believable director within the play as Lloyd Dallas.
Michael Bakkense as Garry Lejeune/Roger Tramplemain, is funny trying to express himself, with limited success, while David Andrew Macdonald, as Frederick Fellowes/Philip Brent really has the vapid stare down pat.
Liv Rooth as the sexy Brooke Ashton/Vicki runs into walls with the best of them, and has distilled bad acting down to a science.
As the farce progresses, it enters into the tangled web of nonsense, too complicated to decipher, but that show-train kept on rolling, taking no prisoners, but causing plenty of laughs in the audience, who adored the performance Wednesday.
Excellent playbill too, highlighting both plays.
Don’t try to make sense of the nuttiness, but sit back and enjoy the wacky world of “Noises Off!” at the Hartford Stage Company, running through May 17.

NOISES OFF

3 Stars
Location: Hartford Stage Company, 50 Church Street, Hartford.
Production: Written by Michael Frayn. Directed by Malcolm Morrison. Scene design by Tony Straiges. Costume design by Ilona Somogyi. Lighting design by Rui Rita. Original music and sound design by David Stephen Baker.
Running time: 2 1/2 hours including one 15-minute intermission.
Show Times: Tuesdays, Thursdays, and selected Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., with matinees performances Wednesdays and Sundays, selected Saturdays at 2 p.m. through May 17.
Tickets: $23 — $66. Call 860-527-5151 or visit their website at www.hartfordstage.org.
ACTOR…CHARACTER
Johanna Morrison … Dotty Otley/Mrs. Clacket
Bill Kux … Lloyd Dallas
Noble Shropshire … Selsdon Mowbray/Burglar
Michael Bakkensen … Garry Lejeune/Roger Tramplemain
Liv Rooth … Brooke Ashton/Vicki
Andrea Cirie … Belinda Blair/Flavia Brent
David Andrew Macdonald … Frederick Fellowes/Philip Brent
Veronique Hurley … Poppy Norton-Taylor
Daniel Toot … Tim Allgood