Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 17, 1993 TAG: 9309180006
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By KAREN L. DAVIS SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Showtimers' production of Noel Coward's improbable farce, "Blithe Spirit," hits the mark. It is an entertaining, light piece of fluff that relies heavily on deadpan English patter for humor.
Set in the 1940s when seances and mediums were all the rage, the play takes a swipe at the occult.
Director Jim Galloway said Coward intended for the play to break the gloomy spell and fend off the fear the British people suffered during World War II.
"The people were filled with fears and anxieties during the war, and they wanted to escape completely," Galloway said.
The play became a popular choice for escapism at the time and enjoyed long runs in England and on Broadway.
The farce centers on a well-to-do writer, Charles (played by Michael Mansfield), who invites a medium, Madame Arcati (played by Ellen L. Simpson), to his house to do a seance so he can observe her techniques for a new book he's writing.
During the seance, things immediately start to go bump in the dark. And shortly afterward, the spirit of Charles' first wife, Elvira (played by Sonya Shipley), who's been dead for seven years, materializes before his eyes only.
Hilarious plot complications arise when Charles' second wife, Ruth (played by Barbara Johnson), adamantly resists sharing her home or husband with a female apparition.
Performances are generally good, although in places the action and dialogue could be a bit more "spirited." Farces are supposed to be lively and have an accelerating pace.
Simpson is quite funny as the mad medium, Madame Arcati. Shipley makes Elvira a convincing vamp. Johnson as Ruth makes her lines sparkle with wit. And Mansfield is a likeable snob, although his reactions to his jealous wives could be more exaggerated.
Other cast members include Debbie Kluttz as the household servant, Edith, and Jack Michael Crowley and Diane Heard as house guests, Dr. and Mrs. Bradman.
The Dr. Bradman character is subtly reminiscent of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the British novelist and creator of Sherlock Holmes, who in his later years became interested in spiritualism and channeling and wrote several books about it.
Galloway changes the original ending slightly.
"I never liked the ending with the two wives coming back and trashing the house, because it left us in limbo," Galloway said.
He's also pared a three-and-a-half hour production down to two hours and 35 minutes, and trimmed three acts down to two.
He uses a stream light to give some scenes a ghostly glow and technical assistance to make French doors appear to open by themselves.
"Blithe Spirit" continues through Sunday and Sept. 22-26 at Showtimers' McVitty Road Studio in Roanoke. 774-2660.
by CNB