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Another season begins at the Ogunquit Playhouse, this time opening up with a new number that I hadn’t even heard of before. The cynic in me briefly pops up his head, worried that this may resonant as a sort of generic feel-good musical that leaves you feeling like you just ate a large sundae- fun while consuming it, but no lingering enjoyment. Adding to this consideration is that the lead is played by Carson Kressley, whose acting skills I knew nothing about going in. (I had heard that he was pretty lively on “Queer Eye” but since I hadn’t really seen the show, I didn’t know how this would translate to acting a play.) As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about; in fact, this soon became one of my favorite Ogunquit Playhouse productions to date.
The show starts off with Carson’s narrator character talking in the darkened theater, echoing many of the sentiments that yours truly has felt during shows- the distractions of the crowded area, the endless wait for the show to get going, the self indulgent rants of off screen characters …. You get the idea… Here is when it became clear to me that Carson’s flamboyance on the small screen would translate well here- the man knows how to milk a joke and play the audience in a way that Sally Struthers would be proud of. After several chuckles from the audience, the lights finally kick on and we open in his character’s New York City apartment. In this setting, we learn a bit (although not the name) of this character and how he is a true theater queen, collecting records ( for the kiddies—those are big, CD like things that played music back in 1900’s) and other memorabilia from yester-year.
As he makes his tea and prepares for a relaxing night of show tunes of the past, our narrator friend shares his vast knowledge of 20’s era musicals and selects one of his favorites to play for us. Since the name of this musical is “The Drowsy Chapperone”, I don’t think that it will be a shock to know that this is also the record he selects. Giving us some background on the stars and settings, our narrator friend sets the stage for this production to come alive in his studio apartment as one by one the various guests at a wedding between a rising movie starlet Janet Van De Graaff (Megan Nicole Arnoldy) and a common guy Robert Martin (Joey Sorge). Of course, this being a musical comedy, there has to be a lot of manufactured tension, including attempts by Janet’s agent (Jason Simon) to break up the wedding, an alcoholic (an hence “drowsy” ) chaperone (Liz Larsen in a cougar-esque, scene chewing role), a random, creepy ass Euro “lady’s man” (Todd Alan Johnson) wanting to prove his virility, and a couple of immigrant mobsters posing as pastry chefs (Ben Liebert and Jason Grauerhotz) there to ensure their boss’s business interest in Janet. Hosting this zoo is the loved-ly senile Mrs. Trottendale (Georgia Engel from the “Mary Tyler Moore” show) who vacuous expresses and antics added another layer of hilarity to this already crazy monkey business. (And this is before the monkeys show up!)
To be honest, if the play was really about this kind of crazy set up, it would probably be an acceptable, if run of the mill, musical. What made this a true night’s entertainment is that we are seeing this unfold- interruptions and all- though our narrators eyes (and his constantly skipping record player which adds to the humor since this controls the actions of these characters like a joystick does a Nintendo game). It wasn’t so much the plot was funny—it was the catty way our Narrator friend rips these stereotypes, horrible monologues and egomanical upstaging apart, as only a true fan could. In this play within a play, we get a taste of the various personalities of the people whom made up these fictitious characters and that adds to fun. The gossip that the Narrator shares with us is so engrossing and believable that you can see this being a real “Hollywood Insider” show about a real cast of dysfunctional alcoholics, has-beens and prima-donnas. And what lover of Hollywood and theater wouldn’t enjoy every second of that?
Does this provide the necessary gay entertainment quota for a true night on the town in Ogunquit? Well, if this doesn’t grab your attention in the first 10 minutes, I can’t think of anything else that would. There is something for everyone here- camp-aholics will love the over the top acting styles of the cast and the snide diva-war between Janet and her chaperone. (I was almost expecting an Alexis and Krystal –like fight scene ala Dynasty.) Musical theater buffs will appreciate the nods to various shows of that era (including a great chuckle during the “second act”) Also there is plenty of eye candy from both the romantic leads to keep you romantic buffs “aroused”- it sure did to the Narrator! All in all, a great way to start the season at the Playhouse. I look forward to seeing what else Mr. Kressley will do in the future here. I could see him as a seasonal regular ala Ms. Struthers.
“The Drowsy Chaperone” is playing at the Ogunquit Playhouse until June 26th. For tickets and information, check out their website at OgunquitPlayhouse.org
