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Good Morning, Bill
By Brad Bradley
Heidi Armbruster & Jeremiah Wiggins
(Photo: Leslie Lyons) |
The current production oddly is its New York premiere, although Wodehouse was a prolific writer, grinding out dozens of books as well as many plays. Well into his nineties when he passed away in 1975, today he is probably best remembered for his Jeeves and Bertie characters, and is well known by theater historians as the librettist or lyricist of numerous musicals.
Forsman has concocted a seamless and stylish production that appropriately moves at a mostly frantic pace, yet remains light as a feather. He is served well by his excellent cast, headed by the supremely affable Jeremiah Wiggins as Bill, a young well-born man without either direction or profession and an utterly winning Heidi Armbruster as Dr. Sally Smith, a physician who treats him for a non-existent illness and happily succumbs to his inept seduction only when she realizes Bill actually has a spine, a contrast to his dithering manner throughout most of the play. Ms. Armbruster gives a truly stunning performance, beautifully dancing the delicate line between an ahead-of-her-time professional female and a woman whose heart has been spoken to.
Added to the mix are Lord Tidmouth, a Wildean dilettante out of the past who comes by to return an umbrella borrowed a decade earlier (played with quintessential nonchalance by Nick Toren) and Uncle Hugo, an eccentric relative who, while a doctor himself, is much more enamored of golf than medicine and represents the lingering prejudices of the privileged class. (John Vennema’s amusing over-the-top portrait will remind some of a long-ago performance by 1920s icon Rudy Vallee in the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.) The only other principal is Lottie, a decidedly lower-class gold digger played by Bridget Ann White in a spirited performance. Unfortunately, in the production’s only real irritant, her accent, leaning towards cockney, is inconsistent and unconvincing. Superlative servants are perfectly played by Jenny Mercein and David Standish.
The designs for this simple staging are magnificent, with special praise due to set designer Nathan Heverin, notably for his clever use of space-defining curtains and wry suspended portraits of the family gallery, and to costumer Theresa Squire who manages to convey both the lingering noblesse oblige tone of the upper crust (especially via a Noel Coward-inspired dressing gown and dinner jacket) and the daring feminism displayed by a brave or fanciful few by wearing pants (!) as later seen on the likes of Kate Hepburn in the movies.
Director Forsman must have trimmed the original script, for its running time of less than two hours, perfect now, would have been seen as too short when the play was first offered. But he has retained all the eccentricity and charm that an English screwball romantic comedy should deliver, from an adult’s hobby horse to sardine sandwiches, and this script’s ample silliness, affectations, and sentimental finish are beautifully modulated to deliver the goods to contemporary audiences.
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Good Morning, Bill by P. G. Wodehouse
Directed by Carl Forsman for Keen Company Cast: Jenny Mercein, Nick Toren, Bridget Ann White, Jeremiah Wiggins, Heidi Armbruster, David Standish, and John Vennema. Set Design: Nathan Heverin Costume Design: Theresa Squire Lighting Design: Josh Bradford Sound Design: Stephan Jacobs Running Time: One hour, fifty minutes including intermission Keen Company at the Connelly, 220 E. 4th St. (Avenues A/B) 212-868-4444 Tuesday through Saturday at 8:00; matinee Sundays at 2. Closes October 12. 9/19/03 to 10/12/03; opening 9/25/03. Tues -- Sat 8pm and Sundays at 2pm-- $19; TDF vouchers ok. Viewed on Tuesday, September 23, 2003 by Brad Bradley |
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