Rhode Island’s oldest community theatre, The Community Players is proud to present Ken Ludwig’s award-winning comedy, Lend Me a Tenor. The title is a pun on “Lend me a tenner,” as in a ten-dollar bill. Directed by Jay Burns, the production opened on Valentine’s Day, and there was lots of love in the air for sure.
World-renowned tenor Tito Merelli (Ronald Martin) has signed on to play the lead in Pagliacci at a Cleveland opera company in the fall of 1934. He arrives late and, through a series of crazy circumstances, passes out after mixing wine with a large dose of tranquilizers. Believing the divo to be dead, the excitable opera manager (Chris Sabatino) taps his hapless assistant, an aspiring singer named Max (Aster Kallman), to suit up as the clown and replace Merelli. Meanwhile, the tenor’s jealous wife Maria (Camille Terilli), his ambitious female co-star, Max’s young girlfriend Maggie, and the flirtatious head of the opera guild are on the scene fighting—sometimes literally—for the star’s attention.
The production also features the talents of Elizabeth Jacques as Maggie, Katie Weeks as Julia, Izzy Labbe as Diana, and David Mann as the bellhop. This cast is an octet with a lot of heart. Despite having a distinct height advantage in his opera clown costume, when Martin is serendipitously replaced by Kallman, the shenanigans begin, and no one is the wiser! Dialogue is an added bonus here, as these folks can pull off the physical comedy without uttering a word, so the script just adds to the merriment!
According to Burns, “Ken Ludwig is on the Mount Rushmore of comedy playwriting, and to me, Lend Me a Tenor is one of his greatest. It’s two hours of just good, plain fun. When the Community Players asked me about directing this show, it was an offer I couldn’t refuse.” The director adds, “And I think as well, we are in a world that has a lot of stressors and difficulty. This show is such a great distraction from the outside world.”
Distraction is putting it mildly. The open two-room set replicates a split hotel suite with an adjoining door. On the left is a sitting room with a sofa and chairs. A center divider partitions off the right half, a bedroom with closets. You can see what’s happening in both rooms simultaneously. There are five functional doors through which the actors come and go, and with perfect timing to create just the right amount of playful chaos. It’s a rollicking whodunit-to-whom fun time! You will love the unexpected thrills!
The Community Players present Lend Me a Tenor through February 23. Intermission snacks provided, donations benefiting their scholarship fund. For more information, visit www.thecommunityplayers.org.
