`Foreigner' humor is simple, cast has fun with characters.Byline: Paul Kolas COLUMN: THEATER REVIEW STURBRIDGE - Sometimes farce is so implausibly outrageous, it needs to be handled with a specific brand of directorial modulation to connect across the board with the audience. There was ample evidence on Saturday evening that Stageloft Repertory Theater's production of Larry Shue's bufoonish comedy "The Foreigner" - a strange mixture of "Green Acres" and "Twin Peaks" - tickled some funny bones, but for those of us who prefer our humor a cut above "Hee Haw haw, common name for several plants, e.g., the hawthorn and the black haw (see honeysuckle). " level discourse, it's best to let your mind wander and surrender to the hardworking efforts of the cast to make the unrelenting silliness and occasionally genuine humor digestible digestible having the quality of being able to be digested. digestible energy the proportion of the potential energy in a feed which is in fact digested. digestible protein see digestible protein. for two-and-a-half hours. Even the 1980s setup is wobbly: a British staff sergeant staff sergeant n. 1. a. Abbr. SSG A noncommissioned rank in the U.S. Army that is above sergeant and below sergeant first class. b. Abbr. SSgt A noncommissioned rank in the U.S. , "Froggy Frog´gy a. 1. Abounding in frogs. " LeSueur (Dave Glanville), is on his annual three-day visit to Georgia to teach the use of explosives at a U.S. Army camp, while staying at the nearby fishing lodge of an old friend, Betty Meeks (Betty Kristan). On this particular trip he's brought along his former officer, the painfully shy Charlie Baker (Jeremy Woloski), whose wife, Mary, is apparently gravely ill back home. Why anyone with a sick wife, and dreading talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to strangers, would even join a former military colleague on a trip thousands of miles from home is perplexing per·plex tr.v. per·plexed, per·plex·ing, per·plex·es 1. To confuse or trouble with uncertainty or doubt. See Synonyms at puzzle. 2. To make confusedly intricate; complicate. enough, let alone the fact that the only seeming guests at Betty's lodge are an engaged couple - wealthy heiress Catherine Sims (Christine Taylor) and the Rev. David Lee David Lee may refer to:
The gimmick that allows Woloski free reign to make Charlie a sometimes jibbering delight - and Shue to deliver a moral jab at racial and ethnic bigotry - is Froggy's idea to convert him into a non-English speaking foreigner, in order to spare him the discomfort of having to talk to anyone. As funny as that may sound - and Woloski makes things as amusing as he can with his gift for portraying befuddlement Noun 1. befuddlement - confusion resulting from failure to understand bafflement, bemusement, bewilderment, mystification, obfuscation, puzzlement confusedness, disarray, mental confusion, muddiness, confusion - a mental state characterized by a lack of and mischief - it's a labored device that wears thin. One of the most effective scenes is one inspired by the Marx Brothers: Charlie mimics Ellard's every move at the dining table, putting a glass on his head, waving his arms, etc., and Ellard enthusiastically plays along with his new friend. Arsenault captures Ellard's childlike innocence with casual charm, especially when he's "teaching" Charlie some English by pointing to various objects. Charlie uses his pidgin English and "native" tongue to charm the overalls off of Betty and confound, enrage en·rage tr.v. en·raged, en·rag·ing, en·rag·es To put into a rage; infuriate. [Middle English *enragen, from Old French enrager : en-, causative pref. , and eventually foil Owen and the reverend. Glanville slips in and out of his English accent in his very relaxed turn as Froggy. Pellaton is a raging caricature of a Georgia cracker as Owen. And while Martel doesn't seem completely comfortable with the role of Reverend Lee, Kristan has a field day as Betty with a rip-snorting Southern accent freshly harvested from the plantation. She's clearly enjoying the chance to be as silly as she can be and cut loose with her comedic acting skills. Taylor's Christine is a far more refined example of the Southern Belle, but all in all, "The Foreigner" is about as flattering a picture of the South as "Deliverance." `The Foreigner' * * Written by Larry Shue, directed by Edward Cornely, presented by Stageloft Repertory Theater, 450A Main St., Sturbridge. Performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m., through Aug. 9. Tickets: $16 adults, $14 seniors 65+, $8 students under 14. For information and reservations call (508) 347-9005, or visit www.stageloft.com. Key to the Stars * * * * ... Hot Stuff * * * ... Good Job * * ... Not Bad * ... Never Mind ART: PHOTO CUTLINE: In a scene from "The Foreigner" are Betty Kristan as Betty Meeks and Jeremy Woloski as Charlie Baker. PHOTOG pho·tog n. Informal A person who takes photographs, especially as a profession; a photographer. : PAUL KOLAS |
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