James Vincent Meredith, Rick Holmes, Amanda Fink and Audrey Francis in “Noises Off” at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. (Photo by Michael Brosilow)
Recommended
A rather incompetent troupe of actors are expertly portrayed by a considerably expert cast in Steppenwolf’s revival of Michael Frayn’s classic British comedy, “Noises Off.” Directed by Anna D. Shapiro the farce kicks off the ensemble theater company’s 49th season.
“Noises Off” is a three act play within a play spoofing the genre of the popular mid-century English drawing room comedy while simultaneously poking fun at the actors and crew that produced them.
In our first act, director Lloyd Dallas (Rick Holms) labors valiantly to guide his cast through the dress rehearsal of this unknown play. It is immediately obvious that the cast is having serious difficulties remembering their stage directions and lines while struggling to understand the motivation behind their character’s activities.
In Act II we experience, essentially, the same first act but from a backstage perspective where it has become increasingly clear that during their time on the road interpersonal dramas between and amongst the cast has led to further confusion on stage and beyond.
The term “noises off” refers to noises heard offstage but ironically much of this act is done in very energetic pantomime.
Ora Jones, Francis Guinan, Rick Holmes, Audrey Francis, Amanda Fink and Vaneh Assadourian in “Noises Off” at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. (Photo by Michael Brosilow)
In Act III, the characters’ acting has not improved and neither has the relationship of the company as the play devolves into hilarious chaos.
This is broad comedy not unlike a television sitcom full of sophomoric jokes and slapstick physical humor. In this way it is just pure laugh-out-loud fun which this opening night audience seemed to appreciate and enjoy. But it might be safe to say that this may not be everyone’s cup of tea.
Conceived in 1970 and first performed in 1982, the humor is largely derived around poking fun at the quickly fading middle class morality and the stuffiness of the 1950s exemplified by a woman in underwear with falling pants, nose bleeds and false pomposity, plus, allusions to the high tax rate in the U.K. that was causing people to flee the country.
I saw “Noises Off” about thirty years ago and my recollection was that I thought it was okay. I was anxious to see if my opinion had changed. Essentially it has not. It’s fun. It’s funny. But with one or two exceptions it is not the kind of humor that makes me laugh out loud.
The character of Garry Lejeune (Andrew Leads) has an unmistakable, scattered, John Cleese (Fawlty Towers) vibe which is quite comical and a kind of staple of the period – a fellow who is outside his depth and working earnestly to participate in things often beyond his understanding or ability.
The well-constructed, attractive set designed by Todd Rosenthal is a Tudor style country house with many doors offering an opportunity for much coming and going typical of a farce. It definitely contributes to the confusion and comedy.
The genius of “Noises Off” is the rapid pacing and repetition which is why I believe this play is attractive to actors. Much of the same dialog is repeated in each act but each time with much different action going on that requires a wide range of performance skills.
In the end, I recommend seeing this because it is simply a laugh-a-minute classic comedy well performed but with the caveat that the broad humor might seem dated and too obvious for some.
DETAILS: “Noises Off” is at Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N Halsted Street, Chicago, IL, through November 3, 2024. Runtime: 2 hours 40 minutes with 2 intermissions. Fir tickets and more information visit Steppenwolf.org.