ANNA MARIA – The Island Players have struck comedy gold with their latest production, “A Comedy of Tenors,” the fourth of five plays in the 73rd season of productions at the Island Playhouse.
Directed by Preston Boyd, whose wife, Priscilla, is the stage manager, Ken Ludwig’s sequel to his hit, “Lend Me a Tenor” finds that a trio of temperamental tenors, one wife, one lover and a few significant others have been recruited to create havoc, make love to the wrong person, slam the usual number of doors, leap head first off a balcony, hide, dress and undress in corresponding bedrooms with one pretending to be who he is not.
The events all center around world-famous tenor Tito Merelli (John Andruzzi) as he arrives at his Paris hotel with his wife Maria (Valerie Lipscomb) to perform for 30,000 fans at a soccer stadium for a concert being billed as the biggest concert in the history of Paris. Tito is contracted to sing with two other tenors, Max (Mikey Lynch) and Carlo (Colin Brady) for the “show of the century” being promoted by the highly stressed, anxiety-riddled producer Saunders (James Thaggard), who wants nothing more than to get the tenors from the luxurious hotel room (brilliantly designed by set designer Jan Van Wart and the construction crew) that is the center of the chaos to the soccer stadium next door.
Unknown to Tito is the affair that is going on between his lovely daughter, Mimi (Katie Zanders), and Carlo, of whom Tito not only disapproves but who he mistakenly believes is having an affair with his wife. Add to this mixup the singing hotel porter (also played by Andruzzi) and a sexy Russian soprano (Sharon Bartley) who, unbeknownst to Maria, once had had an affair with Tito before they were married. Max, who was Saunder’s assistant in “Lend Me a Tenor” and is now his son-in-law, is anxious to get through the concert before his wife (not seen) goes into labor.
Director Boyd does a brilliant job of bringing out the best in each and every actor in this production. Andruzzi is simply hilarious from the moment he walks on stage with his comical Italian accent to the closing of the curtain, playing not only himself, but also Beppo, the singing bellhop. The only thing lacking in this play is the audience having backstage access during act two. Doors slamming open and closed, Tito and Beppo being two characters played by one man means lightning-fast costume changes (this is the case for other characters as well) which much be complete pandemonium behind the scenes, but is pulled off flawlessly. If only we could get a look at how they must be frantically changing costumes with seconds to spare.
“A Comedy of Tenors” runs through March 20 at the Island Playhouse, 10009 Gulf Drive. Contact the box office at 941-778-5755 or visit the website for ticket information.
