British Humor

Off-Broadstreet Theatre takes a ‘Run For Your Wife.’

By: Stuart Duncan

"image"
Michael A. Iacovelli plays Bobby, the neighbor of taxi driver John Smith (Steve Lobis) and his wife, Barbara (Amy Locane), in Off-Broadstreet Theatre’s Run For Your Wife.


   British playwright Ray Cooney has become almost as popular in the U.S. as he is at home. He is often called the "Neil Simon of London" and his comedies play for months in the West End, frequently two or three at one time. The most popular of his successes is Run For Your Wife, which has become a standard vehicle for college and community groups across the U.S.
   But for delicate timing, superb character foibles and the intricate shadings that take comedy to its highest level, you can look no further than the current staging of the 1980 comic masterpiece at Hopewell’s Off-Broadstreet Theatre. There, after a particularly attractive choice of desserts and beverages, the hilarious tale of the London taxi driver with two sexy wives only a few miles apart, played with unbounded energy and only a mild bump on the noggin to slow him down, will have you roaring in helpless laughter.
   Director Bob Thick has always insisted that 80 percent of any successful show is casting. This time, however, he has only three veterans in a company of seven, the others are newcomers. So this time it is quite evident that he himself has much to do with the hard acidity, the superb (and often tiny) twists and turns in the script and the nuances that turn a giggle into a genuine roar of laughter.
   Steve Lobis plays John Smith, the taxi driver, a role he has played before (in a very different, unsophisticated setting). Lobis, a superb actor who has tackled roles from Banquo in Macbeth to Salieri in Amadeus, is at the top of his comic form. Good thing since he gets fierce competition from Gavin Lawrence, who plays his upstairs neighbor at one of his homes, and Michael Iacovelli, who plays ditto at the second. Meanwhile, Alison Quairoli and Amy Locane (Secretary, Melrose Place) play Mary and Barbara, the two wives, clad in various stages of undress (the British rather enjoy putting full-size poster-board cutouts of scantily clad young ladies outside the theaters that are showing comedies. Playwright Cooney contributes heavily to this exciting custom).
   And meanwhile Todd Gregoire and John Grewen play the pair of detective sergeants assigned by their local precincts to investigate the rather strange case of a taxi driver who cannot seem to remember his proper address after a mild concussion. Both pull huge laughs. Cooney writes funny stuff and, in England, he often plays one of the leading roles himself and sometimes directs. For example, he played John Smith when the show premiered in the West End. He would be excited by this production.
   One caution: Opening weekend was virtually sold out, an indication that you would do well to make plans early and call for reservations as soon as you can. Sellouts at Off-Broadstreet are common.
Run For Your Wife continues at Off-Broadstreet Theatre, 5 S. Greenwood Ave., Hopewell, through July 21. Performances: Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 2:30 p.m. Doors open one hour prior to show time for dessert. Tickets cost $25.50-$27.25, $23.75 seniors (Sun. only); (609) 466-2766; www.off-broadstreet.com