Review of "A Flea in Her Ear"

   All the ingredients for a classic theatrical farce are contained in the Georges Feydeau play, A Flea in Her Ear, continuing at the Westport Country Playhouse through July 28.  The new version of the production, penned by David Ives, is clever, silly, highly stylized and includes a smattering of physical humor.  While not laugh out loud funny, the show provides audience members with ample amounts of chuckles and broad-grinned smiles.

David Beach, John Resenhouse, and Lee E. Ernst in “A Flea in Her Ear,” a new version of Georges Feydeau’s farce, written by David Ives, directed by Mark Lamos, at Westport Country Playhouse, now playing through July 28.  Photo by Carol Rosegg

The play, written by Feydeau in 1907, is his most popular play.  The piece is divided into three Acts.  The first is the set-up.  Characters are introduced, relationships delineated, and seeds of preposterous intrigue are planted.   Act II adds a few more daffy players, mixes in some precisely executed physical shenanigans, and stirs in the maneuvering and deceptions from the beginning.  The final Act neatly ties up mistaken identities and erroneous presumptions and suppositions into a satisfying conclusion.

It would not be worth the time to attempt to explain the intricacies of the storyline.  And why bother?  The fun of farce is to experience the absurd, improbable situations neatly unfold and build upon the proceeding moment or scene to create a humorous, controlled folly, calamity, and utter mayhem.  Suffice it to say the spark that propels the plot into motion is a wife’s suspicion of a husband’s infidelity.

 

Antoinette Robinson and Elizabeth Heflin in “A Flea in Her Ear,” a new version of Georges Feydeau’s farce, written by David Ives, directed by Mark Lamos, at Westport Country Playhouse, now playing through July 28.   Photo by Carol Rosegg

The large cast, seasoned from a production mounted last spring at the University of Delaware, is comfortable with the material and game for everything the playwright has conjured up.  Three of the performers stand out among the fine ensemble.  Lee E. Ernst is impressive in the dual role of Victor Chanebise, a loving and faithful husband and successful businessman; and Poche, a simple-minded, slightly inebriated hotel bellhop.  The actor skillfully, and hilariously, mixes over-the-top comedy as Poche with the more forthright demeanor of Monsieur Chanebise.  Mic Matarrese is uproarious as Camille Chandebise, a man who cannot pronounce his consonants.  His presence and word usage or, should I say, butchery, consistently has the audience in stitches.  Michael Gotch seems to be having so much fun playing the hot-blooded Spaniard Don Carlos de Histangua.  His exaggerated gesturing, fiery temperament, and vocal pyrotechnics are a joy to behold.

 

Antoinette Robinson and Michael Gotch in “A Flea in Her Ear,” a new version of Georges Feydeau’s farce, written by David Ives, directed by Mark Lamos, at Westport Country Playhouse, playing through July 28.  Photo by Carol Rosegg

Director Mark Lamos has smartly guided the show from its slowly progressing start, to a sustained build-up that develops into a spiraling, almost out-of-control envisagement.  His staging can be likened to an outlandish and comedic ballet that combines slamming doors, quick costume changes and one farcical moment after another.   He also has the cast in perfect sync with one another and Kristen Robinson’s well-attuned sets.

A Flea in Her Ear, an admirable production of Georges Feydeau’s chef-d'oeuvre, playing through July 28^th.