‘Nana Does Vegas’ makes Michigan debut at Meadow Brook
Mary Robin Roth is looking forward to her first role since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down theaters in 2020. She plays Nana in Meadow Brook Theatre’s production of “Nana Does Vegas,” which makes its Michigan debut Wednesday and runs through Jan. 30 at the theater in Rochester Hills.
Although she admitted to feeling “anxious” while driving to Michigan for the play, she also was excited. “My first day of rehearsal, I came in with my mask, and I saw Travis (Walter, director), and I just started to cry. It was emotional. It was a happy nervous cry.
“I’m in the Actors Equity Union, and they have certain guidelines,” Roth said. “We all have to be vaccinated and boosted. We get tested three times a week. We have to wear a mask during rehearsals — 6 to 7 hours a day.”
“Nana Does Vegas” is a farce. Meadow Brook audiences first met Nana in 2018 in “Nana’s Naughty Knickers.” Now, she’s in Las Vegas with her sidekick, Vera, where they make costumes for showgirls. In this show, Nana has a boyfriend who runs the casino.
“I (as Nana) am busy making these 15 showgirl costumes,” said Roth. “I have a deadline. My granddaughter (Franny Kromminga of New York City) is arriving from New York, and I’m throwing her a bridal shower. Her fiance (Dale White of New York City) was a detective. Now he’s with the FBI. He’s in Vegas — unbeknownst to the fiance — to investigate the casino and Nana’s boyfriend.
Nana’s granddaughter, Bridget, has no idea that her fiance Tom is investigating Nana’s boyfriend until Vera (Trudy Mason of Dearborn) spills the beans. “She says: ‘Your grandmother’s dating a man from the mob’. I say: ‘No, he’s a businessman; he’s very kind.’ My granddaughter asks: ‘So he’s not in the mob?’ I say: “Well, I didn’t say that…’ That’s where the conflict comes. I come up with a plan to save the day.”