Regina Little Theatre tees up Fox on the Fairway
RLT set to have fun with The Fox On The Fairway
Sometimes a playwright feels the need to set the tone early on and with The Fox On The Fairway, Ken Ludwig does exactly that.
The farce, which is the latest production from Regina Little Theatre, doesn’t take long to show the audience where the production is going. Early in the play, one of the characters says, “Golf and sex are the only two things you can enjoy without being good at them.”
The statement certainly grabbed the attention of Jean Taylor, the director of the production.
“I would absolutely agree with that statement,” she said with a laugh. “And yes, it definitely sets the tone for the play.”
The production tells the story of a group of members at a private country club that is locked in a fierce rivalry with another club. When a personal bet is made on an upcoming tournament, a number of twists and turns, along with mistaken identities and outrageous romantic hijinks, result in a wacky adventure.
With that being said, farce needs to be done well to be enjoyable. The actors, in an effort to get the biggest laughs possible, can’t resort to going over the top with their portrayals.
“That’s absolutely right,” said Taylor. “There is a difference — you have comedy and then there’s farce, which takes it further, and then there’s slapstick, which goes even further. You have to keep it in the boundaries of farce. You can push the envelope, to the edge of slapstick, but then you pull it back.”
Is mastering the different types of comedy a difficult skill for actors to grasp?
“I don’t think so. Actors who enjoy comedy, they will go as far as they can, expecting the director to pull them back somewhat,” said Taylor. “I have such a wonderful bunch of actors, that they can go all the way and they can take the notes to pull it back somewhat. It’s good.”
Rehearsals began in mid-April and Taylor feels the production is going smoothly heading toward opening night on June 13. Taylor said the biggest challenge has been the actors learning their lines.
That might sound like an easy task for an actor but it’s a little more difficult than it sounds, especially with the type of dialogue used in this particular production.
“If you have a long speech, you can learn it so well but if you’ve got a lot of little lines that don’t naturally follow on to each other where you throw in a line every once in a while, it’s much harder for the actor to learn to do that,” explained Taylor. “With a speech or a monologue, the thought process goes on and on and on whereas with the little ones, you’ve got to be quicker and understand where these lines fit.
“(The actors) have all done beautifully. Now once they’ve learned their blocking, where they need to go, then everything runs smoothly. It’s just a matter of doing it.”
The Fox On The Fairway premiered in 2010, so it’s a relatively new production.
“A lot has to be said for a play being set in the present day,” Taylor said. “Our costume person, Annetta Kuntz, she thinks it’s marvellous because it’s all modern day stuff. And of course, for the actors, they don’t have to get into old fashioned type speech and words. “It’s been relatively easy, I’d say.” Since its premiere, The Fox On The Fairway has received positive reviews. One recurring negative for the play, however, is that some feel the plot is too mechanical.
Taylor doesn’t agree with that opinion.
“I don’t really think that’s correct,” said Taylor. “Ken Ludwig is an American playwright but he wrote the play in the tradition of the British farce. As we know, British farce doesn’t appeal to everybody but we find that the Regina audiences love comedy farce, so why not do it for them? The plot is not mechanical at all. It’s a romp from the beginning to the end.”
The cast for the production is comprised of Devin Barss, Nena Hawkes, Jolaine Huber, Derek Klaassen, Kelly Munce, Jeff Ring, Bonnie Senger, Ken Spencer and Marianne Woods.
Joining Taylor and Kuntz on the production team are Cheryl Scherle (stage manager), Carri Lelliott (producer) and Bob Nicholls (sound).
Tickets are $23 for adults and $21 for seniors, students and youths. Tickets are available online at reginapac.com or by calling 306-779-2277.