Bill DeLoriea offers positive review of "The Man Who Came to Dinner"

 

[June 21, 2018] 

LINCOLN 

Lincoln Community Theatre’s first offering of the summer is “The Man Who Came to Dinner” by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart.

The play is set in the present—1939—and the action both revolves around and is steered by Sheridan Whiteside (Brandon Davis), a powerful and selfish media personality whose national radio show has given him access to and the friendship of the stars of the day. And there is much name-dropping as the play progresses. If you remember or know much about the 1930s and 1940s, you’ll appreciate these little insertions by Whiteside; in his bragging and often insulting monologues he refers to Lana Turner, Cary Grant, Hamilton Fish, Salvador Dali, Louella Parsons, Joan Crawford, Sam Goldwyn, Ethel Barrymore, Mahatma Gandhi, Arturo Toscanini, and many, many others.

Whiteside has been invited to dine at the home of the wealthy owner of an Ohio factory, Ernest Stanley (Derek Radmacher). The family includes his wife, Daisy (Caroline Higgins), and daughters, Rachel (Jacqueline Keysear) and June (Lillian Wilkin). Before Whiteside enters the house, he slips on a patch of ice outside the front door and injures his hip. He then threatens to sue the Stanleys, and they are forced to allow him to stay while he recovers.

Whiteside is attended to by a local physician, Dr. Bradley (Steven Stowers), and Miss Preen, a nurse (Karyn Blumhagen). A subplot that runs throughout the play involves the doctor’s attempts to have Whiteside read the book he has written, a situation that proves useful when Whiteside needs a reason to extend his stay. You see, his life is about to change for the worse when his secretary of 10 years, Maggie Cutler (Sheralyn Bolton), falls in love with the local newspaper editor, Bert Jefferson (Michael Lovett). Whiteside hatches a plan to destroy this romance by using the feminine wiles of actress Lorraine Sheldon (Rachel Dillinger). This is the basic plot.

Along the way, there are many funny appearances by locals and by friends of Whiteside. Notable are the cute Mrs. Dexter and Mrs. McCutcheon (Ann Brookens and Cari Wilmert), the funny and strange Professor Metz (David Helm), the very odd and kind of scary sister of Mr. Stanley, (Tegan Follis).

Two minor characters truly own the stage when they appear: Beverley Carlton, a character perhaps modeled on Noel Coward (Nathan Brandon Gaik) and Banjo, a character that suggests both Harpo Marx and Jimmy Durante (Tim Searby). Big laughs are in store when each of these characters have their moments.

The large cast is well directed by Phil Funkenbusch. The lighting and set work really well for the production. The costumes are just right. Particularly enjoyable is the choice of recorded music from the period to set the scene and fill the transitions between.

The show runs about 150 minutes, including two intermissions. Performances are in the Johnston Theatre on the Lincoln College campus June 21st through June 24th. On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, shows start at 7:30pm; Sunday the show starts at 2:00pm. Tickets are available through www. lincolncommunitytheatre.org,  by calling 217-651-4271, or at the box office an hour prior to performance start time.

[Bill DeLoriea]

Bill DeLoriea coached speech and directed theatre for decades at Olympia High School in Stanford, IL. In his retirement, Bill continues to be a judge for the Illinois High School Association's speech and theatre programs and mentors those who follow in his footsteps. Bill graciously reviewed the Lincoln Community Theatre's opening show of "The Man Who Came to Dinner" and submits his review for publication.