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Moon Over Buffalo
By Ken Ludwig
Directed by John Nasca
Produced by Glitterati Productions
At the Theatre Building in Chicago
1225 W. Belmont Ave.
Chicago, IL
Call 773-327-5252, tickets $30 - $35
Thursdays & Fridays at 8 pm
Saturdays at 6 & 9 pm
Sundays at 3 pm
Running time is 2 hours, 10 minutes with intermission
Through May 27, 2007
Over acting and poor comedic timing dooms Ludwig farce
Ken Ludwig’s door-slamming farce, Moon Over Buffalo, at best, is a mediocre show but in the hands of an overly ambitious non-Equity cast it is a disaster. The decision to play the main characters, George (David Besky) and Charlotte Hay (Rachel Urbanowicz), way, way over-the-top quickly grates on us. This over acting feeds irritation and leaves the actors nowhere to go. The forced situations and the lame physical bits didn’t produce enough laughs. The cast simply tried too hard turning the hackney and cliché ridden script into an exercise in excess. The ham acting together with the screaming and screeching quickly became too much to tolerate.
The story deals with two over the hill actors, who have the opportunity to do a film that could rejuvenate their careers but a series of misinformation, mistaken identities and drunkenness threaten to ruin everything. Handled with deft comedic actors, Moon Over Buffalo could leave audiences totally immersed in laughter. Unfortunately, the manic action together with the missed comedic timing rendered the show flat and uneven. David Besky worked hard to make his character work but all he accomplished was blandness. This cast was simply overwhelmed with the strains of doing a farce. With a $30 - $35 ticket, one would expect more seasoned players. I’m amazed that the production is scheduled for a 12 week run.
Not Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: March 15, 2007
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